It is currently 4.48pm in Adelaide on Monday 22nd November, 2010. I posted some fabric to a lady in Canada today, the lady in the post office said "Just as well your not sending it to America". Obvious questions "Why?". She tells me that as from today America has imposed a levy for Aviation Security on all parcels weighing 500grams or more being sent airmail by private individuals. I understand that this levy is not only for Australia,it is world wide. The levy here in Australia is $A9.00. The levy does not apply to businesses.
Will have to try and keep my mailings under 500grams.

Wow thanks for that information. I'm glad I posted my Secret Santa last week. Maybe we will have to think very carefully about swaps etc next year.Postage is already quite expensive from Australia.

Wow, didn't know that. Will have to recalculate things now, and send in 2 parcels instead of just one. Thanks for the heads up.

Looks like I'll have to rethink my Xmas parcel for US friends.
Tim Tams, Cherry Ripe's, and Violet Crumble's will definitely be out. Grrrrr!

I know it will take longer to get there, but maybe we could use Sea Mail for some mailings. Just a thought.

Someone recently tried to mail a bomb in a printer from Yemen to a Jewish church in Chicago. I suppose this new fee is to try to stop such things. It's a shame that this stuff always ends up being a pain to honest people.

I just recently found out that it is no longer allowed to send fooditems to the USA. No Chocolate...............unless you get a form for special permission in advance. They said it is because of biological terror hazard. Isnt this world crazy!?
I had to go over a swiss firm that is specialized in shipping chocolate and sweets overseas - the most expensive chocolate ever!
Granny

I was told the other day at the post office that sea mail from Australia to America will take two to three months. I decided to pay the $A5.00 difference between sea and air mail.

at least you can get sea mail, economy overseas shipping from US to anywhere is not available anymore. Everything HAS to go airmail.

Honest people always suffer. The fee will not stop those that want to do harm.
God help us all.

Kathy that is exactly what I was thinking!!

The fee will just make a red flag. Hopefully you will take a pic of what you are sending once it is boxed up and then email to those who you are sending to and see if they were opened and riffled threw. It is supposed to be illegal. but that doesn't stop the post office. My uncle sent my bro some equipment and powders and chemicals to make rubber. the post office not only opened up the package but dumped out the packets of powders and chemicals. they are probably still cleaning up the mess that they made. hehe jokes on them I guess.

My apologies to all our world neighbors! Sometimes gov't. doesn't think before they do things!

ahhhh, i have yet to mail a present to Australia for Christmas!!! Oh well, it must be done.

Yep, its sad that the dishonest people ruin things for the good people.

Hey, anybody get felt up by a TSA agent yet? Looking forward to traveling this year, oh yea. Gees! LOL

Well, it's all for security ya know!
Some pol will line his/her pockets with all that extra money.

This is a sad thing for those on this board in round robins and swaps.

If businesses are exempt from the surcharge, is it possible for you to ship things through UPS? I'm not sure about other countries, but here in the US they have storefronts that you can bring items into for shipping. There is a fee, but I think it is less than the amount you mentioned. Just a thought. And, another apology from the US for overreacting and making life difficult for decent people.

Just as a heads up, was talking to local PO today, and it's anything over 453 gms. So it's actually less than half a kilo. They sugggested shipping in two or more parcels. Not so eady when it's actually a quilt top. Oh well, will have to wait until Jan when I ship the IRR cente back to see.

Might check with your LQS and ask them if you package it, would they mail it, since it doesn't apply to businesses.

I used to do a lot of selling on E-Bay, but with the postage going crazy, I have had to quit doing that. No one wants to buy something then have to pay twice the price of the product for the postage.

I agree.

That's a new one to me. I just sent a quilt within USA weighing more than 500 gr and there was no extra charge. Wonder when they came up with that one? Must be they want to pay for all the TSA padders at the airports.

That's interesting.
Do you have any friends who work in businesses that would post something for you? Naturally you would pay them whatever their cost is.

I say, the terrorists are winning. We are losing our freedoms because of them. We have additional expenses because of them...

And yes, I have been felt up by TSA, but that was my own fault and a pretty funny story. I was coming back from Va and at Norfolk security (as well as everywhere else) there is a sign that says take off your jacket and put it in the basket. Well my travel companion didn't take off her baggy pullover fleece top, so she got diverted to the pat down area. I did follow directions and took my jacket off and went through the metal detector just fine, but had not been paying attention to what was happening with my friend and went over to where she was standing. Well apparently once your "in the box" where the searches are done, you may not leave until you are searched so you cannot get something away from the person being searched and hide it. So a very nice woman explained exactly what she was about to do and did it quickly and professionally. We (my friend and I) were laughing the entire time at my screw-up. Give the TSA a break, they're just trying to do their job. If my friend had followed directions in the first place, we wouldn't have been in that situation. I'd much rather be patted down than have more radiation treatments than I've already had! You can blame this on the terrorists too!!

I don't think the levy applies to mail from America to other countries. To me the powers to be have not thought this through. If someone was going to send something through the mail an extra levy is not going to stop them, it would be a small price to pay to carry out their intentions, or they would find some way of using smaller parcels, the only people this is stopping is the honest person. If less people send parcels to America because of the levy they would need less postal workers, less postal workers means less revenue, more strain on social welfare, possible increase in crime, you get the picture. I have other thoughs about this levy but here on this board is neither the time or the place.

A locked door keeps the honest people honest, criminal element will find a way in. Sad but true.

That is exactly right. They aren't going to care about the fee. It is a shame that it hurts honest people.

Terrorists have cost us more than lives. May be because I am not a terrorist, I don't understand their thought process. Why do they feel they have to terrorize innocent people. Americans and other reasonable people just want to live in peace.

And now this fee, I don't understand the point of the fee. It certainly doesn't keep terrorists from mailing something, they don't care about an extra fee.

Also heard today that parcels under 1,000gm not subject to import tax + GST, but it is being "looked into" because tons of people are buying fabric on line and there is fear of on - selling. Happy to be corrected if I misheard the radio this morning.

Fear is always a good motivator for revenue raising.

When I lived in England, in the 80s, family sent me jars of Australian confectionery for my birthday. When I got the parcel, all of the chocolates and sweets were mixed up and put back as mixed lots into whatever jars they would fit in. There was no need for it, as the jars were transparent. After "trying" or testing the contents, I can only imagine how many hands went through the lot to put them back in the jars. I threw them out, wondering why they even bothered to continue to send the parcel.

We will be driving from now on. No more airports for us.

How stupid to think that a terrorist would balk at paying extra to get a bomb through. Duh!

What a world we live in today.

O lordy, such distastefulness. I'm sorry about the inconveniences to everyone. I wish things were not in this condition in the world.
And how much fabric or books is 500 grams, anyway??
.

500 grams is approx. 17.6oz.

It sounds like the limit is one pound as Americans understand it.

And the dishonest ones will continue to do what they do...whatever the cost.

That is ad news!!
My dtr lives in the Carribean and ALL mail goes through the US!!
So much for christmas! :roll:

Honest people always suffer. The fee will not stop those that want to do harm.
God help us all.[/quote]

Can't agree more with the above statement. A more skeptical person than I might just assume though that is is a great excuse to bump up the charges in a manner which be more more palatable to customers. I am in the international RR swap this year and on round 2, already over the 500gms so am in for an expensive swap for the remainder. Will definitely have to rethink next years projects now. Such a pity to as this is heaps of fun.

Maybe1day