Aug 29, 2025 .
Why the World Stopped Shipping to America?!?
The Great Un-Ship-pening: Why the World (Seemingly) Stopped Sending Packages to America
Have you ever tried to order a unique handmade craft from Poland, a specific book from the UK, or a new gadget from Asia, only to be met with a dreaded message at checkout?
“We do not ship to the United States.”
If so, you’re not alone. For many American online shoppers, the global marketplace has started to feel… smaller. It can feel like the world has decided to hang up a “Closed for US Business” sign.
But why? The truth is, the world hasn’t stopped shipping to America. The process has just become so complex, expensive, and risky for international sellers that many small and mid-sized businesses have simply thrown their hands up and said, “It’s not worth it.”
Let’s break down the real reasons, picture by picture.
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1. Customs Paperwork
This isn’t your average “address and send” label. Shipping internationally to the U.S. requires navigating a labyrinth of customs regulations. Sellers must correctly classify every single item with an HS code, provide detailed descriptions of contents and values, and ensure every ‘i’ is dotted and ‘t’ is crossed.
One small mistake can lead to massive delays, the package being returned, or even destroyed. For a small Etsy seller in Greece, the time and stress involved in learning and correctly executing this for one $30 order is often a dealbreaker.
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2. Sky-High Shipping Fees
This is the biggest factor. International shipping rates, particularly from private carriers like DHL, FedEx, and UPS, have skyrocketed. While national postal services (like Royal Mail in the UK or Canada Post) are more affordable, they can be slower and offer less reliable tracking.
For a consumer, seeing a $50 shipping fee on a $25 item is an instant cart-abandonment moment. For the seller, offering “free shipping” is impossible, and subsidizing the cost would erase their already slim profit margin. It’s easier to just exclude the US market from their shipping options altogether.
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3. The “Ship & Get Burned” Problem
The distance and complexity create more room for things to go wrong—a package gets stuck in customs, a delivery is delayed, or an item is damaged in transit. When this happens, who does the US customer blame? The seller.
This often leads to:
· Angry emails and negative reviews, damaging a small shop’s reputation.
· Chargebacks: US consumers are savvy about disputing charges with their credit card companies. The seller often loses these disputes automatically, losing both the product and the money.
The risk of a single problematic order wiping out the profit from ten successful ones is a terrifying prospect for a small business.
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4. The “De Minimis” Loophole
Here’s a uniquely American twist. The U.S. has a high “de minimis” value—$800. This means most individual packages valued under $800 enter the country duty-free and with minimal customs scrutiny.
You’d think this would help, right? It does for massive marketplaces like Amazon and Shein, who can ship millions of low-value packages directly to US consumers with ease. But it hurts smaller international businesses who can’t compete with the logistics giants and whose packages, precisely because they are from unfamiliar small companies, might face more scrutiny anyway. The policy benefits the biggest players, squeezing out the little guys.
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So, What’s the Solution? Is All Hope Lost?
Not quite. While the trend is challenging, it’s not a total blockade. Here’s what you can do as a US-based shopper:
· Look for US-Based Distributors: Many popular international brands have US-based warehouses or official distributors.
· Use a Parcel Forwarding Service: Services like Shipito or MyUS provide you with a foreign address (e.g., in the UK or Germany). You ship your order to that address, and they forward it to you in the US. Be warned: this adds cost and complexity, but it can bypass a seller’s “no US shipping” rule.
· Message the Seller Directly: Sometimes, a polite inquiry can work wonders. Ask if they’d consider making an exception and shipping to the US if you agree to cover the full cost and understand the risks. It never hurts to ask!
The world hasn’t stopped shipping to America. But the golden age of effortless, cheap global e-commerce is over for many. It’s now a landscape shaped by complex logistics, high costs, and big-business advantages. The quirky, unique items are still out there—they’re just a little harder, and sometimes more expensive, to bring home.
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Have you encountered the “we don’t ship to the US” problem? What was the item you were desperately trying to get? Share your stories in the comments below!
