Shipping carrier statuses
Each shipping carrier is responding to COVID-19, and the holiday season, differently. Review the carrier's latest updates to learn how changes to their services might impact your shipping.
The Centers for Disease Control, World Health Organization, and Surgeon General have stated that there is no evidence that COVID-19 can be spread through the mail.
If you are in the United States and purchase shipping labels through Shopify Shipping, then consider purchasing additional insurance to help protect your shipments.
Shipping carrier overview
Review the table below to get an overview of each shipping carrier.
Carrier | Additional surcharges | Changes to Service Level Agreements (SLAs) | Impact to Shopify Shipping |
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USPS |
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UPS |
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DHL Express |
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Canada Post |
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Sendle |
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Canada Post
Due to recent events, Canada Post has suspended shipments to addresses in Ukraine.
For more information, refer to Canada Post's news releases.
For more information about service disruptions, refer to Canada Post's daily service alerts.
DHL
Due to recent events, DHL has suspended shipments to addresses in Ukraine and Russia. Shipments from Ukraine are also suspended.
Effective May 24, 2020, DHL Express added an Emergency Situation Surcharge to most shipments. This surcharge was further adjusted on July 1, 2020, and increased to Australia and New Zealand destinations on November 7, 2021.
For more information about the Emergency Situation Surcharge, refer to DHL's Emergency Situation Surcharge (ESS) Adjustment.
For more information about DHL service disruptions, refer to DHL's COVID-19 updates.
UPS
Due to recent events, UPS has suspended shipments to addresses in Ukraine and Russia. Shipments from Ukraine are also suspended.
For UPS's service alerts, refer to UPS's service alerts.
As a commitment from UPS to merchants on Shopify, UPS shipping labels purchased through Shopify Shipping are exempt from peak season surcharges, and UPS isn't increasing its rates on Shopify Shipping labels.
USPS
USPS has the following changes to their service:
- Shipments to Australia and New Zealand must be sent through Priority Mail Express International. All other international services to Australia and New Zealand are suspended.
- USPS isn't shipping to certain countries. For more information, refer to USPS's international service disruptions.
- Effective October 1, 2021, existing one-day to three-day service standards will change to one to five days for first-class mail.
- There are delays in USPS mail and package deliveries to and from certain countries.
For more information about any USPS service disruptions to businesses, refer to USPS® Coronavirus Updates for Business Customers.
For more information about specific country delays for USPS shipments, refer to USPS's international service disruptions.
Sendle
Sendle has the following changes to their services:
- Due to recent events, Sendle has suspended shipments to addresses in Ukraine, Russia, and Belarus.
- Currently, Sendle is experiencing service disruptions due to flooding in certain Australian regions.
- Sendle has the following changes to their service during the coronoavirus pandemic:
- Sendle's contactless delivery means that all "signature on delivery" shipments have been changed to "authority to leave".
- Sendle has temporarily suspended shipments to certain international destinations. For the full list, refer to Sendle's list of suspended destinations.
For more information about Sendle's current service and performance statuses, refer to the following pages: