Our son-in-law is a postal carrier and we happen to be on his route.  You
are right - it depends on the individual post office's interpretation.  When
we first sent out International mail, we had to fill out a form telling its
contents.  At that time, we learned you didn't have to do that for all
mail - just over a certain weight.
 
So we gave our son-in-law a package to mail that was under the weight limit
(actually copies of American Conchologist), and when he got to the post
office with it, his postmaster insisted that a form be filled out.  He
called us on the phone and filled it out for us.
 
I haven't personally searched about International Mail on the Web, but the
URL is:
 
http://www.usps.gov
 
You can also calculate the cost to mail anything, either domestic or
international.
 
Sylvia Edwards
Huntsville AL
[log in to unmask]
 
-----Original Message-----
From: Aydin Orstan <[log in to unmask]>
To: [log in to unmask] <[log in to unmask]>
Date: Thursday, March 11, 1999 9:25 AM
Subject: Re: [CONCH-L] Shipping shells out of USA.
 
 
>Sam,
>Whether or not the U.S. Post Office requires contents declaration on all
>packages sent to foreign countries is a question I have not been able to
>answer satisfactorily. Last year I mailed one paperback book and a small
>envelope of shells to European countries & on neither occasion was I asked
to
>declare contents. On one occasion the postal clerk told me that I didn't
have
>to declare contents of packages weighing less than half a pound. But a few
>months ago when I mailed a package weighing less than that to Canada, I had
>to declare the contents. On that occasion the clerk told me that the
contents
>of all packages regardless of their weight had to be declared. Then he
added,
>very seriously: "A person could be mailing a bomb".
>
>I have a feeling that depending on the mood or knowledge of a postal clerk,
>one may sometimes be able to send small packages to foreign countries
withot
>having to declare contents.
>
>A.
>