How to ship to the US with Japan Post (DDP) using Zonos

Getting Started

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Overview

Ship to the US via Japan Post again — fully compliant with the new US duty rules.

Ship&co integrates with Zonos to enable DDP (Delivered Duty Paid) shipments via Japan Post International to the United States. Zonos handles duty calculation, collection, and remittance to US Customs on your behalf. 

This integration supports Japan → US shipments only.

Why Zonos is Required

As of August 2025, a U.S. executive order suspended the duty-free exemption (de minimis) for international postal items. As a result, postal items bound for the U.S. now require advance payment of duties (DDP) based on the declared value of the contents before the package leaves Japan.

• Documents, letters, and gifts between individuals under USD 100: Advance payment of duties is not required.
• Other contents under USD 100, and all categories from USD 100 to USD 2,500: Advance payment of duties is required. The label will display "DDP" and a Declaration ID. Even when the calculated duty amount is zero, processing through Zonos is required to obtain a Declaration ID, and a postal customs clearance fee applies.
• Over USD 2,500: Advance payment of duties is not required.

*The threshold for postal items subject to duty prepayment has been raised from USD 800 to USD 2,500, effective July 24, 2026.

*Starting with postal items arriving in the U.S. on or after July 24, 2026, standard Most Favored Nation (MFN) duty rates—based on each item's HTS classification and country of origin—will apply to postal shipments for the first time, just as they already do for commercial shipments. In addition, items may be subject to further duties depending on the product, including a Section 301 forced labor tariff of 10% or 12.5% (depending on country of origin), which replaces the Section 122 tariff that expired on July 24, 2026, as well as Section 232 tariffs on steel and aluminum products. These duties are assessed based on the shipment's arrival date in the U.S.

At present, using Zonos is mandatory to ship to the U.S. via Japan Post with DDP. For instructions on using the Zonos integration with Ship&co, please see below.
 

Step 1 — Create a Zonos Verified Account for Japan Post and Obtain an Account key

1. Go to Japan Post referral Zonos link and sign up for a Verified Account. (Here is the Zonos official page to refer to)
2. Under Account → Billing, add a credit card — this is required to activate your account key
3. Under Account → General, enter your Japan Post shipper identifier (Later Pay Number / ゆうびんビズカード Number) — this is required to use Zonos services for JapanPost shipments.
4. Once both steps are complete, your "Account key" is visible under Account → Integrations → Account key (The "API key" also shown on the screen is not required for this process.)

[Please Note]
If a Japan Post-verified Zonos account has been properly created, the Japan Post logo will appear below your name in the upper left of the Zonos dashboard, as shown in the image below.

If the Japan Post logo is not displayed, your account is a standard Zonos Ecommerce account — the Later Pay Number (ゆうびんビズカード Number) field will not be available, and you will not be able to obtain an Account Key. In this case, please contact Zonos Support at support@zonos.com with your "Account Number" shown in the upper left of the Zonos dashboard, and request that your account be migrated to a Japan Post-verified account.

Step 2 — Add Zonos to Ship&co

1. In Ship&co, go to the Carriers page
2. Click the Zonos icon in the "Add a new Carrier" section
3. Enter your Zonos Verified Account Key in the Account Key field
4. Enter your Yu-Bin Biz Card number (32 digits), if you plan to create postpaid slips (後納差出票). Use the same Yu-Bin Biz Card number you entered in Step 1 above when created your Japan Post-verified Zonos account. Shipping labels generated after your Yubin Biz Card number has been saved are eligible for inclusion on the postpaid slips.
5. Select which JapanPost services you want to use with the Zonos integration
6. Save the settings

Only one Zonos account can be added per Ship&co account.

Step 3 — Create a Shipping Label

When creating a shipping label for an order from Japan to the US, select Zonos as the carrier to create a Japan Post DDP shipment.

• DDP / Duty Paid must be enabled — shipments without DDP is blocked. ※When using Zonos's bulk label issuance feature, DDP is automatically enabled.
• Only single-parcel shipments are supported
• The estimated shipping cost displayed for Zonos is equivalent to the estimated rate for the corresponding international postal service. Please note that "N/A" will be displayed for Zonos if the shipment exceeds the service's weight limit.
• If information is entered in the "Company Name" field of the recipient's address, the international postal label will be generated with the Contents type set to "BtoB commercial goods." If you are shipping items sold via online retail (e-commerce goods), please ensure that the "Company Name" field is left blank.
• If the "Full Name" field for the recipient is left blank and information is entered only in the "Company Name" field, the Zonos API specifications cause the company name to be repeated three times in the recipient section of the label.

Available Shipping Services

• Air: EMS (goods), Air Packet, Letters/Others, Letters/Others (Registered), Postal Parcel, Printed Matter, Printed Matter (Registered), Small Packet
• Surface: Letters/Others, Postal Parcel, Printed Matter, Small Packet
   

Labels, Customs Documents and Fulfillment

• Shipping labels are issued in PDF format. The format is the same as a standard international postal label, but "DDP" and a Declaration ID are printed at the top of the label. The Declaration ID is different for each label created.
• The Zonos API has an automatic HTS code correction feature. As a result, a code different from the one you set may appear as a 10-digit HTS code in the label's HS code field.
• Due to how the Zonos API works, the symbols "%", "&", "$", "~", and "?" are automatically omitted and will not appear on the label. Please note this in advance.
• The weight set as the Total Gross Weight is automatically distributed across the number of items included and reflected in the Net Weight field on the label. However, if per-item weights are set via the Shopify integration or the Ship&co API, those take precedence.
• For shipment status updates (fulfillment) to integrated stores such as Shopify and Amazon, the carrier name is displayed as Japan Post — not Zonos.
   
• Puerto Rico: To ship to Puerto Rico with Zonos, set the destination country as United States and the province/state code as PR.
• Other US territories (e.g. Guam, Saipan): DDP is not available via Zonos. Please use the native Japan Post carrier or another carrier.

Customs Invoice Generation

• EMS and Postal Parcel services: A customs invoice (Ship&co format) is not generated separately, because Japan Post-generated invoice is already included as the INVOICE on the Japan Post label.
• Other shipping services (other than EMS and Postal Parcels): A customs invoice (Ship&co format) is generated automatically. Please print it separately and use it as needed.

Postpaid Mail Slip (後納郵便物等差出票)

• Please refer to this support page.
   

Deleting (Canceling) a Label

If you cancel after issuing a DDP label, it will be treated as Void on Ship&co's "Shipments" screen, and the order data will reappear on the "Orders" screen. You can make any necessary edits there and issue a new label.

Please note that canceling on Ship&co does not mark the label as Void on the Zonos / Japan Post side. However, rest assured that no customs duties will be charged to your Verified Account unless the label is scanned by Japan Post. No shipping charges will be incurred for labels that are not actually used for shipment.

For Ship&co API users

Businesses and logistics providers with high shipping volumes can integrate Ship&co's API to generate shipping labels directly from their own systems. For more information on the Ship&co API, please visit this page.

Zonos Integration API Setup

• Carrier value: zonos
• customs.duty_paid must be true (required)
• Credentials: { "account_key": "your_verified_account_key" }
• Service name format: zonos_japan_post_[air|surface]_[service]
  Example: EMS — zonos_japanpost_ems

Common Errors

• DDP_REQUIRED — Please enable the DDP (prepaid duties) option before creating a label
• DDP Not Available — This DDP service cannot be used for shipments where the product value exceeds 800 USD.
• Services not showing — Please check that your origin warehouse is in Japan and destination is the US
• Invalid credentials — Verify the Account Key in your Zonos dashboard under Integrations
• Duplicate account error — Only one Zonos integration is allowed per Ship&co account

Accepting Post Offices

International Mail using DDP labels can only be submitted at designated post offices. For the latest information on designated post offices, please check the Japan Post page.
 

Zonos Verified Account Billing

There is no paid subscription for the Zonos Verified Account itself — no recurring plan fee. The credit card on file is simply auto-billed for the duties Zonos collects, plus a per-shipment postal clearance fee.

• Billing is processed daily for new shipments; however, please note that it may take up to approximately 48 hours for data to be transmitted from Japan Post to Zonos, which may in turn cause delays in the timing of invoicing from Zonos.
• The postal clearance fee is shown in your Zonos Dashboard under Settings → Billing → Plan.
• No customs duties or fees are charged for labels that are never used for shipment (see "Deleting (Canceling) a Label" below).

For full details on Zonos billing and payments, please refer to the Zonos billing and payments documentation.
 

Questions?

Please submit a request from here, or contact us at hello@shipandco.com