Pakistan and India suspend mail deliveries to US

Dubai: International postal services have been thrown into disarray after the United States abruptly ended its long-standing duty-free facility for incoming mail.

More than 25 countries including Pakistan, China, the UK, Japan, Germany, France, Australia and India have suspended deliveries to the US in response to the new rules.

Pakistan Post confirmed it has halted dispatches, citing fears that booked consignments would simply be returned. The disruption stems from an executive order issued by Washington on July 25 (No. 14324), which requires all categories of international mail to be subject to duties and taxes.

India Post has announced to suspend all categories of mail operations destined to the US in the absence of clarity over new rules issued by the U.S. Customs department, an official statement said early this week.

The change has rippled across the global logistics chain. Airlines that normally transport mail have also pulled back, saying the compliance burden makes shipments unworkable under the new regime.

Affected governments have escalated the matter through the Universal Postal Union (UPU), the UN body responsible for regulating global postal cooperation. The UPU is now engaging with US authorities in an effort to restore normal operations.

The suspension is among the largest collective postal disruptions in recent memory. Millions of individuals and businesses worldwide rely on low-cost mail to send documents, personal parcels, and small commercial consignments. For countries like Pakistan and India, where overseas communication supports students, migrant families, and exporters, the halt is particularly damaging.

Analysts see Washington’s move as part of a broader protectionist trend that shifts costs onto foreign senders. While the US argues the new rules ensure fairer treatment of imports, critics warn that the global postal standoff highlights how quickly changes in American trade policy can upend international systems built on decades of cooperation.