A while back we received the following email from the USPS API department which should be important to any upgrades:
Valued Web Tools Customer;
There are several important changes occurring in the coming months for the Customs Forms and International APIs. Please read the following notice in its entirety.
- Please reference the June 17, 2010 edition of the USPS Postal Bulletin ([url]http://www.usps.com/cpim/ftp/bulletin/pb2010.htm[/url]) for a valid index of countries and localities. Effective August 2, 2010, integrators of the following APIs may receive an error response if requests are made to the API with values other than those on the USPS Postal Bulletin list:
- IntlRate
- ExpressMailIntl
- PriorityMailIntl
- FirstClassMailIntl
- CustomsCN22*
- CustomsCN22V2
- CustomsCP72V2*
- CustomsCP72V3
- CustomsCN22 and CustomsCP72V2 are out-dated and will be retired on September 26, 2010 and January 2, 2011, respectively (see below).
- Effective September 26, 2010, the Customs Form 2976/CN22 API (CustomsCN22) will be retired. Requests made to this API will result in an error response. A new version of the API, CustomsCN22V2, is currently available for use. Detailed technical specifications for this API can be found at [url]http://www.usps.com/webtools/technical.htm[/url] under Online Customs Forms.
- Effective September 26, 2010, the Customs Form 2976/CN22 API (CustomsCN22V2) will undergo several changes. Most significantly, the label image will change in the following ways to satisfy USPS and US Census Bureau regulations:
- A second “Post Office†copy will be added to the bottom portion of the label. This area was blank in the past;
- An “Exemption and Exclusion Legend†box will be added to the label;
- The dimensions of the “Shipping Label†and “Customer Copy†will change slightly relative to each other, though the overall dimensions will remain the same;
- A “Merchandise†checkbox will be added;
- Instructions, certification and Privacy Act text on the second page will be modified.
Changes to the XML schema will be made to enforce several restrictions and add several optional fields. New XML tags will be optional and updated specifications will be published at [url]http://www.usps.com/webtools/technical.htm[/url] when the changes are available in the Web Tools production environment:
- plus cannot exceed 4 pounds, unless addressed to an APO/FPO/DPO or US Possession, Territory or Freely Associated State;
- The sum of and values cannot exceed 4 pounds, unless addressed to an APO/FPO/DPO or US Possession, Territory or Freely Associated State;
- The sum of values cannot exceed 400, unless addressed to an APO/FPO/DPO or US Possession, Territory or Freely Associated State;
- An tag to allow input of an “Exemption and Exclusion Legend†to satisfy US Census Bureau regulations;
- A “MERCHANDISE†enumeration in the tag;
- An optional tag for use when = “OTHERâ€
- Up to 5 items in the group;
- An optional tag in the group to allow an HS Tariff Number to be input for each of up to 5 items;
- An optional tag to specify Ship Date;
- Changes in the enumerations;
- An optional tag to specify a US Possession, Territory or Freely Associated State destination ZIP Code.
- Effective January 2, 2011, the Customs Form 2976-A/CP72 API (CustomsCP72V2) will be retired. Requests made to this API will result in an error response. A new version of the API, CustomsCP72V3, is currently available for use. Detailed technical specifications for this API can be found at [url]http://www.usps.com/webtools/technical.htm[/url] under Online Customs Forms.
Please contact the USPS Internet Customer Care Center at 1-800-344-7779 or icustomercare@usps.com with questions.
Thank you,
Web Tools Program Office