Tracking status meanings: from label created to delivered

What are the stages of package tracking?

Every parcel passes the same stops, and one from abroad meets three more.

1. Label createdThe carrier has the details, not the parcel.
2. In transitPicked up, then hub to hub, with silence on the road.
3. Left the countryAbroad only. No scans in the air.
4. CustomsAbroad only. Sometimes a charge to pay.
5. Local carrierAbroad only. Its scans may show only on its own site.
6. Out for deliveryOn today's van.
7. Ready for pickupKept at a post office, shop or locker.
8. DeliveredHanded over, or left where the carrier counts as yours.

What do USPS, Royal Mail and Australia Post statuses mean?

Same stages, different words:

"Label created" or "pre-shipment": does the carrier have it?

No: the seller has printed a label and sent the details, nothing more. USPS says the parcel "has not yet been given to USPS", and UPS's Label Created changes once UPS has it. An Post words it Sender/retailer has shared details of your item to An Post. Some US parcels show Picked Up by Shipping Partner, USPS Awaiting Item: a partner company has it and will hand it to USPS.

Australia Post's Pending (nothing scanned yet) should update within 24 to 48 hours. If nothing moves, ask the seller, not the carrier: USPS, An Post and Evri say so.

What does "in transit" mean?

The carrier has your parcel, somewhere in its network. That doesn't mean it's moving: FedEx's On the way can mean in a vehicle or at a facility. Arrived at and Departed lines are hub scans, which USPS says can repeat from one facility on different days.

Between hubs, silence is normal:

• FedEx calls more than 24 hours without a scan "not unusual".
• UPS may not scan a long-distance parcel again before the destination hub.
• Royal Mail scans Signed For items only when it gets them and when it delivers.

How long will a parcel be in transit?

Evri typically delivers 1 to 3 days after receiving a parcel, while Australia Post's It's on its way can last "a while" on long trips. Quiet past the carrier's own waiting time? See why tracking stops updating.

Parcels from abroad: left the country, customs, local carrier

• Left the country. It's booked onto a flight, ship or train. For a parcel heading to Germany, DHL warns the next update can be several days away. Royal Mail's OE (Office of Exchange) means it reached import customs. On an item from abroad, Australia Post's It's on its way means it's in Australia.
• Customs. In customs (Royal Mail) or Item held by customs (Canada Post) is usually routine: Canada Post calls it standard for every international parcel, screened by the Canada Border Services Agency, and can't step in. DHL speaks of several business days; none of these carriers gives a general maximum. Once released, Canada Post's tracking says it has cleared customs. Act only on a request, such as Royal Mail's Fee to pay; see parcels held at customs.
• Local carrier. UPS's Transferred to Post Office for Delivery means the post office does the last leg: allow an extra day or two. DHL points you to the destination carrier's tracking. Ordered from AliExpress, Temu or Shein? See tracking a parcel from China.

Does "out for delivery" mean it arrives today?

Usually, yes:

• USPS: Out for Delivery means today, perhaps at a different time from your usual mail. No delivery recorded by 9 pm? It becomes Awaiting Delivery Scan (or Delivery Status Not Updated), and USPS expects it the next business day.
• UPS: typically 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. for homes.
• FedEx: generally 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.
• Australia Post: It's coming today once the postie has loaded it, and it may text you a 2-hour window.

Two look-alikes: Royal Mail's Ready for delivery means it has reached your local delivery office, not the van. And at DHL in Germany, a loading scan shown more than once means the round wasn't finished: a delay of 1 to 2 days is possible.

Peek checks up to every 2 minutes once a parcel is out for delivery, and its pings can be set to delivery day only.

"Delivery attempted" or "notice left": what now?

This one needs you: nobody could take the parcel, or the driver couldn't get in.

1. 1Read the noticeCard, text or email: where the parcel went, and a number to quote.
2. 2Check the deadlineFrom 2 days to 3 weeks, counted in calendar, working or business days.
3. 3Rebook or redirectOn the carrier's own site or app: another day, a neighbour, a pickup point.
4. 4Collect with IDBring photo ID and the card. Someone collecting for you may need your signed note and their own ID.

"Ready for pickup" or "awaiting collection": where is it?

It's at a post office, shop or locker, until the deadline in the table above. Canada Post, like USPS, says Available for Pickup; UPS says Awaiting Customer Pickup, and Delivered to a UPS Access Point means it's ready for you there.

Wait for this status or the carrier's message before going: USPS makes items available from the next business day, and Australia Post's notification gives the date and time. Canada Post prints the pickup place on the card, and it can change from one delivery to the next.

Does "delivered" mean it's in your hands?

Not always. It means the driver scanned it as handed over or left:

• With a neighbour. Royal Mail's Your item was delivered covers one, named in the message, with a card left.
• Somewhere safe. Without a signature, UPS picks a spot out of sight and weather: front porch, side door, back porch, garage. USPS adds the mailbox, back entrance and others at home; a key in your mail compartment means a parcel locker. Canada Post's Delivered as a safe drop usually comes with a photo.

Australia Post also shows Delivered once you've collected it from a Post Office or Parcel Locker. Nothing there? Check the full tracking for a photo, a name or a place, then see delivered but not received.

Does a delivery exception mean it's lost?

No. FedEx says a Delivery exception "doesn't necessarily mean" the parcel will be late, and asks nothing of you; its examples include a customs delay and "recipient wasn't home". UPS's Exception means something unexpected may move the delivery date, with the reason under Shipment Progress.

FedEx's Running late means it will likely miss its estimated date. As for how long, Australia Post says most items flagged Delayed arrive within 5 business days of the expected date.

Look closer when the reason is an address or a payment: Canada Post's Verifying recipient's address; Possible delay ends in a return if the address can't be confirmed. Royal Mail's Internal exception occurred is a website error, not your parcel.

Why was my parcel returned to sender?

The carriers' reasons: not collected in time, a wrong or incomplete address, a refusal, unpaid customs charges, damage. Some returns don't say so:

• USPS Insufficient Address: it's already heading back, and the sender must post it again with new postage.
• Australia Post Contact sender: a return, after wrong details or 10 business days uncollected.
• Royal Mail Forwarded to Returns Centre: with no return address on it, the centre opens it to find one.

Don't count on stopping it: "Once the return process starts, we can't stop it," says Canada Post. Ask the seller to send it again or refund you.