PacMe offers two plans. Both plans offer the same package services, packing fees, and discounted shipping rates.

Package

• The vast majority, 99%, of customers choose the standard Package plan.
• The $40 one-time signup fee is usually offset by a promo code.  If actually paid, the $40 will be credited to your virtual account once your details have been verified.
• We can handle magazines on the Package plan.  Learn more.

Package + Mail

• If you want PacMe to accept, store, and forward your letters, bills, magazines, catalogs, and general mail, then you must choose the "Mail" plan.
• The cost is $300/year because sorting through tons of mail is time consuming.
• The mailbox account number for a "mail" account must begin with the letter M, e.g. M1234.
• The "M" helps remind us to save the mail.
• Otherwise, mail for the standard package plan gets shredded.
• If you cancel a mail plan, you must then change your mailbox number so that it does not begin with the letter M.
• By law, you are required to fill out the PS1583 form.

When you sign up for an account, you can choose a mailbox number that is easy for you to remember.

• The format is Z9999.
• Most numbers are free, but premium numbers, such as A1000 or D8888, cost extra (see screenshot below).
• "Mail" accounts must begin with the letter M.  Mail accounts are $300/year. Learn more.

You can also change your mailbox number in "My Account."

• Leave us a message in your My Account chat box if you would like to change your mailbox number.
• There is a $20 fee to change your mailbox number.
• Your old mailbox will be closed after 40 days and your packages might be rejected.
• So make sure you change your address with all your shopping sites!
• If you change to or from a "mail" account, you must change your mailbox number (since mail accounts must begin with the letter M).

 Most mailbox numbers are free, but "premium" numbers cost extra...

"Mail" customers must submit a 1583 form to PacMe. Send us a chat for a link to the form.

• "Mail" customers are those who want PacMe to collect their letters, bills, and magazines that come via the US Postal Service.  You pay extra for this optional service ($300/year).
• As a mail customer, PacMe will register your name and mailbox number with the US Postal Service.
• PacMe is required to verify your identity and home address, usually by viewing two photo IDs and a utility bill.
• Or, you can show these documents to a Notary Public and they will vouch for your identity.
• Once verified, we will pass your name, but not your documents, along to the Post Office.
• We must retain a copy of your 1583 form, and, if you submitted documents to us, we must retain a copy of them as well (but not if you used a Notary Public to verify your identity).
• We understand that going to a Notary is a bit inconvenient.  We have petitioned the US Postal Service to allow us to verify your identity in other ways (e.g. via skype).

Standard, "packages only" customers do not need to submit a 1583 form, but it is usually a good idea to fill one out anyway.

• FedEx, UPS, DHL, and other private carriers will always deliver your packages to your PacMe address. The 1583 form does not concern them.
• Many online retailers will send your product in normal US Post Office envelopes, however, which technically go through the mail system, not the package system.  The Post Office may not deliver them if your name is not registered to your PacMe address.

What happens to my mail if I don't have a 1583 form on file with PacMe?

• If you are not a "mail" customer, we will shred any mail that we receive in your name.
• Technically, we shouldn't receive any mail because your name is not registered at the Post Office, but some of it comes through.
• It is best that you sign up for electronic statements if you want to use your PacMe address as your billing address but do not want to become a "mail" customer.

 What is the 1583 Form?

• All customers of the US Postal Service technically need to be registered.  When you receive mail routinely at your home or business, that usually suffices.
• PacMe is considered a Commercial Mail Receiving Agency (CMRA), which means that we accept mail on behalf of our customers.
• The US Post Office requires verification of customers that use these services, due to security and fraud concerns.
• That's the 1583 form.
• We are required to verify your identity and home address in person or you can get verified at a Notary Public.

No.  You can pay for your account plan by credit card or PayPal.  Once you have a PacMe account, you can transfer money into your PacMe "virtual" cash account via PayPal instead of using a credit card to pay for your PacMe fees and shipping.

We are set up to handle big consumers and small businesses.  We only provide services that we believe we can provide perfectly, however, so please let us know what your needs are to see if we can accommodate them. 

As a general rule of thumb, if your business acts like a large consumer (lots of boxes in, store them for a reasonable amount of time, consolidate and repack, ship to a few addresses), then we can serve you well.

Pricing is the same as for consumers: $2 per incoming package and a $20 flat fee to repack and consolidate an unlimited number.  Our repacking expertise more than makes up for our fees because we can often reduce the dimensional weight by 50%.

These are the types of businesses that we can support well...

• Boutique clothing stores.
• Specialty retailers (baby products, sporting goods, gourmet food shops, books).
• Any business that requires a supply of dry goods, small parts, office supplies, etc.
• Schools, school departments, individual teachers.
• Buyers clubs.
• Shopping and package logistics businesses (even ones that are somewhat competitive to us).

These are the types of businesses that we cannot handle very well...

• Large industrial products. We don't own a fork lift but can accept occasional pallets with our handjack. Ask us about pricing.
• We cannot effectively support ebay reseller businesses.  It's a lot of postage due, damaged items, and he-said-she-said.
• We cannot support a high-volume of tiny packages unless we price it differently (no "free after 7" cap).

Some notes about how we serve logistics businesses...

• Many of our would-be competitors use our service.  They buy products in the US on behalf of their in-country customers and then we consolidate the purchases and send the shipment to them.  They then split out their individual customers' packages and do the last mile(s) delivery. Their customers could be our customers, but we actually welcome these businesses to use us for several reasons.  We are a great value for larger customers and businesses, but their customers might be too small to fit our target profile.  Many countries are difficult to ship to, so sending one huge shipment to a know entity with experience is better than shipping several small ones to individuals who might be unfamiliar with import issues. 
• Our system is "package-centric."  Each incoming package has its own package ID and web page, which includes a photo of the mailing label, a clickable carrier tracking number, a scan of the invoice, photos of the items, a box for your own personal note, and a dedicated chat box to discuss any issues.
• Each outgoing package (consolidation) has a similar set up.
• You can have more than one consolidation being processed at a time, and you can put different incoming packages into different consolidations going to different addresses, no problem.  
• It is more difficult to split an incoming package, however, or leave some of its contents on the shelf.  We can accommodate that for an extra fee though, usually by creating additional dummy incoming packages, then splitting the contents.
• Note that orders you place with your suppliers will often arrive in multiple packages on different days.  Our system tracks packages, not orders.  You will see a scan of the invoice or packing list if one is in each incoming package, but we will not attempt to reassemble the order that you placed with your supplier.  You will need to look at your various packages (and their photos) to ensure that everything has in fact arrived.   We check contents against the included invoice/packing list in each incoming package, but many packages arrive without any documentation.
• We have an "expected package" feature that allows you to create an incoming package yourself and attach the carrier tracking number.  You can then put notes in the package's web page to remind you what it is.  Once it arrives, our system will recognize the tracking number and match it up.  This way, when you place your own orders, you can enter them into our system while they are fresh in your mind, though it is important to get the tracking number in there as soon as possible (i.e. before the package arrives on our dock).
• It usually makes sense to do everything out of one PacMe account instead of signing up for several accounts.  We can't really combine shipments from two different accounts.  You can have 5 different incoming recipient names per account and lots of outgoing delivery addresses in the same account.
• Since you might have several of your customers' packages within the same consolidation, it will be important that we keep them straight.  Usually, we repack the outgoing box like Tetris to mitigate all the dim weight.  But that might be confusing for you since it won't be obvious which items are for which customer.  For a small fee, we can bag each incoming package's contents and keep the package ID on the bag so you can match it up with the packages you will see in your account on the website.
• Since all your customers' packages would be repacked in the same "shipment," you would most likely trip the GST/Tax threshold.  That's because tax is charged per shipment, not per customer inside the shipment (they would have no way of knowing).  This is different than bundling your packages through someone like vPost, which treats every package as a shipment.  This saves on GST, but shipping is much more expensive because they don't repack to mitigate dim weight.

Here are some cannot's, donot's, and other things to think about...

• You cannot use your PacMe address as an official business address.  We can only act as your collection and forwarding agent for your packages.  We cannot accept regular mail for any business. We can get in big trouble.
• We cannot use your shipping company.
• We are more strict about how long you can store your boxes.  If you need longterm storage, we can price it out for you.  You can't use us as your US inventory storage, for instance.
• We normally take photos of all the items in every incoming package.  But for bulk purchases, we wouldn't do this.  We will check the contents against the invoice or packing list, however, and provide a few photos of the entire lot of items.
• Outgoing shipments valued over $2,500 require additional export paperwork, which costs about $40-60 for us to process depending upon the complexity. 
• If you need a very detailed commercial invoice or customs list, then it is best if you provide it.
• For large shipments, it's best if you have your own in-country handling agent to process customs unless we ship by the small-package carriers (e.g. UPS).
• We don't allow credit "terms."  All shipments must be paid for in advance.

Yes, but please consider the following to determine if having multiple accounts is the best setup for you.  Email helpme@pacme.com if you have any questions.

A single account can have:

• Multiple outgoing delivery addresses.
• Multiple credit cards on file (held securely at visa/authorize.net, not on pacme servers).
• Multiple recipient names for incoming packages (up to 5 names total).

Using just one PacMe account, you could have, say, 30 packages on your shelf and then divy them up into 4 different consolidations going to 4 different addresses and paid for with 4 different credit cards.  Most customers therefore prefer to have just one account.  The PacMe control panel is awesome.

If you want to keep a personal and business account separate, however, then it's a good idea to have two accounts, particularly if you give someone login access to the other account.  The login email address must be different and please make sure the names on the account are slightly different as well (an extra middle initial is fine).

Lastly, about 20% of the incoming packages we receive have no mailbox number on the mailing label. Retailer and carrier address forms don't exactly play nicely with each other and the 2nd address line, which includes your mailbox number, is often dropped.  It's a good idea to add a middle or extra name if you have a common name.  Kelvin Ong definitely needs a middle initial. John Smith?  That's ok.  We don't have any of those yet.