What are International Couriers?

As an extension of the domestic courier, the international courier arranges the transfer of documents and packages across frontiers, using both airfreight and road transport. These services are sometimes referred to as ‘express parcels’ and in general the consignments are relatively light and consist of documents or packages.

International movements of documents by using an ‘on-board’ courier travelling with the envelopes developed rapidly because merchandise carried in this way avoided the delays and cut-off times imposed when the merchandise was booked as ‘cargo’. By being accompanied by a passenger (the courier) the goods went with the passenger and either as hand luggage or as Merchandise in Baggage (MIB) through customs at the passenger terminal, rather than the cargo shed. After immediate clearance through customs the goods are handed over by the courier to his local representative for delivery. After picking up a consignment of goods from the local representative, the courier retraces his steps and returns to his base.

The ‘on-board’ courier is somewhat rare these days and nowadays is only used to accompany cargo that is either extremely urgent ‘one-off’ type transactions or very valuable and needing a high degree of security in transit.