{"id":30483,"date":"2025-06-23T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2025-06-23T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/test.tranistics.com\/nvision\/2025\/06\/23\/additional-handling-surcharge\/"},"modified":"2026-01-28T08:20:45","modified_gmt":"2026-01-28T08:20:45","slug":"additional-handling-surcharge","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/test.tranistics.com\/nvision\/2025\/06\/23\/additional-handling-surcharge\/","title":{"rendered":"Understanding the Additional Handling Surcharge: What Triggers It and How to Avoid It"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/test.tranistics.com\/nvision\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/additional-surcharge-1.png\" alt=\"small parcel additional surcharges\" width=\"800\" height=\"440\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-30686\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Are you shipping large, heavy, or irregularly shaped packages? If so, you may be racking up extra fees without realizing it \u2013 thanks to the Additional Handling Surcharge (AHS).<\/p>\n<p>This fee is applied by both FedEx and UPS when a package requires special processing due to its size, weight, packaging, or handling requirements. And it\u2019s not cheap \u2013 fees can reach up to $55 per package or more, especially during peak shipping seasons when secondary surcharges kick in.<\/p>\n<p>Let\u2019s break down what qualifies a package for Additional Handling.<\/p>\n<p><strong>What Triggers Additional Handling?<\/strong><\/p>\n<ol>\n<li><strong> Weight<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Domestic (Ground &amp; Express):<\/strong>\u00a0Surcharge applies to packages\u00a0<strong>over 50 lbs.<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>International Shipments:<\/strong>\u00a0Threshold increases to\u00a0<strong>over 70 lbs.<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ol start=\"2\">\n<li><strong> Dimensions<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p>Applies if any of the following are true:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Longest side\u00a0<strong>exceeds 48 inches.<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>The second-longest side\u00a0<strong>exceeds 30 inches.<\/strong><\/li>\n<li>Combined\u00a0<strong>Length + 2\u00d7Width + 2\u00d7Height &gt; 105 inches.<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ol start=\"3\">\n<li><strong> Packaging<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p>Your shipment may be flagged if it:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>It isn\u2019t fully encased in corrugated cardboard.<\/li>\n<li>Is wrapped in shrink wrap, soft plastic, or other non-standard materials.<\/li>\n<li>Has an irregular shape (e.g., mailing tubes, barrels, or cylinders).<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ol start=\"4\">\n<li><strong> Non-Stackable Freight<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<ul>\n<li>Items like drums, buckets, or pails that can\u2019t be safely stacked may also be hit with this charge.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Peak Season Surcharges<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>During high-volume periods (typically Q4), carriers add Secondary or Peak AHS fees, compounding the cost of each qualifying package.<\/p>\n<table>\n<thead>\n<tr>\n<td><strong>Surcharge Type<\/strong><\/td>\n<td><strong>Applies When<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td><strong>Primary AHS<\/strong><\/td>\n<td>Year-round, based on package characteristics<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><strong>Secondary\/Peak AHS<\/strong><\/td>\n<td>During peak demand seasons (e.g., holidays)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<p><strong>What Shippers Can Do?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>These fees can dramatically increase total parcel spend if not managed carefully. To reduce risk:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Review weight and dimensions before shipping.<\/li>\n<li>Use standard-sized corrugated packaging.<\/li>\n<li>Avoid irregular shapes or soft materials.<\/li>\n<li>Consider repackaging when possible.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>How nVision Global Can Help?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>We analyze your shipment characteristics to:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Identify repeat offenders triggering AHS.<\/li>\n<li>Recommend packaging adjustments.<\/li>\n<li>Minimize AHS fees through smarter logistics strategies.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Stop letting hidden surcharges drain your budget. Let us help you uncover and eliminate avoidable parcel costs.<br \/>\nTalk to a <a href=\"https:\/\/corporate.nvisionglobal.com\/supply-chain-contact-us\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Parcel Cost Expert.<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Are you shipping large, heavy, or irregularly shaped packages? If [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":30686,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[27],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-30483","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-freight-costs"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/test.tranistics.com\/nvision\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30483","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/test.tranistics.com\/nvision\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/test.tranistics.com\/nvision\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/test.tranistics.com\/nvision\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/test.tranistics.com\/nvision\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=30483"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/test.tranistics.com\/nvision\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30483\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/test.tranistics.com\/nvision\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/30686"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/test.tranistics.com\/nvision\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=30483"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/test.tranistics.com\/nvision\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=30483"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/test.tranistics.com\/nvision\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=30483"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}