DHL Express

Details about ShipStation's integration with DHL Express. Includes integration requirements, connection process, features, pickups, claims, and other notes.

The ShipStation integration with DHL Express allows you to integrate and ship with your own DHL Express contracted rates. When you connect your own DHL Express account, you can create international shipping labels to ship almost anywhere in the world and start scheduling next-day pickups directly within the ShipStation interface.

If you do not yet have an account, become a DHL Express business customer to get started.

DHL Express Service Updates

Updated May 12, 2023: DHL Express has added an emergency situation surcharge for deliveries. You will see this surcharge reflected in your rate estimate and Carrier Fee in ShipStation. For more information about the surcharge, see the DHL Express Emergency Situation Surcharge page.

Check here for other temporary service adjustments.

DHL Express Requirements

Connection Requirements:

  • An active account with DHL Express.

  • Your DHL Express account number.

  • Your DHL Express Site ID and Password.

    Register for your credentials on the DHL Express XML Developer Portal.

Connect a DHL Express Account to ShipStation

To connect your DHL Express account to ShipStation:

  1. Select the DHL Express tile and click Connect.

    DHL Express International logo. Button that reads, connect
  2. Enter your DHL Express Account Number, Site ID, and Password.

    Note

    To obtain your DHL Express Site ID, you must register for credentials on the DHL Express XML Developer Portal.

    Then, choose an Account Nickname (this is only to identify the account in ShipStation).

  3. Click Connect.

Available Features for DHL Express Integration

The ShipStation integration with DHL Express supports these standard features:

Additional Features with the DHL Express Integration

The ShipStation integration with DHL Express allows for these additional features:

Feature

Description

Delivered Duties Paid (DDP) is supported

Enable the option Bill duties and taxes to payor of shipping charges to have the costs of duties and taxes billed back to your DHL Express account, instead of to your customer.

This can be used in conjunction with third-party or recipient billing, so you can select which account will be responsible for the duties and taxes.

Paperless Trade (PLT)

ShipStation will automatically try to submit customs information electronically through DHL Express' PLT service. If ShipStation is not able to submit customs information through PLT (either because it's not enabled for your DHL Express account or because the destination country does not support PLT), you will need to print any necessary customs forms.

IOSS and TIN support

ShipStation formally supports IOSS and other Tax Identifier Numbers. Set up your TIN in International Settings.

Country of origin in the customs line items

ShipStation now sends the country of origin in the customs line items and also includes “place of incoterm”.

Third-Party and Recipient billing

You may bill label charges to an account other than the DHL Express account connected to your ShipStation account. This is called Third-party billing.

  1. Select the DHL Express service, package type, weight, and other options for the shipment, as usual.

  2. Go to Other Shipping Options and choose ThirdParty from the Shipping Account drop-down menu.

    Shipping sidebar other shipping options shows ThirdParty as Shipping Account
  3. Enter the Account #, Country, and account zip code.

  4. Create the label.

Schedule Pickup within ShipStation app

Under the Shipments tab, go to the Courier Pickup section to schedule a DHL Pickups (available if DHL Express is connected to your account).

From here you can schedule a pickup time for DHL Express shipments. Review the Schedule a DHL Express Pickup section below for details.

The carrier integration can be used to create domestic shipping labels.

The carrier integration can be used to create international shipping labels.

ShipStation will submit international customs information electronically to the carrier.

The carrier integration can be used to create domestic return labels.

ShipStation will display estimated shipping rates for the carrier based on the connected account information and shipment details.

Additional carrier insurance can be purchased through ShipStation.

Shipping labels created for this carrier will include a tracking number that can be used to view the shipment status on the carrier's tracking website. Tracking may not be available for all shipping services.

When tracking is available, ShipStation will automatically track the shipment status and update the tracking status on the Shipments tab. This feature allows for other advanced ShipStation features like delayed notifications and the Branded Tracking Page.

ShipStation can perform an End of Day process for the carrier and submits the shipment information electronically. The End of Day process can be mandatory or optional, based on the carrier and your account with them. A printable file may or may not be available, see the End of Day (PDF).

ShipStation can perform an End of Day process for the carrier and creates an End of Day PDF file that can be printed and provided to the carrier. The End of Day process can be mandatory or optional, based on the carrier and your account with them. The file may or may not be submitted electronically, see End of Day (Electronic).

ShipStation can print the store's logo on shipping labels created for this carrier. Label branding may not be available for all shipping services.

ShipStation can include information that will be displayed on the label as a label message. Label messages may not be available for all shipping services.

The carrier integration can be used to create multi-package shipments, where multiple individual packages are linked together into a single shipment record with a master tracking number.

You can connect this carrier integration to ShipStation multiple times using different account information, and choose which account will be used to create each shipment.

Schedule a DHL Express Pickup

ShipStation allows you to schedule a pickup time for your DHL Express shipments directly within the ShipStation application.

You may incur a pickup fee if you schedule a single pickup when you use an individual DHL Express account.

To schedule a pickup for your DHL Express Shipments:

  1. Select DHL Express from the Schedule a Pickup drop-down menu.

    The Schedule a Pickup drop-down with FedEx, DHL Express, and UPS pickup options.
  2. Fill in this required information: Ship From location, the primary contact for this shipment, date of pickup, and time frame.

    Schedule Pickup Popup. Lists Location, Pickup Contact, Date, and time window.
  3. Click the Schedule Pickup button to submit the pickup.

Note

The DHL Scheduler Pickup Date will default to the next day so you might not see any Open Shipments appear in the pop-up. To view open shipments, change the Pickup Date to match the Ship Date on the label.

Cancel a Scheduled Pickup

  1. Select Courier Pickup from the left-hand sidebar. 

  2. Select the checkbox next to the pickup you want to cancel.

  3. Click the Cancel Pickup button.

  4. Confirm your cancellation in the pop-up when prompted.

Additional Details about the DHL Express Integration

  • DHL Express requires a Company Name in both the Ship To and Ship From address fields. If no Company Name is available, ShipStation will reuse the Name field.

  • Voiding a label in ShipStation does not void that shipment within the DHL Express system.

    DHL does not provide the capability to void labels. You will not be charged for the label unless the shipment is physically picked up and scanned into the network by a courier.

  • DHL shipments created in ShipStation appear in DHL ProView on your DHL account. The shipments will not appear in the MyDHL shipments tab.

  • ShipStation generates a commercial invoice for you and sends it electronically to DHL Express. You may also print a copy to include in your shipment.

  • Federal tax ID and EORI numbers are sent electronically for DHL Express international shipments. Any additional tax identifiers will be included on the commercial invoice.

  • When you use the multi-package shipping option, there is a limit of 99 packages with a maximum total weight of 2200 lbs / 1000 kgs.

  • ShipStation will combine all three Label Messages into the Ref #1 field on DHL Express shipping labels.

  • DHL is likely to return shipments sent to residential addresses in Russia back to the sender. This is because Russian customs authorities examine all dutiable shipments with extreme scrutiny and there is no guarantee the package will be sent to its destination after inspection. You may wish to use a different carrier for shipments bound for a residential address in Russia.

    DHL will deliver shipments to commercial addresses without issue.

DHL Fee Adjustments

DHL reserves the right to charge adjustments for administrative and other costs. It is the shipper's responsibility to address all DHL shipment fees and subsequent adjustments.

To ensure your rates in ShipStation are accurate, be sure to always enter the true weight and dimensions of all shipments before creating the labels. See the DHL website for more details or contact DHL support.

DHL Express Troubleshooting

Here are some common issues, potential causes, and troubleshooting tips.

Issue

How to troubleshoot or resolve

Error: The requested Special Service Codes AA is not available. Please make sure data entered is valid before proceeding or contact our customer service.

What it means: You have likely selected non-supported options for your DHL Express shipments. This error likely indicates that incorrect Other Shipping Options are being used.

What to do: See the Label Options section of the Available Shipping Options by Carrier help article to confirm which options are supported. Or, try removing the options one by one to see which option is causing the error. Then proceed with the shipment without selecting that option.

Error: Validation: Pickup location notes must be provided TransactionID=XXXXX

What it means: This error may occur when you attempt to schedule a pickup for DHL Express from ShipStation and cannot edit the contact information.

What to do:

  1. Create a new, identical Contact for the user.

  2. Specify the pickup notes to read something like, “No extra notes specified” and define actual pickup notes in the Contact.

DHL Express cannot find the recipient address when you attempt to create a label.

Typically these errors will be displayed in one of two ways:

  1. Cannot determine destination service. Check recipient information and resubmit. If this problem reoccurs contact your technical service representative.

  2. The destination country X location postal code Y or City Z is invalid. Please check the destination country location details.

Both of these errors indicate that the recipient address is not formatted properly for DHL Express shipments. Compare the address details using the DHL Compatibility Tool and correct the address where needed.

The carrier integration can be used to create domestic shipping labels.

The carrier integration can be used to create international shipping labels.

ShipStation will submit international customs information electronically to the carrier.

The carrier integration can be used to create domestic return labels.

ShipStation will display estimated shipping rates for the carrier based on the connected account information and shipment details.

Additional carrier insurance can be purchased through ShipStation.

Shipping labels created for this carrier will include a tracking number that can be used to view the shipment status on the carrier's tracking website. Tracking may not be available for all shipping services.

When tracking is available, ShipStation will automatically track the shipment status and update the tracking status on the Shipments tab. This feature allows for other advanced ShipStation features like delayed notifications and the Branded Tracking Page.

ShipStation can perform an End of Day process for the carrier and submits the shipment information electronically. The End of Day process can be mandatory or optional, based on the carrier and your account with them. A printable file may or may not be available, see the End of Day (PDF).

ShipStation can perform an End of Day process for the carrier and creates an End of Day PDF file that can be printed and provided to the carrier. The End of Day process can be mandatory or optional, based on the carrier and your account with them. The file may or may not be submitted electronically, see End of Day (Electronic).

ShipStation can print the store's logo on shipping labels created for this carrier. Label branding may not be available for all shipping services.

ShipStation can include information that will be displayed on the label as a label message. Label messages may not be available for all shipping services.

The carrier integration can be used to create multi-package shipments, where multiple individual packages are linked together into a single shipment record with a master tracking number.

You can connect this carrier integration to ShipStation multiple times using different account information, and choose which account will be used to create each shipment.