On 21 May a customer in Italy bought some ceramic mugs from us. It was an IOSS order but was a bit to heavy to send with RM Tracked (limit 2kg). Instead we sent it using UPS via Parcel2Go. We attached 4 copies of the commercial invoice showing our VAT, EORI and the IOSS information. It also had a UPS EDI shipping label, meaning that electronic docmentation was included and accessable via the barcode on the shipping label.

We send to Italy via RM every day without issue. However, UPS in Italy have now had the parcel since 23 May and are refusing to deliver it. The last email we got (via P2G) said:

Please kindly note that health permit is mandatory to clear this shipment. Also, SHIPMENT IS MISSING FEDERAL TAX ID / SOCIAL SECURITY NUMBER WHICH IS REQUIRED FOR CUSTOM S CLEARANCE.

We have done a bit of research and can't find anything that suggests Italy require a health permit for ceramic mugs. Also, neither Italy nor the UK use social security numbers. The parcel has now been stuck in clearance for 2 weeks and I am expecting to see it RTS soon.

Any advice would be welcome.