Parcelforce

Parcelforce is a leader among parcel delivery services in the UK. Through ShipStation API’s integration with Parcelforce, you can ship with both domestic and international services. Register for a Royal Mail Online Business Account - OBA to get started!

This guide provides developers with the details needed to build Parcelforce Worldwide shipping capabilities into your ShipStation API workflows.

If you are using or plan to use the Parcelforce services included with ShipStation API, rather than connecting your own Parcelforce Worldwide account, see our Parcelforce from ShipStation guide.

The following properties are required to connect a Parcelforce account:

NOTE:

Royal Mail OBA Account Prerequisites

Before connecting your Parcelforce account to ShipStation API, ensure you have an active Royal Mail Online Business Account (OBA) profile. Key requirements:

1. OBA Profile Required: Shippers must have an active OBA profile created by Royal Mail before submitting a connection request via ShipStation API. If an OBA profile has not been created, the connection request will be rejected.

2. Account Status: Royal Mail will deactivate OBA accounts that remain inactive for over 90 days. Ensure your OBA account is active before submitting your integration request.

3. Check OBA Status: You can check your OBA account status at the Royal Mail OBA Account Status Check page.

4. Need Help? If you're unsure which email address is associated with your OBA account, contact the Royal Mail OBA Helpdesk:

   • Phone: 08457 950 950
   • Email: oba.helpdesk@royalmail.com

NOTE:

Intersoft Integration

Parcelforce's integration with ShipStation API is managed by Intersoft, a company owned by Royal Mail. The data flow is: ShipStation API > Intersoft > Royal Mail/Parcelforce > Intersoft > ShipStation API.

When you submit a connection request, it is automatically sent to the Royal Mail OBA team for approval. The OBA team responds immediately and either approves or rejects the request based on whether the Royal Mail account details are accurate. If approved, your account status updates from "Disabled" to "Enabled." If rejected, you'll need to re-enter the correct details and resubmit.

• Test labels: Parcelforce requires test labels before you can create real labels! You must generate sample labels with test credentials and submit those sample labels to Parcelforce for approval. Once approved, you can enter your production credentials to start creating real labels.

• All shipments must include a first and last name for both the Ship To and Ship From addresses.
• Ship To address requires a phone number.
• All shipments require a signature upon delivery unless the No Signature Required (NSR) option has been applied to the shipment.
• International shipments require dimensions (though we recommend adding dimensions for all shipments).
• Manifests required: All shipments must be manifested daily. See the Manifests section below for critical daily manifesting requirements and penalty information.

You can connect a Parcelforce Worldwide account using the POST method to the /v1/connections/carriers/ endpoint, or via the ShipStation API Dashboard.

For instructions on connecting Parcelforce via the ShipStation API dashboard, see our Parcelforce help article.

carrier_name: parcelforce_royal_mail

POST /v1/connections/carriers/:carrier_name

Sample request:

POST /v1/connections/carriers/parcelforce_royal_mail HTTP/1.1
Host: api.shipengine.com
API-Key: __YOUR_API_KEY_HERE__
Content-Type: application/json

{
  "nickname": "My Parcelforce account",
  "account_number": "1234567890",
  "oba_email": "john.doe@example.com",
  "oba_postal_code": "KW1 6LZ",
  "company_name": "Example Corp",
  "contact_name": "John Doe",
  "street_line1": "77 Netherpark Crescent",
  "city": "STIRKOKE HOUSE",
  "postal_code": "KW1 6LZ",
  "phone": "215-555-5555",
  "posting_location_number": "9000123456",
  "password": "pa55word",
  "contract_number": "12345"
}

A successful connection will return a response with the carrier_id, which you'll use for any requests for this account going forward.

Parcelforce Worldwide does not send estimated rates to ShipStation API. Your Parcelforce account contact can provide you with the details about your contracted rates.

The available services with Parcelforce Worldwide are provided below. Please note that carriers may update their available services at any time. To ensure you are always using valid services, you can use the list carrier services endpoint at any time.

Parcel Weight limit for all services (domestic and international): ≤30KG

Max parcel dimensions:

• All services except Express 48 Large: 1.5m length and length + girth = ≤3m
• Express 48 Large: 2.5m length and length + girth = ≤5m

• Guernsey and Jersey: Royal Mail requires customs declarations for Channel Islands shipments to Guernsey and Jersey. Please use the country code GE and JE, respectively. Royal Mail will not produce these forms if the country code is GB.
• Isle of Man: Change the country code to IM and then the proper forms will be included with the label. Isle of Man (IOM) shipments do not require customs and there is no option to select IOM as a country code.

Starting 1st May 2025, changes to Royal Mail products and services will take effect in accordance with the Windsor Framework. Under the Windsor Framework, shipments will fall into 1 of 2 categories:

• Green Lane: For trusted traders sending goods staying in Northern Ireland — minimal checks, simplified processes.

• Red Lane: For goods at risk of moving into the EU via the Republic of Ireland — full customs procedures apply.

Royal Mail customers sending parcels from Great Britain to Northern Ireland (GB-NI ) will need to provide additional data. The parcel movement's type will determine what data is required: Business-to-Consumer (B2C), Consumer-to-Consumer (C2C), Consumer-to-Business (C2B), or Business-to-Business (B2B).

TIP: You may find it helpful to see the Products Object section of our International Shipping page.

NOTE: For B2B movements, where UKIMS registration is not presented with the parcel data, the sending customer may be liable to delays, customs charges or the parcel returned to the sender.

Does Royal Mail offer a Next Day service from Great Britain to Northern Ireland?

Next Day services will be available for C2C, C2B, B2C, and B2B. For B2B shipments Royal Mail will only process goods classified as 'not at risk'. For goods classified as 'at risk' Royal Mail may be able to carry these goods on a Parcelforce Worldwide service. For account enquiries, contact 03448 429102.

Parcelforce automatically handles the reason_for_export field based on your shipment configuration, reducing the data you need to provide for GB to NI shipments.

Automatic Defaulting Behavior

When shipment.customs.contents is set to "merchandise", the carrier will automatically default the reason_for_export field based on the movement.indicator value:

No additional fields are required from the merchant in these cases.

Explicit Override Behavior

Merchants can bypass the automatic defaulting by setting shipment.customs.contents to "other" and providing a value in shipment.customs.contents_explanation:

To create return labels, Royal Mail must approve you for at least one of the following services:

Review the Return Labels page for details on creating return labels with ShipStation API.

The following carrier package types are available for Parcelforce Worldwide services:

Parcelforce Worldwide supports adding carrier insurance to your shipments. Review the Parcel Insurance page for details on adding shipment insurance with ShipStation API.

• Label sizes: 4" x 6"
• Label formats: PDF, PNG, ZPL

• Supports label reference field 1, limited to 20 characters
• Address line has a 35-character limit.

Parcelforce Worldwide supports multi-package shipments for most services.

Parcelforce Worldwide does not support label branding.

Royal Mail supports voiding labels with ShipStation API. Labels cannot be voided once the shipments have been manifested. If you need to void a shipment on a sales order summary, you must contact Royal Mail directly.

See our Void a Label page for details about voiding labels with ShipStation API.

Parcelforce Worldwide does not support paperless labels.

Parcelforce returns a CN23 form to ShipStation API based on the shipment's customs information.

ShipStation API will provide a commercial invoice from Parcelforce when required. Print three of these and include them with the shipment.

NOTE:

Channel Islands (Guernsey and Jersey)

Shipments to Guernsey and Jersey require customs declarations. Use country code GE for Guernsey and JE for Jersey. Customs documentation will not work with GB as the country code.

NOTE:

Isle of Man

The Royal Mail website indicates that Isle of Man shipments do not require customs declarations. Since there is no Isle of Man country code option, use GB as the country code when shipping to the Isle of Man. This ensures customs validation is not triggered by ShipStation API.

NOTE: Action Required: New Zealand Border Levy Changes

Effective April 1, 2026, a new NZD $2.21 (+ GST) levy applies to low-value air freight consignments entering New Zealand. This levy is charged per consignment, not per item.

See the Shipping to New Zealand: Low Value Goods (LVG) Levy section in International Shipments for full details.

Royal Mail shipments do not set a default confirmation type.

Royal Mail has enhancement codes that correspond to delivery confirmation types in ShipStation API. For example, the Royal Mail enhancement code for the Signed For service maps to the confirmation type direct_signature.

Only certain services allow certain enhancements. If you choose an option that is not supported with a selected service, you'll get a generic error like Error code E0004 - Failed Schema Validation.

Please consult with Royal Mail for the latest version of Key FAQs for Royal Mail API Shipping, their page RMG Shipping API Technical User Guide, or similar documentation to learn more about enhancement codes.

Parcelforce Worldwide supports certain advanced options, which you can add to the shipment object when creating a shipment or label.

To ensure you always have the most up-to-date information about a carrier's advanced options, use the list carrier options call.

Parcelforce requires all shipments to be manifested and the manifests to be printed.

Royal Mail requires you to create and print a Sales Order Summary, which you must then hand to the driver who picks up the parcels.

You can generate your Sales Order Summary through the manifest process. When you make your request to the /v1/manifests endpoint, the response will include a link to download the Sales Order Summary PDF.

Please note: You cannot close shipments with dispatch dates in the future, only past or current-date shipments.

Parcelforce Worldwide does not support scheduling pickups with ShipStation API. Instead, you can arrange a pickup through Parcelforce Worldwide directly or drop packages off at a local post office or a Parcelforce Worldwide depot.

Parcelforce Worldwide does not currently support shipping to service points.

ShipStation API's integration with Parcelforce Worldwide supports receiving tracking updates. Review our ​Track a Package guides​​ for details on tracking with the ShipStation API.

See the Disconnect section in our Delete a Carrier page for the process of deleting or disconnecting a carrier from ShipStation API.

NOTE:

If you disconnect a carrier account and reconnect it, the account will have a new carrier_id in ShipStation API.