In January 2026 the popular Small Packet Airmail service was discontinued and Japanese mailorder companies had to switch to pricier alternatives like Air Postal Parcel, EMS and DHL. Postage prices quickly jumped to a new level where it became an even harder balancing act to put together orders that stayed within certain limits depending on size and weight. The past couple of months I found myself fiddling with putting items into or out of the cart whenever something would push the postage cost into the next bracket, jumping from 3600 to 6000 yen for example. Now, finally the replacement for the SAL service is being rolled out. I was pleased to see it on Mandarake today for the first time and I'm sure other companies are introducing it as well.
The new service is called International ePacket Light and allows for airmail parcels up to 2 kgs and total dimensions of 90 centimetres. A package that I was just working on suddenly dropped from 3600 to 2000 jpy for example, but there are many weightbands depending on the region you are in as per the chart below.
The ePL was supposed to be introduced in mid-December last year but apparently there was some kerfuffle about it and it is now being relaunched again this March so keep your eyes peeled.
Visit the Japan Post website for additional information: Linky
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