Buying jewellery that ships internationally raises two fair questions: how long will it take, and will someone ask me for money at the door. This guide answers both, step by step, using the same numbers that appear on our shipping page and at checkout.
The short version
- Every order ships from our warehouse in Kwai Chung, Hong Kong.
- FedEx is the only carrier we use. Standard shipping to the United States is free, with no minimum spend.
- Processing takes 1–2 business days. Transit takes 5–10 business days. Total, about 6–12 business days from order to doorstep.
- Nothing is collected on delivery: no duty, no broker fee, no sales tax. The checkout total is the final total.
- You have 30 days from the delivery scan to start a return.
Step by step, what happens
Day 0 — you order
You get an order confirmation by email immediately. This is a confirmation of receipt, not of dispatch — the parcel has not moved yet.
Days 1–2 — processing
The item is picked in Hong Kong, checked against the listing, and packed. We also recheck availability at this stage. If the piece turns out to be unavailable or materially different from what was listed, we cancel and refund that item rather than substituting something else without asking you. Business days here exclude weekends and U.S. federal holidays.
Dispatch — you get a tracking number
When the parcel is handed to FedEx, you receive a dispatch email containing the FedEx tracking number and a direct link. The same number works on our order tracking page, where you can look up an order with either the order number or the FedEx tracking number plus your billing email. No account and no password required.
Days 3–12 — in transit
The parcel leaves Hong Kong on a FedEx international service, arrives at a US gateway, clears customs, and moves onto a domestic FedEx route for the final leg.
One thing worth knowing in advance: tracking often sits still on a customs scan for a day or two. This is normal and it needs nothing from you. It is the single most common reason customers write to us, and in almost every case the parcel starts moving again on its own.
Delivery
FedEx delivers to your address like any domestic parcel. Nobody asks you for a payment, a form, or a signature for customs purposes.
Why there is nothing to pay at the door
This is the part that worries people most about international orders, and it is worth explaining properly rather than just asserting it.
Customs paperwork. FedEx acts as the customs broker on the shipment. As the carrier, FedEx files the import entry with U.S. Customs and Border Protection and clears the parcel. You do not file anything, contact any agency, or collect the parcel from a depot.
Duty. The United States applies a de minimis threshold of US$800 per shipment: below that value, an eligible shipment enters duty-free. Every item in our catalogue is priced well under US$200, so orders in this range fall a long way below the threshold.
Sales tax. Rawkology does not add U.S. state or local sales tax to your order. The figure you approve at checkout is the figure charged to your card.
So there is no second bill, no broker fee, and no charge on delivery. If a carrier ever did contact you asking for money on a Rawkology parcel, that would be wrong and we would want to hear about it the same day.
Why Hong Kong, and why we say so
Plenty of stores selling at our prices ship from Asia and do not mention it. We would rather put it on the homepage, in the footer, on every relevant policy page and in this guide, for a simple reason: a customer who knows a parcel is coming from Hong Kong is not surprised by a 6–12 day estimate or by a customs scan in the tracking history. A customer who was told “ships from the USA” is, and reasonably so.
Our registered business and correspondence address is in Colorado Springs, Colorado. It is an office address, not a warehouse, and returns must never be sent there — we issue a return address when a return is approved.
If something goes wrong
- Tracking has not updated for five business days, or the parcel is past the estimated window — email us and we will open it with FedEx.
- Wrong address. Tell us immediately. Once fulfilment has begun the address cannot be changed, and a reshipment caused by an incorrect address may carry a charge, which we would disclose to you before doing anything.
- Item damaged or not as described. Photograph it and email us within the 30-day window.
Everything above is set out formally on the shipping and delivery and returns and refunds pages. A person answers support@rawkology.com Monday to Friday, 9am–5pm Mountain Time, and you can also reach us on +1 (571) 243-4878.
