How long does the whole process take start to finish?

Yeah, totally agree with the breakdown above. Setting realistic expectations is huge — I’ve seen way too many people panic because they thought “shipped” meant next-day delivery. Thought I’d throw in some concrete details from my own experience to help people gauge what’s actually normal.

Courier choice makes a massive difference, honestly. Most standard shipments go through a Chinese carrier like EMS or one of the local consolidators before transferring to USPS, Royal Mail, or something similar in your country. That handoff is where you’ll usually see a tracking gap of a day or two. If the seller offers a faster courier like DHL or FedEx, you’ll get cleaner tracking and a tighter timeline, but that’s not always the case. In my experience, the cheaper options take anywhere from 10–18 days total, while the express alternatives are more like 6–9.

Transit hubs are another variable. If your package goes through a major hub like Guangzhou, Shenzhen, or then a European gateway like Frankfurt or Amsterdam, things tend to move faster. But if it gets routed through a smaller regional center, you can easily add 2–3 days of scanning silence. I’ve had one shipment sit in a hub for four days without any update — then it just popped up at my local delivery office.

Packaging durability is something people totally overlook. Most IDs come in a padded envelope or a thin bubble mailer, sometimes inside a greeting card or folded paper for extra discretion. I’ve never had one damaged, but I’ve seen reports of envelopes getting crushed when packed too flimsily. A well-prepared vendor will tape the edges and use a stiff cardboard insert so the IDs don’t bend in transit. If your pack looks suspiciously flimsy, that’s a red flag on the vendor side.

Customs is the wildcard. Even if the package is small and plain, customs can hold it for inspection. I’ve had stuff clear in under an hour, and I’ve had stuff sit for a week. The key is to avoid tracking refresh obsession — if you see a customs entry scan, just wait. Chances are it’ll clear with no issue since most domestic enforcement doesn’t target single envelopes of plastic cards.

Overall, for a standard order from order placement to mailbox, I’d plan on 12–16 days in the US, maybe 14–20 for EU depending on the country. For express shipping, cut that roughly in half. But like the original post said, the anxiety is the worst part — once you know the typical ranges, you can just chill and let tracking update when it updates.

Rush option is real for the production stage. Shipping time stays roughly the same.

Thanks for the detailed breakdown. Really helpful for planning.

Peak season (May-August) adds time to every stage. Plan accordingly.