Current Position: Earth Sector, U.S.A. Outpost, Breakroom Module 3
Mission Status: Perplexed
This week another inquiry was sent to the Vatican CFN concerning orders placed in July of 2025. Almost every month an inquiry is made. Below is the most recent response, with almost the same wording as the response received last month.
Dear customer,
It’s all about De Minimis new rules, it’s not depending on our shipping service.
However, orders placed weeks ago with destinations in the US and Canada are slowly being shipped. Delivery times will be slower than usual.
1ZY507K3D93283**** UPS code
With the UPS code above, your package has been prepared, but the currier never took care of it yet.
I’m sorry for the inconvenient.
Please note that all information regarding the processing status of your order, including shipment details, can be accessed in your personal area on the website www.cfn.va.
To view the shipping status, simply go to the "Order History and Details" section: if the order is marked as "Shipped," clicking on "Details" will display the corresponding tracking number. You can use this number to track the shipment directly on the courier's website at https://www.ups.com/track.
Kind regards,
Federica Operatore 330
Commercializzazione Filatelica e Numismatica
Direzione dell’ Economiar
Governatorato – Città del Vaticano
www.cfn.va www.vaticanstate.va
The Vatican Postal System fails to understand the tariff rules have not changed for philatelic shipments or they want simply don't want to admit something else is afoot. They fail to understand the VPS members can distinguish facts from the fertilizer produced by cows in their excuse letters.
If "orders placed weeks ago with destinations in the US and Canada are slowly being shipped" (understatement), the oldest and should be at the TOP of the list or are they buried at the bottom of the stack? Is five months enough time to "slowly" ship something from Italy to the United States? Even a slow vacation cruise from Italy to the US is two to three weeks. Not five months! Postcards and letters come in about 10 to 14 days. Let's be real about the "slowly being shipped" part of the excuse.
The CFN folks are just cogs in the machine and spouting their script... they are not the blame. The blame lies elsewhere. It is not the new De Minimis rules either. So, what is the real reason for "slow shipments"?
The "piles" get higher and the Vatican stamp hobby sinks lower! Obviously, those few of us who still want to collect Vatican stamps will eventually give up. The few can do nothing but wait and hope (and pray) for a change. Can anyone in the Vatican produce a miracle? Who wants to be the last Vatican stamp collector? That distinguishing honor may soon be available if a miracle change in Vatican Postal information honesty and/or shipping of stamps does not occur!
Note to Vatican CFN: Shipping information is incorrect in the Vatican computer system!
Christmas 2003 Stamp
Nativity by Aldo Carpi
— VPSrobotNativity by Aldo Carpi
To see the VPS slideshow on Vatican Christmas stamps clink on the following link:
https://vaticanstamps.org/stamplist/vsd30.php?topic=Christmas