What To Do When Your DHL Shipment Is On Hold?

It can be an unsettling feeling when your DHL shipment tracking shows the message “On Hold”. You were likely expecting your package to be smoothly making its way toward you, so this status update comes as an unpleasant surprise.

What exactly does it mean when a DHL shipment is “on hold”? When should you start worrying that your delivery will be impacted? And more importantly – what can be done to get your package moving again ASAP?

This comprehensive guide will explain the common reasons that a DHL shipment ends up on hold, how long it may remain in limbo, and most importantly provide you with the key actions needed to resolve delivery holds as quickly as possible.

What Does “Shipment On Hold” Mean?

When DHL places your package “on hold”, it means they have temporarily stopped the shipment’s movement at some point during transit.

Rather than continuing towards its intended delivery destination, the parcel is stopped or delayed until an underlying issue can be resolved.

Seeing your shipment is on hold does not mean:

• DHL lost your package
• The shipper canceled your order
• Your items arrived damaged

It simply indicates there is a temporary delay or complication preventing delivery as originally scheduled. This hold status is meant to give customers a warning that the expected delivery date may shift.

While frustrating, try not to stress too much over an on-hold shipment. The situation is usually resolved promptly within a few business days.

Common Reasons a DHL Shipment Gets Held

There are a wide variety of reasons that a DHL package may get placed on hold as it navigates through the delivery process. Some of the most common causes include:

Awaiting Customs Clearance

One of the most common reasons for a DHL shipment on hold is that the package has arrived in your destination country but has not yet cleared customs. Packages from overseas must go through customs inspection before continuing on to the recipient’s address.

Shipments can be temporarily held if customs officials require any additional documentation or need to open the package for further screening. Most customs holds last 1-3 days, but occasionally longer delays happen if paperwork issues need resolving.

Incorrect or Missing Delivery Details

If any delivery details like the recipient’s address or contact information are inaccurate or missing, DHL will put the package on hold until the correct information can be provided. Issues with paperwork also fall under this category.

Double-check the accuracy of all delivery data to ensure nothing is incorrect or absent. This includes contact info, product/shipping descriptions, addresses, and any special instructions.

Adverse Weather Conditions

Severe weather events like snowstorms, hurricanes, or flooding can sometimes interrupt DHL’s delivery network, especially the last-mile trucking routes. For safety reasons, your package may be held at the nearest DHL facility during the disruption rather than risk transport through dangerous conditions.

Port Congestion

If your shipment is routed through marine ports, congestion issues can also cause DHL packages to be placed on hold status. Port jams occur when a surge of cargo arrives, exceeding the port’s capacity to load and offload container ships efficiently. This was a huge issue in 2022 and continues to cause ripple effects.

Other Logistical Disruptions

Natural disasters, holidays, peak seasons, and other unpredictable events can occasionally interrupt normal DHL operations. Shipments may be temporarily held until the situation improves enough for transit services to safely resume.

How Long Could My DHL Delivery Be On Hold?

In most cases, a DHL shipment on hold gets back on track within 1-3 days on average. However, in some scenarios, certain hold reasons can delay a package longer:

• Customs document issues may take 3-5 days to gather paperwork, submit, and clear.
• Safety inspections typically take only 24-72 hours – but can rarely extend longer.
• Logistical delays due to bad weather or congested ports are harder to predict. These are typically resolved within 3-5 days but could extend longer during peak holiday shipping seasons.

The best way to estimate how long your specific package may remain on hold is to contact DHL customer support who can investigate based on your tracking number and details.

What To Do if Your DHL Shipment is On Hold

Here are the key steps to get your delayed DHL delivery back on the road ASAP:

Step 1: Identify the Reason It’s On Hold

Check your DHL tracking updates for any details about why your package is on hold. See if the tracking shows it stalled at customs, a logistics facility, or “awaiting next leg of transportation”. This can give clues about the potential reason.

You can also try contacting @DHL on Twitter with your tracking number. Their customer service team frequently responds to tweets with status investigations and details that may not show on your tracking.

Step 2: Contact DHL Customer Support

If you cannot determine why your package was placed on hold – reach out to DHL customer support channels for assistance:

• Call their global customer support line
• Tweet @DHL on Twitter
• Reach out via Facebook Messenger
• Submit this Online Support Form

When you contact them, provide your tracking number and request details about your shipment’s on-hold status. Their team should be able to give specifics about why it’s delayed and recommendations to resolve it.

Step 3: Resolve the Underlying Issue

Once you know why your DHL shipment is on hold, you can take the necessary steps to address the root cause. This may involve actions like:

• Submitting missing customs forms/info
• Correcting inaccurate recipient address details
• Waiting out safety inspection delays
• Following up if the package stays delayed due to logistical issues

The fastest way to get your package moving again is by completing any missing requirements or paperwork DHL’s team requests. This may require you to work with the sender or customs brokers to get everything submitted properly.

Step 4: Track Progress Daily

Keep an eye on your package’s DHL tracking daily after taking resolution steps. You should see the status progress from “On Hold” to “Clearance Processing Complete” or “In Transit” once the issue is resolved and your shipment gets cleared to continue to your delivery address.

Can a DHL Delivery be Stuck On Hold Indefinitely?

In very rare scenarios, a DHL shipment may stay stuck on hold indefinitely if critical issues are not resolved such as:

• Prohibited/illegal items identified during the inspection
• Missing or invalid recipient address details
• Failure to submit proper customs forms required to release the package

This is why it’s critical to follow up promptly and provide any missing documentation DHL needs to clear and route your package. As long as you respond quickly to requests, even shipments delayed for customs or inspections rarely stay perpetually on hold.

The most common cause of indefinite holds tends to be prohibited items detected during safety checks. If contraband is identified and the proper regulatory authorities cannot determine how to handle it – packages may be placed into legal limbo. But for ordinary deliveries, most holds are temporary and will self-resolve within several days to a week at most.

When Should You Start Worrying About an On-Hold Shipment?

In most instances, DHL shipment holds the last 3-5 days at maximum before getting cleared automatically or with simple resolution steps on your end.

But after 5 days stuck on hold, it becomes smart to worry and intensely focus on troubleshooting the issues. At 1 week, you have justification for escalating complaints up the management chain.

Here are warning timelines to know based on the type of hold:

• Customs entry delays – Alert after 5 days as that exceeds average clearance times.
• Missing recipient address details – Warning if not corrected after 72 hours.
• Inspections – Caution if exceeding 5 days with no update after resolution attempts.
• Logistics infrastructure delays – Worry at 5 days as weather incidents or congestion don’t typically last longer.

Use these timelines as guides for when to urgently act if your DHL package remains perpetually on hold despite your efforts to provide paperwork and correct details.

How to Check the Status of Your On-Hold DHL Shipment

Wondering why your package is stuck or when it will start moving? Start by checking your DHL tracking status online.

Sign in on dhl.com or their mobile app and enter your tracking number. The latest events should indicate the general reason for the hold such as “clearance delay” or “weather disruption”.

If the status simply says “on hold” with no further details, you’ll need to contact DHL customer service directly to investigate. Their team can pull up your shipment data and explain exactly why it’s not moving.

Armed with those specifics, you can then take further steps to get your package unstuck.

How To Avoid DHL Shipment Holds

While the occasional hold is unavoidable even with the best preparations, applying these shipping best practices can reduce the likelihood:

• Provide complete accurate paperwork from the start
• Be vigilant when entering delivery addresses
• Learn root causes of holds to ship accordingly e.g. avoid overwhelmed ports
• Pack properly to avoid physical inspection holds
• Purchase additional shipping protection and priority services

Holds with couriers like DHL are often outside your control. But with diligence on your end, proactive communication, and rapid responses when issues arise, you can minimize disruption and keep your deliveries flowing.

Final Resolution Tips for Difficult DHL Holds

If your shipment enters the “high alert” time window of 5+ days delayed with no progress – here are last-resort tips that may get your DHL package unstuck:

• Threaten (politely) to file formal complaints with postal regulations authorities who monitor courier performance. The specter of regulatory penalties often motivates swifter action.
• Escalate to DHL station managers via contacts provided by customer service agents if frontline reps cannot resolve holds.
• Offer to travel to package sorting locations yourself if feasible to provide forms and documentation needed. Sometimes self-delivery of paperwork is the only way to get a response.
• Initiate chargeback processes with your payment provider/credit card company for the shipment costs. Financial penalties also grab the company’s attention. But give a warning before straight to chargebacks.
• Contact government consumer protection departments like the US Federal Trade Commission about delivery failures – they can apply pressure to honoring service commitments.
• Inform any exporters or customs brokers contributing to paperwork issues – holds damage their credibility so they have an incentive to act.
• Tweet aggressively and frequently at @DHL to trigger their social media team to investigate. Public negative brand publicity often achieves results.
• Switch future shipments to alternate couriers like FedEx or UPS to demonstrate loss of customer loyalty. Even if DHL won’t act, competitors want your business!
• Exhausting all avenues shows you will not relent until your package gets moving again. For severely delayed shipments, dramatic gestures are sometimes essential to break holds.