Sources and batches
Every figure published on this desk belongs to one of the 15 sources below, and every source belongs to one of the 11 verification batches. If you want to challenge a number, this is the page that tells you which batch to challenge and what that batch was allowed to claim.
Log state September 30, 2026 · 15 sources · 11 batches
Source register
| # | Ref | Source | Type | Checked | Batch |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | S-01 | US de minimis relief for personal consignmentsThreshold read as a single figure; rates for apparel and footwear expressed as band because they move with fibre and construction. | Customs threshold | 2026-09-18 | KB-2026-09 |
| 02 | S-02 | UK import thresholds and the point-of-sale VAT schemeDuty and tax thresholds taken as the same figure; VAT rate taken as the standard rate. | Customs threshold | 2026-09-18 | KB-2026-09 |
| 03 | S-03 | EU low-value consignment relief and customs duty start pointMember-state VAT deliberately left blank; the override box carries the reader’s own rate. | Customs threshold | 2026-09-18 | KB-2026-09 |
| 04 | S-04 | Canada postal imports and courier brokerageLow postal de minimis recorded as a single figure; brokerage described as a separate charge rather than folded into duty. | Customs threshold | 2026-09-18 | KB-2026-09 |
| 05 | S-05 | Australia goods and services tax on imported goodsDuty threshold recorded high, GST recorded as applying from the first unit of value — the two are not the same thing. | Customs threshold | 2026-09-18 | KB-2026-09 |
| 06 | S-06 | Japan small-consignment reliefRelief recorded as applying to a consignment treated as one, which is why splitting a parcel can remove it. | Customs threshold | 2026-09-18 | KB-2026-09 |
| 07 | S-07 | New Zealand duty and GST start pointBoth duty and GST recorded as starting above the same threshold, assessed on the landed value. | Customs threshold | 2026-09-18 | KB-2026-09 |
| 08 | S-08 | Singapore relief for low-value importsApparel and footwear duty recorded as effectively zero; the only border line is GST. | Customs threshold | 2026-09-18 | KB-2026-09 |
| 09 | S-09 | Volumetric divisor practice on consolidated air linesFour divisors recorded (5000 / 6000 / 7000 / 8000) with the mode each belongs to, taken from quotes shared by readers rather than from a single line. | Line tariff | 2026-09-12 | KB-2026-02 |
| 10 | S-10 | Half-kilo rounding on quoted linesRounding step recorded as a switchable input because it changed the chargeable figure on 31 of 88 sampled parcels. | Line tariff | 2026-09-12 | KB-2026-02 |
| 11 | S-11 | Arrival reports for thirteen destination–mode lanesWindows are outer bounds of reported arrivals. Lanes under 45 reports are labelled thin on the gauge itself. | Report count | 2026-09-20 | KB-2026-06 |
| 12 | S-12 | Handling window lengths stated by platforms and agentsWindow length quoted as the policy states it, with the policy date recorded beside it; no window is inferred from forum posts. | Platform policy | 2026-04-14 | KB-2026-05 |
| 13 | S-13 | Footwear measurement run one (46 rows)Insole length and widest point, three pairs per model, same method each run. Rows retired where the spread exceeded 6 mm. | Own measurement | 2026-03-06 | KB-2026-03 |
| 14 | S-14 | Garment measurement run two (38 rows)Chest width and body length on flat garments, three units per model. Labelled size recorded separately from the measured figure. | Own measurement | 2026-07-14 | KB-2026-08 |
| 15 | S-15 | Packing requests tested against chargeable weightNine footwear parcels and five soft-goods parcels weighed before and after each request. Requests that moved nothing were dropped. | Own measurement | 2026-03-24 | KB-2026-04 |
Where a source has no public address it is a measurement run carried out for this desk; the run method is described on the method page.
Batch ledger
A batch is opened when a piece of work starts and closed when it finishes. Batches are never rewritten: when a later batch changes something, the earlier entry stays in the ledger as the record of what was believed at the time.
KB-2026-11Desk-wide re-read
2026-09-22 → 2026-09-30 · 0 sourcesWhole-desk pass: every entry re-read against its own stated basis, every band re-dated.
What moved in this batch
- Re-dated all eight destination bands to September 2026 after checking each against a public notice.
- Removed eleven entries that had drifted into repeating another entry without adding a figure.
- Re-filed nine entries onto a different rung after readers reported opening them too early or too late.
Pages affected
KB-2026-10Ladder rebuild
2026-09-01 → 2026-09-11 · 0 sourcesRebuilt the landed-cost ladder around shipment count instead of order value.
What moved in this batch
- Re-derived per-kilo planning rates for the three rungs and published them on the gauge itself.
- Added the over-cap flag so a rung can be rejected against a stated budget.
Pages affected
KB-2026-09Duty bands re-cut
2026-08-04 → 2026-08-13 · 8 sourcesRate bands re-checked as ranges rather than single figures after a run of corrections.
What moved in this batch
- Replaced every point rate with a band and a stated reason the band is wide for that category.
- Kept the state-level tax override as a required input for destinations where the rate is not national.
Pages affected
KB-2026-08Measured-size run two
2026-07-01 → 2026-07-14 · 1 sourceSecond measurement run, this time on upper-body garments as well as footwear.
What moved in this batch
- Added 38 garment rows using chest width and body length rather than a single labelled size.
- Flagged the four models whose labelled size ran two steps from the measured figure.
Pages affected
KB-2026-07Edge-case deadlines
2026-06-02 → 2026-06-12 · 0 sourcesEvery Rung 3 entry reviewed for a stated deadline and a stated consequence of missing it.
What moved in this batch
- Added a deadline table to each edge-case entry; removed three entries that could not state one.
- Introduced the applicability protocol after finding readers were applying edge-case remedies to low-value orders.
Pages affected
KB-2026-06Transit windows, second pass
2026-05-05 → 2026-05-15 · 1 sourceRe-cut every transit window with a larger sample and an explicit sample count per lane.
What moved in this batch
- Widened the sea window for the United States from 22–34 to 25–42 days on a larger sample.
- Added the choke-point column so a wide window can be explained rather than just displayed.
Pages affected
KB-2026-05Return windows
2026-04-07 → 2026-04-14 · 1 sourceHandling windows and what each return path actually costs once postage is counted.
What moved in this batch
- Split the return model into three paths after finding a single figure hid the case where keeping the item is cheaper.
- Added the window-closure check, because expired windows silently invalidated two of the three paths.
Pages affected
KB-2026-04Packing and declaration
2026-03-17 → 2026-03-24 · 1 sourceWhich packing requests actually move the chargeable figure, and which are folklore.
What moved in this batch
- Kept the shoebox removal request, which moved the chargeable weight on 7 of 9 measured footwear parcels.
- Dropped the vacuum-bag request after it changed nothing on five soft-goods parcels.
Pages affected
KB-2026-03Measured-size run one
2026-02-24 → 2026-03-06 · 1 sourceFirst measurement run on footwear: three pairs per model, insole length and widest point.
What moved in this batch
- Published 46 footwear rows with run counts and the delta against the next labelled size.
- Retired four rows where the three runs disagreed by more than 6 mm — the model could not be judged from three pairs.
Pages affected
KB-2026-02Weights and dividers
2026-02-03 → 2026-02-10 · 2 sourcesDivisor values used by consolidated air lines, checked against quotes people shared.
What moved in this batch
- Confirmed the 5000 / 6000 / 7000 / 8000 divisor set and recorded which mode each belongs to.
- Added the 0.5 kg rounding step as a switchable input after finding it changed the chargeable figure on 31 of 88 sampled parcels.
Pages affected
KB-2026-01Opening pass
2026-01-12 → 2026-01-19 · 0 sourcesFirst pass over the destination thresholds for the eight destinations the desk covers.
What moved in this batch
- Recorded duty and tax thresholds for US, UK, EU, CA, AU, JP, NZ and SG from public customs summaries.
- Set the initial transit windows from the first 240 community-reported arrivals.
Pages affected
Challenging a figure? Use the corrections page, which asks for the batch number shown on the entry. How each source type is allowed to state a figure is described on the method page.