How to configure DHL Global Mail v4 (DHLGLOBALMAILV4) in techSHIP [Guide]

DHL Global Mail v4 uses the DHL eCommerce shipping API v4. The plugin code is DHLGLOBALMAILV4; DHL Express uses a separate integration.

The DHL Global Mail v4 integration supports:

• Void in techSHIP

• Rate Shopping

• Tracking History

• Time in Transit, when returned by DHL

• Label References

• Dangerous Goods, subject to service and destination eligibility

• Signature Required for eligible domestic shipments

• Manifesting

Information to be Provided

Obtain the following credentials and account information from DHL before starting the setup:

For Rate Shopping, ask DHL to enable rates on the account. API v4 uses the same credentials for shipping and rates; separate rate credentials are not required.

Specifications and Constraints

Operational Details

DHL Global Mail v4 supports domestic and international small parcel shipments through DHL eCommerce products. Select the shipping product using Service code. Service and destination availability depend on the account and shipment lane.

• International customs data: Supply an item description, country of origin, quantity, item value, and currency for each commodity. Customs details are also required for applicable APO, FPO, and DPO shipments.

• DHL Parcel International Expedited: Service PLX requires an international shipment, a recipient phone number, and DDP terms. Dangerous goods are not permitted. Maximum weight is 44 lb, maximum length is 40 in, and maximum length plus girth is 79 in. Confirm destination eligibility and shipment value limits with DHL. The carrier validates these restrictions.

• Return shipments: DHL eCommerce return labels use the separate integration code DHLGLOBALMAILV4RETURN. Configure its account separately when returns are required.

• Voiding: A void resets the shipment in techSHIP. It does not confirm cancellation or a refund from DHL.

EU Consumer Shipments: Product Identifiers

For shipments processed on or after November 1, 2026, at 00:00 UTC, techSHIP requires a SKU and Manufacturer Product Identifier for every item on a consumer shipment imported into the EU from a non-EU origin. An item missing either value prevents the order from processing before labels are requested.

• SKU: Supplies the Merchant Product Identifier (M-PID).

• Manufacturer Product Identifier: Supplies the Non-Standardized Manufacturer Product Identifier (NS-PID). Use the manufacturer's identifier; techSHIP does not substitute the SKU.

• UPC: Supplies the Standardized Product Identifier (S-PID), when available.

The missing-identifier check does not apply before that date, to business recipients, to non-EU destinations, or to shipments originating within the EU. Available identifiers are sent for international shipments before and after the effective date.

Provide manufacturer identifiers and UPC values within 200 characters. Surrounding spaces are removed, and values exceeding that length are shortened to 200 characters. The SKU is sent unchanged.

Configuring a Baseline Account

A Baseline Account serves as the fundamental connection point between techSHIP and the carrier's system. It acts as a template that holds the credentials and fundamental properties required to process shipments.

The techSHIP AI Assistant is available from the Carrier page for supported Carrier configuration tasks. For detailed conceptual information and advanced configuration, refer to 📄 techSHIP AI Assistant: Overview & Availability [Information].

Adding a Carrier

Before adding an account, you must ensure the Carrier entity is available for your location.

1. Click My Carriers from the left menu under the Carriers category.

2. Click Add Carrier.

   

3. Select the desired Carrier.

You may encounter additional messages depending on the carrier status or your plan:

• Subscription Required (⭐): If the carrier has a star icon, you will see a message stating "To use this carrier, a subscription upgrade is required." Press Contact to Upgrade to proceed.

  

• Carrier Suspended: If the carrier has not been used for an extended period, you will see a message stating “This carrier is currently on hold...” Click Request Assistance to reactivate it.

  

• Setup Fee Waived: If a carrier from the same carrier group is already installed in your location, you can add this carrier without incurring additional fees.

  

4. If needed, update the carrier Name.

5. Click Add Carrier.

   

If the purchase confirmation appears, complete the following steps:

• Review the purchase notice and any applicable charge information.

• Optionally enter a PO Number.

• Select I am authorized to complete this purchase on behalf of my organization.

• Click Purchase to confirm the Carrier addition.

Once the Carrier is added, you will be automatically redirected to the Carrier page to continue setting it up.

6. Enter the Code of the Carrier as it appears in your host system.

The Code of the Carrier must match exactly the value defined in the host system. Any discrepancy (including casing or extra spaces) may prevent the carrier from working correctly.

7. Click Save.

   

If your facility utilizes the centralized Pickup Schedule, we highly recommend adding this new carrier to your calendar now. While not required to process labels, this ensures accurate induction metrics for your Insights dashboards. To learn more, see 📄 Understanding the Centralized Pickup Schedule & Expected Induction Logic [Information].

Adding a Baseline Account

From the Carrier page, click Add Account to create a new Baseline Account.

You will be redirected to the Baseline Account page to complete the setup.

Entering incorrect values will prevent the system from generating shipping labels.

General Tab

In the General tab, define the administrative properties:

• Name: Enter a descriptive name for the account.

Enter a descriptive name based on unique properties. E.g.:

• Carrier Name - Account Number (CarrierX - 123456789)

• Carrier Name - Consolidator Name (CarrierY - MyConsolidator)

• Carrier Name

• Usage: Select the most suitable option:

  • Test: Used for sandbox or onboarding purposes.

  • Production: Used for live shipping.

Keep the Status field set to its default Active value. An account must be Active to remain fully editable. For detailed conceptual information on account statuses, refer to 📄 How to Inactivate and Activate a Carrier Baseline Account [Step-by-Step Guide].

Carrier Tab

Credentials and Account Details

• Username: Enter the API Client ID supplied by DHL.

• Password: Enter the corresponding API Secret.

• Pickup Account Id: Enter the pickup account number supplied by DHL.

• DHL Client Id: Leave this separate field empty; authentication uses Username and Password.

• DHL Distribution Center: Enter the origin distribution center supplied by DHL.

• Max requests per second (default 5): Set an account-specific request limit when instructed. Leaving it empty uses five shipment requests per second.

Sender Address

Complete the Sender address group with the warehouse induction address associated with the account. This supplies the account's sender address unless an applicable Client Account or shipment override is used.

Labels Tab

Formats: ZPL and PNG labels are supported, with PDF output available through techSHIP conversion. Use Mode to configure the Baseline Account's label output.

Finalizing the Setup

Once you have entered the required information, click Save.

After you save the Baseline Account, check whether the Registration tab or a registration status badge is available.

If neither is available, the Carrier does not use this Registration workflow in techSHIP. If registration is still pending, open the Registration tab and press Registration, then complete 📄 How to Register a Carrier Baseline Account [Step-by-Step Guide] before creating shipments.

From the Carrier page, you can now see the Baseline Account listed with the administrative status Active. The Active status is separate from the account's registration status.

The Baseline Account configuration is now saved. You can continue with Configuring a Client Account below to assign the Baseline Account to a specific Client.

Configuring a Client Account

Adding an Account

Before adding a Client Account, ensure that the Client has been created. For instructions creating a Client, see: 📄 10 - How to create a Client profile [Step-by-Step guide].

1. Click Clients from the left menu under the Clients section.

2. Click the Edit icon for the desired Client.

   

3. Click Add Accounts.

   

4. Optionally, use the Search box to search by Baseline Account Name or Carrier.

5. Select the Baseline Accounts that will serve as the foundation for your new Client Accounts.

6. Click Add Accounts.

   

   A toast notification will confirm the accounts were successfully assigned. Click the Refresh icon if recently added accounts are not displayed.

   

7. Click Edit on each newly created account.

   

8. Configure the available options in each tab (except Carrier).

   

For complete instructions on configuring this settings, see 📄 How to configure the Billing Account General Options tab [Step-by-Step guide].

Carrier Tab

Service and Shipment Defaults

• Service code: Select the default product for imported orders that do not specify a service.

• Override WMS Service Code: Enable this option to replace the service supplied by the Integrated system with the selected Service code.

• Default package description: Enter the package description to use when the batch does not supply a commodity description.

• Package type: Select the applicable package type.

• Ancillary service endorsement: Select the endorsement required for the shipment.

• Currency: Select the currency used for rates and commodity values.

• Duties paid: Enable this option for sender-paid duties. The Order's Duty payment terms, when specified, take precedence.

• Skip price validation: Allows processing to continue when rate validation fails. Keep this disabled for normal processing; bypassing validation can result in carrier charges that differ from the quote.

• Contact phone and Contact email: Enter the contact details associated with the Client Account.

• Tracking number mode: Select the tracking identifier required for the Client Account.

• Order source: Configure the reference value identifying the order source when required.

Dangerous Goods

Use Dangerous goods to set a category for shipments using this Client Account. A populated Client Account value takes precedence over the Order's Dangerous goods selection. Leave the Client Account value empty when categories must be selected per order.

(40) Limited quantities (intl) is available for eligible PLT shipments to Canada and Mexico. Confirm eligibility with DHL before using it. Service PLX does not accept dangerous goods.

International Settings

• Shipper GST/VAT, Shipper EORI, and Shipper IOSS: Enter the applicable shipper tax or registration identifiers. Shipment-specific shipper identifiers can be supplied on the Order.

• Receiver type: Select the recipient classification used by the Client Account. The Order's Receiver type takes precedence. If neither level specifies a value, Direct consumer is used. Select Business only for actual business recipients.

Addresses

• Sender name and Sender company: Enter the sender identity for the Client Account.

• Override sender address: Enable this option when the Client Account uses a different pickup address from the Baseline Account, and complete the displayed address fields.

• Override shipper (merchant) address: Enable this option to provide a separate merchant address and complete the displayed fields.

• Override return address: Enable this option to provide a different return address and complete the displayed fields.

Specifying Rate Shopping Service Codes

After DHL enables rates on the account, optionally restrict the services included in Rate Shopping. Delivery estimates are available when returned by the carrier for the shipment.

For detailed instructions on how to configure this, see: Include or exclude Service Codes when Rate Shopping [Step-by-Step Guide].

Label References

Configure references in the Labels group of the Client Account's General tab.

Reference 1 and Reference 2 supply the two custom label text values. Reference 3 and Reference 4 supply billing references and should not be treated as additional printed label references.

For a comprehensive guide on how to use label references, see: Using order References in your labels [Step-by-Step guide].

Finalizing the Setup

Once you have entered the required information, click Save.

With the account configured and requirements verified, you can now proceed to process orders as described below.

Configuring an Order

The steps described in this section are not required for carrier setup, and they are offered as an optional review if further order-level configuration is required.

Follow the UI Navigation steps in 📄 05 - How to edit an order’s information - [Step-by-Step guide], using the carrier-specific values provided in this guide.

Carrier Tab

Review the following shipment-specific settings when editing an Order:

• Service code: Select the shipping product for the shipment.

• Commodity declared value: Enter the declared value applicable to the shipment.

• Consignee GST/VAT and Consignee EORI: Enter recipient tax or registration identifiers when required.

• Shipper GST/VAT, Shipper EORI, and Shipper IOSS: Enter shipment-specific shipper identifiers when required.

• Duty payment terms: Select Sender for sender-paid duties or Receiver for recipient-paid duties. Use Sender for service PLX.

• Signature required: Enable signature confirmation for an eligible domestic shipment.

• Dangerous goods: Select the shipment category when the Client Account has no default category configured.

• Receiver type: Select the shipment's recipient classification, or use [Use client level] to inherit the Client Account value.

Packages Tab

For applicable EU consumer shipments, check every item's SKU. Open the line's additional-fields dialog using its … button. In Additional Fields, complete the required Manufacturer Product Identifier and add UPC when available.

When the client item catalog is enabled, techSHIP can fill missing manufacturer identifiers and UPC values from the matching SKU for EU-bound orders. Values already present on the shipment line take precedence. Ensure the Integrated system, item catalog, or manually entered order data supplies the required identifiers.

Click Save to apply the order-level changes. After the Order is updated, continue with the standard shipping workflow.

Troubleshooting

• Authorization fails: In the Baseline Account's Carrier tab, verify that Username contains the API Client ID and Password contains the API Secret supplied by DHL. Portal login credentials cannot be used for this connection.

• No rate returned for the selected service: Confirm with DHL that rates and the selected product are enabled on the account. Check the shipment lane, weight, dimensions, and service eligibility. Review Skip price validation in the Client Account's Carrier tab before bypassing the failure.

• EU consumer order fails for missing identifiers: For each item listed in the error, complete SKU and Manufacturer Product Identifier in the Order's Packages tab. Check Receiver type in the Order's Carrier tab and the Client Account; use the classification that matches the actual recipient.

• Dangerous goods category differs from the Order selection: Check Dangerous goods in the Client Account's Carrier tab. Its populated value takes precedence; clear it when categories must vary by order.

• PLX shipment is rejected: Verify recipient phone data, sender-paid duties, the service's weight and dimension limits, and the absence of dangerous goods. Ask DHL to confirm destination and account eligibility if these checks are satisfied.

• Manifest is not yet ready: If DHL reports that the manifest has not finished processing, download it again later. A manifest download is available only after the carrier completes processing.