Returns work differently at Portless than at a US 3PL. The difference is more significant than most merchants expect before their first return comes in. Because your inventory ships from a fulfillment center in China or Vietnam, a returned parcel doesn't sit in a nearby warehouse waiting to be scanned and put back on a shelf. The economics of cross-border shipping mean that getting goods back to the fulfillment center costs multiples of what it costs to destroy them, and that cost is applied at the batch level rather than per order. Understanding this upfront shapes every decision you make about returns.

When an item is returned to a US 3PL, restocking it is a straightforward operational step. The goods are already in the country, the warehouse is local, and the unit cost of re-shelving is predictable.

With Portless, returned parcels don't go back to China or Vietnam by default. When a shipment is undeliverable and marked as Return-to-Sender (RTS), it is redirected to a local warehouse in the same region as the customer. Not to your fulfillment center. Getting that item back to China or Vietnam requires a retrieval fee that is charged at the batch level, not per individual order. For a batch containing over 1,000 orders, every remaining item in that batch incurs the retrieval fee if a return is requested, which can result in very high costs for what started as a single return.

Availability by market: Paying the retrieval fee does not guarantee the item can be sent back to China or Vietnam. This capability is not standard across all markets and channels. Batch return to the fulfillment center is only accommodated for certain major markets (e.g., US, UK, AU). Outside of those markets, the available outcomes are re-routing to a local address or destruction. Return to China/Vietnam is not an option regardless of cost.

Because of this cost structure, destruction is the default disposition for undeliverable returned packages, and it is free of charge. This isn't a policy quirk. It's the economic reality of cross-border reverse logistics.

When a shipment fails delivery and is marked RTS due to an invalid address, repeated failed delivery attempts, customer refusal, or the recipient being unreachable, the parcel is redirected to a local warehouse in the same region as the delivery address. Transit to that local warehouse typically takes 7 to 60 days, depending on the carrier and destination.

Once the package arrives, Portless will notify you and ask how you'd like to proceed. Your options at that point are:

Option 1 — Resend to the customer. If the delivery issue was an address error or a temporary access problem, you can provide an updated shipping address, and Portless will arrange redelivery. Not all logistics channels support re-dispatch; your CS team will confirm if it's available for that order.

Option 2 — Redirect to your own warehouse or address. If you want to recover the physical item, you can provide a local address, and Portless will arrange forwarding. Note that Portless cannot pre-configure destination-specific return addresses in advance. The address is confirmed case by case when the parcel arrives.

Option 3 — Destroy. The default outcome if no instruction is given. Destruction is free of charge.

Note on cost responsibility: Portless does not cover return or reshipment costs when the RTS was caused by an invalid address, repeated failed delivery attempts, or an unreachable customer.

Not via the standard RTS process, and not for all markets. Return of batches to the China/Vietnam fulfillment center is only accommodated for select major markets (US, UK, AU, and similar). For most markets and channels, this isn't offered at all. The retrieval cost isn't the only barrier; availability is. Outside those major markets, your options are limited to re-routing to a local address or destruction (see Options 1–3 above).

If you want to maintain a proper returns-and-restock workflow for your customers, the practical path is a third-party returns provider that receives returns locally and processes them in-country. Portless recommends:

These providers can receive returns locally, inspect them, and either hold for your account, fulfill exchanges, or manage disposition. All without the cross-border retrieval cost. Your Customer Success Manager (CSM) can advise on which fits your volume and geography.

This section covers a different scenario: when you want to pull your own inventory out of Portless's bonded warehouse. For example, because a product line is being discontinued or you're moving to a different provider.

This is a formal customs process with documented requirements and fees.

Portless currently supports pulling merchant inventory out of the bonded warehouse in two scenarios:

Outside of these two scenarios, Portless cannot currently accommodate a bonded warehouse pull. Confirm which scenario applies before submitting documents below.

Trucking from the bonded warehouse to your destination address is additional.

What happens to an RTS package if I don't respond to Portless's notification? The default outcome is destruction, which is free. If you want to recover the item, respond to the notification before the package is processed.

Can I set up a default return address in advance so parcels are automatically redirected? No. Portless confirmed it cannot pre-configure return addresses. When a parcel arrives at the local warehouse, you'll be contacted and can provide a destination address at that time.

My return software directed customer returns to a Portless US address. Does Portless receive those? If your return software (such as Redo, Loop, or similar) is configured with a Portless address, the parcel may route to a Portless-affiliated facility. In that case, contact your CSM or the CS team with the order numbers. They will check with the fulfillment center and advise on forwarding. Note that Portless does not confirm receipt through a separate returns management portal; you'll need to raise a ticket.

Can I sell returned items as open-box through Portless? Not through a native Portless workflow. If you want to recover, grade, and resell returns, a third-party returns provider that handles inspection and re-fulfillment is the appropriate path.

What if a customer claims they returned something, but Portless never received it? RTS parcels can take 7–60 days to arrive at the local warehouse, and Portless tracking doesn't always update in real time during that window. Ask the customer for their return tracking information and contact Portless CS with that data to investigate.

Does Portless cover return costs? Portless does not cover return or reshipment costs when the RTS was caused by an invalid address, repeated failed delivery attempts, or an unreachable customer.