Loose moissanite travels across borders every day, and the journey from the cutting bench to a jeweler's tray is where a parcel can go wrong. Stones scratch each other if they rattle together, certificates go missing in envelopes, and customs delays hold shipments long enough that a retail order misses its date. The export packaging is part of the product, and how a supplier packs tells you a lot about how seriously they take the order.
How a stone is isolated
Each loose round goes into its own grovet, a small sealed plastic jar with a foam insert that holds the stone in place. The grovet is labeled with the stone's size, color, clarity and GRA report number. Two stones loose in the same bag will scratch each other on a long flight, even though moissanite is hard; the girdles chip where they knock together. Individual grovets are the non-negotiable minimum, and any supplier shipping stones in a shared pouch is cutting a corner that will show up as damage on arrival.
- One stone per grovet, never two in the same pouch.
- Grovets labeled with size, grade and report number.
- Certificate inside the grovet, not in a separate envelope.
- Packing slip listing every stone by report number.
Certificates and paperwork
The GRA certificate goes inside the same grovet as the stone, not in a separate envelope. A certificate that arrives without its stone, or a stone without its certificate, is a dispute that takes days to resolve. For parcels above ten stones, we include a packing slip that lists every grovet by report number and size, so the buyer can check the parcel against the slip before signing. Commercial invoices are prepared separately for customs and show the declared value accurately; under-declaring to save duty is a customs violation that can seize the whole shipment.
Outer packaging and insurance
Grovets go into a rigid outer box with foam padding, and the box goes into a courier envelope. Shipments above a few hundred dollars are sent on a fully insured, tracked service. Standard postal service on a parcel of $2,000 or more is a false economy; a lost package in the post is gone, while a lost insured parcel is reimbursed. We recommend buyers specify insurance at the quote stage rather than adding it after the parcel is packed.
| Shipment value | Service | Typical transit | Insurance |
|---|---|---|---|
| under $300 | tracked courier | 3 - 5 days | included |
| $300 - $2,000 | insured courier | 3 - 7 days | required |
| over $2,000 | insured courier or sea freight | varies | at full declared value |
Customs and the buyer's side
Import duties and taxes are the buyer's responsibility, and they vary by destination. Know your local rate on small polished stones before you place an order, because a parcel that arrives with an unexpected duty bill is a customer-service problem on your end, not the supplier's. Most destinations classify loose moissanite under a gemstone HS code, but the rate differs by country. Keep a copy of the commercial invoice and the packing slip for your own records; customs occasionally asks for them after release.
What to do on receipt
Open the parcel in good light, on a clean table, and check every grovet against the packing slip before signing off on the courier. Photograph the open box and the spread of grovets in the first five minutes. If a stone is missing or damaged, that photo is the evidence for the insurance claim and the supplier replacement. Most suppliers have a 48-hour window for receiving claims; after that, damage is assumed to have happened in the buyer's own hands.
Sample shipments versus bulk freight
A first order should ship by courier, not by freight. You want the parcel in your hands in five days so you can inspect it and decide whether to reorder. Bulk freight by sea freight saves cost on large reorders above a few thousand dollars, but it takes four to six weeks and moves the timing of your seasonal stock. Once a supplier is proven and the order is routine, sea freight on the big reorder cuts the landed cost by enough to matter. Until then, courier is the safer choice even though it costs more per shipment.
Keeping shipping records
File every commercial invoice, packing slip and tracking number for at least two years. Customs may ask for them at a later date, and they are also your evidence if a claim ever needs to be filed. We keep a folder per shipment, with the photos taken on receipt attached. That folder has resolved more than one dispute with a courier, a customs office, or a supplier whose parcel did not match the order. The extra minute of filing saves hours when something goes wrong, which it eventually does on any long-running import business.
Review the insurance value on every reorder. As your parcels grow larger, the insurance on the first order may be too low for the second. Update the declared value each time rather than shipping the same paperwork on autopilot.
Stock rounds ready for export are listed in the loose stone catalog under Round Brilliant Cut.