Shipping

How shipping works on GoSwapCards

GoSwapCards supports different transaction flows, so shipping may work differently depending on the deal. In a standard direct transaction, the sender ships directly to the counterparty. In a Sale Authentication transaction, the seller ships to the designated GoSwapCards Authentication Hub intake address first and GoSwapCards forwards the item to the buyer after the required hub processing. In a SecureSwap transaction, both users ship to the designated GoSwapCards intake address first and approved items are then shipped back out from the hub process.

Checkout determines which shipping methods are available for a specific order. When buying, one loose card under € 30 may go by letter, also abroad, without tracking; every other purchase, and every trade shipment, ships with tracking, and higher-value shipments require a parcel or a signature on delivery.

This page is a practical help page. It is meant to explain how shipping works in normal use. For the formal operational baseline, see the Shipping Policy.

Operator context

GoSwapCards is operated by GoSwapCards B.V., founded by Vincent Wiechers. For direct user-origin shipments, GoSwapCards is not the physical ship-from party. For hub-origin SecureSwap outbound legs, Authentication Service forwarding legs, and return-to-origin shipments from the hub process, GoSwapCards may act as the physical sender.

Designated intake address and GoSwapCards handling

The address displayed in an order or shipping flow is the designated GoSwapCards intake address for that shipment.

GoSwapCards manages the applicable intake, review, evidence, packaging, and forwarding process. Internal handling and security details are not published.

Shipping responsibilities

• Sellers, traders, and other sending users are responsible for packaging their items correctly and shipping within the required deadline.
• Users must use a compliant carrier service when the transaction requires tracked, registered, signed, parcel, or insured shipping.
• For direct user-to-user shipping, the sending user buys or arranges the shipment and must submit tracking details where tracking is required.
• Direct carrier shipping relies on the carrier's tracking, signature and claim process.
• For Sale Authentication, the seller ships to the designated GoSwapCards Authentication Hub intake address and does not ship directly to the buyer.
• For SecureSwap inbound shipping, each user buys or arranges the shipment into the designated intake address and must submit tracking details where tracking is required.
• When checkout allows untracked letter shipping, no tracking number exists. The sender should keep proof of posting or purchase where available, but GoSwapCards cannot verify an untracked shipment that is lost before delivery or hub receipt.
• For SecureSwap outbound shipping and Sale Authentication hub-to-buyer forwarding, GoSwapCards may generate or purchase the outbound label and provide platform-generated tracking.

Accepted deal cancellation requests

Asking to cancel an accepted deal does not automatically stop the deal. A cancellation request is a request for the other party to agree to cancel together, unless GoSwapCards or mandatory law determines that a different outcome applies.

If the other party accepts, the deal may be cancelled and any eligible payment authorization or payment is handled under the applicable payment state, Terms, and policy rules. If the other party declines, the deal continues as accepted and you still need to complete your part of the deal. If a deal is cancelled before anything has shipped, a platform label that was bought but not used is cancelled.

Sale Authentication shipping route

Authentication Service is optional for eligible Sale purchases from € 50 item or bundle value. It is not a direct seller-to-buyer shipment flow.

The seller-to-hub leg routes the card to the designated GoSwapCards Authentication Hub intake address first. GoSwapCards performs an authenticity check based on available visual and scan-based indicators. This is not a formal grading certificate.

• Leg 1: seller to the designated GoSwapCards Authentication Hub intake address
• Leg 2: GoSwapCards Authentication Hub process to the buyer's saved delivery address
• Buyer pays the € 7,99 authentication fee where selected, plus seller-to-hub shipping and hub-to-buyer forwarding where applicable
• GoSwapCards may capture package, card, detail, scan, tracking, and outbound-packaging evidence for operational handling, authenticity support, damage assessment, and dispute review
• Forwarding starts after successful hub check or admin processing and required evidence handling
• Forwarding may be blocked if authentication is rejected, if evidence or review is incomplete, or if admin review is required
• Hub dispatch does not by itself complete the order or transfer ownership
• Buyer receipt or arrival confirmation remains the customer-facing completion gate according to the applicable Sale flow

Typical SecureSwap route and logistics

A normal two-party SecureSwap usually includes four physical shipping legs: Party A sends its cards to GoSwapCards, Party B sends its cards to GoSwapCards, Party A's approved cards are forwarded to Party B, and Party B's approved cards are forwarded to Party A.

SecureSwap may therefore cost more than direct shipping because multiple carrier legs, intake, temporary holding, review, packaging, and forwarding can be involved. No fixed total applies to every trade; checkout remains the source of truth for the amount payable in a specific deal.

Recommended shipment evidence

Before shipping cards, we strongly recommend creating clear evidence of their condition and packaging. This does not add a new step to the shipping flow.

• Take clear photos of the front and back of the cards and of the sealed, shipment-ready package.
• Record one continuous, unedited video showing the card condition, the protective materials, the cards being packaged, and the final package being sealed.
• Keep the original files until the transaction and any related support or dispute review have fully ended.
• You do not need to upload the files during normal shipping. GoSwapCards may ask for the originals if a problem is reported.
• Missing, unclear, incomplete, or edited evidence may make a report harder to assess, but the absence of a video does not automatically decide liability or reject a report.

Value-based shipping methods

• When buying, one loose card under € 30 may go by letter: € 3,75 (abroad € 4,75), no tracking, at your own risk. From € 30 every purchase ships with tracking.
• Trade (swap) shipments always ship with tracking; a letter is not offered for trades.
• Within the Netherlands, for orders under € 100: up to 5 loose cards, or one slab under € 75, go by letterbox parcel with tracking for € 5,45; any other parcel costs the real carrier price, at least € 10,45. From € 100 every parcel costs the real carrier price.
• From € 250 the full physical shipment value (base listing plus any seller-side bundle items) requires a tracked parcel with verified signature on delivery. Insurance alone does not satisfy that requirement, and checkout is blocked when no signature method is available for the route.
• Abroad you pay the real label price plus € 2,99. Up to 5 loose cards under € 100 may go by EU letterbox parcel to EU countries, except Belgium.
• Checkout is the source of truth for the shipping methods available on a specific deal.

Packaging expectations

• Cards should be packed in a way that matches their value, fragility, and quantity.
• Use sleeves, toploaders, semi-rigids, team bags, cardboard reinforcement, and outer protection where appropriate.
• Do not pack valuable cards loosely inside envelopes or thin packaging that can bend, tear, or expose the contents.
• The outer packaging should be properly sealed and clearly addressed.
• For SALE checkout the platform enforces the required service level automatically. On legs the platform does not quote (for example some direct trade shipments), the sender remains responsible for selecting the right signature or insurance level.

Tracking expectations

• Where tracking is required, users must submit a valid carrier name and tracking number within the required deadline.
• A missing, false, incomplete, or misleading tracking number may be treated as a failure to ship or a policy violation when the selected method required tracking.
• Untracked letter shipping has no tracking. It is cheaper, but it creates less evidence and is used at the sender's risk.
• For hub-origin SecureSwap outbound shipments and Sale Authentication forwarding shipments, the platform may show the official outbound tracking number generated by operations.
• Users should keep shipment receipts and any carrier confirmation until the transaction is fully completed.

Domestic vs international shipping

• Domestic shipments are generally simpler, but tracking and signature requirements may still apply depending on value or risk.
• International shipments may involve longer transit times, customs handling, taxes, import charges, scan gaps, or carrier rerouting.
• Users remain responsible for using lawful and deliverable addresses and for complying with customs and shipping rules that apply to them.
• GoSwapCards does not guarantee carrier performance, customs processing speed, or cross-border delivery timing.

Risk transfer, evidence, and delivery assumptions

GoSwapCards does not guarantee that carriers will deliver on time or scan every parcel event correctly. Carrier delays, failed scans, customs issues, or rerouting can affect delivery. When a user-origin shipment does not follow the required shipping method, tracking standard, or packaging standard, that may affect dispute handling and any refund or release outcome.

Direct carrier shipping relies on the carrier's tracking, signature and claim process.

Untracked letter shipping is at sender risk. GoSwapCards cannot verify or compensate a lost untracked shipment before delivery or, for SecureSwap or Authentication Service, before receipt by the designated GoSwapCards intake address.

Tracked or registered shipping provides better evidence, but it is not an unconditional GoSwapCards guarantee. GoSwapCards may use evidence voluntarily provided through support, tracking, delivery scans, hub receipt records, hub photos, scan records, support records, and dispute evidence to assess the likely stage and cause of an issue.

Evidence may help distinguish insufficient packaging, carrier handling before hub receipt, GoSwapCards handling, and outbound transport. It does not guarantee that every cause or responsible party can always be established with certainty, and it does not create blanket insurance, automatic compensation, or unlimited liability.

In Sale Authentication, GoSwapCards may pause forwarding if authentication raises concerns. Rejected or suspected fake is an admin review state, not an automatic refund promise in this shipping copy.

In SecureSwap, approval and outbound release only happen after the required bilateral checks have been completed. Every first leg ships with tracking, and hub verification starts only after the shipment arrives at the designated GoSwapCards intake address.

Nothing in this guidance limits mandatory legal rights that cannot lawfully be excluded.

Delays and disputes

• If a package is delayed, users should first check the latest carrier scan and keep the tracking reference available for support where tracking exists.
• If tracking is missing, or the package appears stuck, support may ask for available shipment evidence, packaging information, original photo files, an original locally retained packing video, or other supporting material.
• If an untracked shipment is reported missing before delivery or hub receipt, GoSwapCards may be unable to verify the shipment and cannot promise compensation.
• If Sale Authentication raises authenticity concerns, forwarding may be paused while GoSwapCards reviews the case.
• If a SecureSwap fails because something is missing, wrong, unsafe, suspicious, unpaid, or not fully cleared, the default operational rule is to cancel the trade and return items to origin.
• If both parties already completed the required SecureSwap payment step and one party still fails to ship within the deadline, that party may be treated as the defaulting party under the Terms and Shipping Policy.

Seller and buyer responsibilities

• Sellers and senders must describe items accurately, ship on time, and provide valid shipping data where required.
• Buyers and trade counterparties must provide correct address information, complete required confirmations, and respond promptly when the transaction flow asks for action.
• A cancellation request after acceptance still requires the other party's agreement. If the other party declines, the deal continues and the requesting party must complete the required payment, shipping, or confirmation steps.
• Sellers must follow the Authentication Service intake-address instructions when Authentication Service is selected.
• Both sides must follow SecureSwap instructions when the deal uses the hub flow.
• Both sides must cooperate with support or review requests where authenticity, loss, mismatch, or carrier issues need investigation.

Recommendations for valuable cards

• Prefer tracked parcel shipping over letterbox or untracked services for valuable cards, even when a cheaper method is available.
• Use signature-required shipping where the route, value, or transaction flow makes that appropriate.
• Consider insurance where available and suitable for the shipment value, but do not assume insurance creates an unconditional GoSwapCards guarantee.
• Photograph the card front, card back, protective packaging, and closed outer package before shipping.
• Consider recording and retaining one continuous packing video for valuable or difficult-to-replace cards where practical.
• Retain proof of dispatch and original evidence files until the transaction and any related review period have ended.

Unsupported or prohibited shipment scenarios

• Do not ship counterfeit, fake, deceptive proxy, stolen, or otherwise unlawful items.
• Do not send incorrect items, incomplete contents, or misleading packages into a SecureSwap or Authentication Service flow.
• Do not use false addresses, false tracking, or carrier information that cannot be verified.
• Do not assume untracked mailbox shipping is acceptable where checkout, the platform, or the transaction requires a stronger method.
• Do not treat label access as permission to ignore the payment gate or bilateral clearance rules that apply to SecureSwap.