FedEx

Emory University engages with four divisions of Federal Express Corporation (Fed Ex), each functioning as a separate entity:

FedEx– small package carrier primarily managed and billed through Central Finance that includes significant contractual shipping discounts;

FedEx Freight– large freight/pallet carrier paid primarily by departmental p-card;

FedEx Trade Networks – facilitates international US customs clearance for imported items; and

FedEx Office Print & Ship Center – offers copy and custom print services and is the only Federal Express vendor that can be paid via Emory Express. Emory's FedEx help desk can be reached at fedexrequest@emory.edu, and additional information job aids are on the website and on the Emory Express homepage.

Emory's FedEx help desk can be reached at fedexrequest@emory.edu, and additional information job aids are on the website and on the Emory Express homepage.

Obtaining a FedEx Account (PDF)

  1. FedEx Govt New Acct Request Form (xlsx)
  2. Billable Stamp Agreement and Order Form (PDF)
  3. Pick Up Request (PDF) (standing pick up location) + Instructions

Mitigate Package Delivery Risk (PDF)
  • Ensure shipping addresses are succinct and clear (only include necessary items; clearly note Rm# or Ste#)
  • Order time/temperature sensitive items earlier in the week for a larger delivery window and request that extra dry ice be added. Do not ship perishables for Friday delivery.
  • Change delivery instructions for time/temperature sensitive items to ship via Priority delivery (next morning by 10:30am). Use only as needed due to additional costs.
  • For perishable or high dollar items, request that vendor insure item or 'declare a value' with FedEx to avoid low carrier liability caps, Use only as needed due to additional costs.
  • Purchase from vendors closer to Emory, if able (rather than those on the West Coast))

Emory University has a Master FedEx account that is only used for inbound packages ordered through Emory Express. Vendors are provided with the FedEx account number and instructions on the purchase order document. Charges for packages not associated with an Emory Express purchase order or that don't follow the instructions stated on the purchase order will be rejected.

Please do not contact FedEx directly. Instead, complete a FedEx Govt New Acct Request Form (that can be obtained on the website, in Emory Express under the FedEx tile or by requesting one at FedExRequest@emory.edu) and submit to FedExRequest@emory.edu so that an account may be created and linked to Emory University's FedEx contract, which provides for significant discounts, centralized billing and free package pick-ups.

Please ignore this email. These instructions are not for people using a ‘government' contract with centralized billing. If you do not wait for FedExRequest@emory.edu to send you your UserID and login password, and instead utilize this link, your account will neither be properly linked to Emory University's contractual discounts nor direct bill invoicing, which is paid by Emory University's Accounts Payable.

Yes, as long as the departmental contact associated with the account grants permission to do so. These requests can be made via email to FedExRequest@emory.edu by providing the name, email, phone number and NetID of the individual that needs to be added. Note that while the Billing Reference field of a shipping label can be used to override the FedEx account's default speedtype with a one-time use active 10 digit speedtype, this is not an ideal practice. If you will need to consistently use a different speedtype than that associated with a departmental account, please establish a separate FedEx account.

Generally, only Emory University employees should create an Emory University FedEx account using an Emory University speedtype. If someone else needs to ship a package to you using your account, please create an online return shipping label and email it to the individual and/or entity, so that the integrity of the account is not compromised.

It is important to delete login profiles for individuals as they leave Emory University or move departments, as the existence of the profile can enable them to use the account after their departure. If the FedEx account was created by Procurement, email fedexrequest@emory.edu with the name of the departmental account and the name of the individual that needs to be removed.

Emory and FedEx encrypt the account numbers for our departmental FedEx accounts, to attempt to thwart fraudulent use of the account. Very often, vendors provided with an account number will use this account for non-related packages being sent to Emory. Likewise, if anyone has your departmental account number, they can use it to ship unrelated packages. Fortunately, there is generally an acceptable online shipping method for both inbound and outbound packages. Please see the Shipping Label job aid for further instructions.

No. First check to ensure that your invoice is not from FedEx Freight, which is a separate entity from Federal Express Corporation, ‘FedEx', our small package carrier. FedEx Freight invoices are never paid through any other means other than by contacting the phone number contained on the invoice and providing a departmental credit card. FedEx (small package) invoices can only currently be paid by Emory University's Accounts Payable via direct billing or via a departmental credit card linked to the FedEx account.

Provide your UserID via email FedExRequest@emory.edu to make the request.

It is the department’s responsibility to maintain an active speedtype as the default account speedtype. If a speedtype is inactivated or if the project associated with a speedtype has been closed at the time of FedEx billing (which takes place roughly 1 month after the package is shipped), the speedtype cannot be used for shipping charges. When expired speedtypes exist on an account, then the charges will bill to your department’s ‘UTBG’ speedtype, which typically corresponds to your departmental clearing or suspense account. Your department will be required to enter a subsequent journal transaction to move the charge to the desired speedtype, and you will also need to email FedExRequest@emory.edu to update the account’s default speedtype.

Email FedExRequest@emory.edu with your department's FedEx account number or name and provide the full 10 digit speedtype that is desired as the account's default speedtype.

Please do not do this.

Instead, use online shipping labels or billable stamps to ship and receive packages per the instructions in the Shipping Label Job aid. Paper airbills frequently cause both billing and delivery issues that contribute to extra work for departments (due to necessary corrective journals) and extra charges for any corrections that FedEx must make. They can significantly contribute to account usage fraud.

Though items received via FedEx as a result of an Emory Express purchase order bill to the speedtype of the associated purchase order, the invoice is not found directly on the PO. To search for these costs, conduct a Document Search in Emory Express by clicking on the icon on the left sidebar that looks like a piece of paper. Select Search > Invoices and then click the 'Add Filter' drop down link at the top right of the page. Select 'Product Description' and enter the Emory University PO# in the criteria field. If shipping has been billed, the invoice voucher for Vantage Point Logistics, our 3rd party FedEx inbound shipping manager will retrieve.

Some FedEx shipping items are free. Others are not. For instructions and additional information, login to your departmental FedEx account at FedEx.com and navigate to 'Packing & Shipping Supplies' > 'Explore Supplies.'

Though service issues do happen, if packages don't contain a clear suite number on the package address line, FedEx will deliver to the street, at the loading dock, a central receptionist, etc. To avoid this, ensure that shipping labels are clear and concise, using abbreviations where possible and avoiding extra information.

Only the shipper's name appears in the charge description, immediately after the tracking number. If a package was received by Emory, fedexrequest@emory.edu will need to provide full package details to validate charges.

Occasionally, if a paper, carbon copy airbill was incorrectly completed for a package, e.g., it cannot be read and/or is missing a valid FedEx account number, FedEx will still deliver the package, but will assign the charge to another account at the same street location. To resolve this issue, the department will need to contact FedEx to request a copy of the physical paper airbill so that the package details can be identified. A journal may then be necessary to move the charge from the erroneous speedtype to the correct one.

‘Dry ice' may be unavailable when preparing an online shipping label for the following reasons: 1) All prior label sections must be completed before this option appears under ‘Special Services'; 2) ‘Your Packaging' under Package Type. Dry ice is not available for any FedEx box type; and 3) The account may not be slated with permissions to ship using dry ice. To slate this permission, you will need to email a current EHSO certificate reflecting that the person preparing packages for the account has completed the necessary course to ship biohazardous items to FedExRequest@emory.edu.

Email FedExRequest@emory.edu with the following information for a FedEx delivery issue:

  1. FedEx service type (Express or Ground);
  2. tracking number(s);
  3. delivery location;
  4. whether keycard access is needed;
  5. details of delivery issue; and
  6. image(s): of shipping label, damaged package(s), incorrectly delivered packages, etc. For a FedEx pickup issues, email FedExRequest@emory.edu with the following information:

    • FedEx service type (Express or Ground);
    • pick-up type (standing or one-time pickup);
    • if one-time pick-up, the pick-up confirmation number;
    • tracking number;
    • whether pickup location requires keycard access; and
    • pick-up issue details.

FedEx has always had a rule that no biohazardous items or packages that are too large to fit inside of a drop-box can be facilitated via their drop-boxes. Yet, they only recently enforced that rule. To compensate for these new restrictions, standing pick-ups for FedEx Express packages fitting this description have been established at:

  • 1364 Clifton Road (Emory Hospital Loading Dock) – pickup occurs daily at 3:30PM;
  • All 1365 Clifton Buildings immediately beside existing drop-boxes (in ‘the tunnel', 2nd floor entrance, and near the Eye Clinic);
  • 1750 Haygood Drive (HSRB II Building Mailroom – Rm G184) –daily pickup at 4:00PM;
  • 1510 Clifton Road (Rollins Research Center – outside of Suite 2006) – daily pick-up at 4:00PM;
  • Possible future pick-up location: 101 Woodruff Circle – location and time TBD.

Be sure to check your building loading dock and surrounding areas for your missing package, but if you have confirmed that your package has been stolen, please contact the following:

  1. Emory Police (404.727.6111) to file a police report;
  2. The vendor to report the theft;
  3. The carrier. If FedEx, email fedexrequest@emory.edu with the following information:
    • Service Type (FedEx Ground or FedEx Express)
    • Tracking Number
    • Delivery Location Address
    • Delivery Details
    • Pictures, if available

It is the department's responsibility to maintain an active speedtype as the default account speedtype. If a speedtype is inactivated or if the project associated with a speedtype has been closed at the time of FedEx billing (which takes place roughly 1 month after the package is shipped), the speedtype cannot be used for shipping charges. When expired speedtypes exist on an account, then the charges will bill to your department's 'UTBG' speedtype, which typically corresponds to your departmental clearing or suspense account. Your department will be required to enter a subsequent journal transaction to move the charge to the desired speedtype, and you will also need to email FedExRequest@emory.edu to update the account's default speedtype.

This can occur for two primary reasons:

  1. Less than 10 numbers were entered in the filed, e.g. 56823, ST56823, #56823. The full 10 digit speedtype must be entered for the billing program to pull it into the payment file; or
  2. The speedtype was not valid at the time of billing. Billing payment occurs roughly one month after the package is delivered. If the ST has been inactive or an associated project/project activity has ended by the time the package is billed, the requested substitute speedtype cannot be used.

The international requirements for each country can be significantly different. For this reason, it is to your advantage to work with FedEx's international customer service, which can be reached at 1-800-247-4747. FedEx also has an international resource page for reference. You may want to review this prior to contacting FedEx to see if any of your questions are answered there

Enter a 10 digit speedtype in the Billing Reference field of an online shipping label to bill to another speedtype. If you will consistently use an override speedtype, consider establishing a separate FedEx account.

Creating FedEx Shipping Labels (PDF)

Importing and Exporting International Packages (PDF)