Brazil Correios Address Validation: Advantages, Shortcomings, and a Suitable Alternative
As per ABComm Reports, Brazilian ecommerce loses up to 1 billion Brazilian Reals annually due to failed deliveries. Additionally, a report by Correios indicates that up to 20% of deliveries in the country fail due to incorrect or incomplete addresses. Understanding the need for correct details, the nation’s postal service provider has added an address validation feature. This will prevent the abovementioned issues and ensure the package lands at the correct location. This blog will examine Brazil Correios address validation solution and its benefits and disadvantages. We will also walk you through an alternative with all the features needed in an advanced solution.
Key Takeaways
- Código de Endereçamento Postal (CEP) is Correios’s official address validation solution in Brazil. You can check various elements by entering a postal code or an address.
- It will help businesses operating within Brazil ensure correct delivery and compliance with regulatory bodies.
- The CEP system does not verify international addresses, validate multiple places simultaneously, and determine whether they are residential or commercial.
- PostGrid Address Verification will assist you in verifying over 1 million addresses globally. It will standardize the information according to the respective country’s format and check the delivery status of the most specific element.
What is the Brazil Correios Address Validation Solution?
Correios, Brazil’s national postal service provider, offers address validation through CEP. They introduced this system in 1972, which provides a unique postal code to each location to facilitate accurate mail delivery. You can use the address search tool to verify and standardize the details after entering the CEP. You can utilize it to look up state, city, neighborhood, district, and street names. To implement an automatic CEP in your database, you can follow one of the methods mentioned below:
Access the Database
Correios provides an updated version of the address and CEP database. It formats the premium version in MS Access, and the basic version is in text files. You can acquire both from the sales page for BRL 1100.00 and BRL 2500.00 respectively. The postal service provider updates the addresses quarterly and offers updates for 12 months at no additional cost. Afterward, depending on the version, it charges an annual maintenance fee of RBL 840 or BRL 2100.
Link the CEP Query Service
You can add a small frame, like an embedded window, to your website to show the Correios CEP search service. Your customers can use it to look up the postal code by entering the address or vice versa. This will be useful for users since not everyone remembers the CEP code of where they live. This integration will significantly benefit businesses that have consumers in the larger cities. One building typically has multiple entrances from various streets, so numerous CEP numbers exist. However, it does not offer an integration or an Application Programming Interface (API) for ecommerce operators.
Third-Party Integration With CEP Database
You can use third-party alternatives to integrate the CEP database directly. They usually have an API, or you can add the JavaScript to your checkout page. There are relatively quicker and more efficient systems that eliminate the need to manually develop a database query system based on the raw database of Correios.
Common Address-Related Challenges Leading to Failed or Delayed Deliveries in Brazil
Incomplete Address
People often forget to add details like an apartment/floor number or make mistakes like typos or transposed numbers. These situations make it challenging for the agents to find the correct location. It will delay orders, increase the possibility of misdelivery, and frustrate customers.
Frequent Changes in Street Names and Numbering
Street names and numbers frequently change in large cities due to urban planning, construction projects, or government regulations. Since the national postal service provider does not update the database in real-time, delivery companies might not be aware of the recent changes. This can lead to delays and failed attempts.
Informal Settlements
They are called favelas in Brazil and do not follow the official naming conventions. They might not have a street name or a house number, making it difficult for the delivery agents to find the exact location. There might also be road accessibility and safety concerns, which will make the agents reluctant, leading to package returns. Moreover, the individual responsible for mailing might rely on alternative methods, such as residents or drop-off points. This might cause delays or shipment loss.
Non-Standardized Rural and Remote Area Addresses
People in these areas rely on landmarks and mention them in the address instead of the street name or the house number. These details might not be mentioned in the formal postal system, making it difficult for delivery agents to pinpoint the exact location. Moreover, automated systems require standardized details and might not process this vague information, delaying the delivery.
How to Write the Correct Brazilian Address Format?
The first step to prevent the possibility of delivery failures is to ensure you are writing the address in the correct format. To send mail within the country, you must follow the format laid down by the Correios, which is as follows:
| Title and Name of the Recipient | Sr. Jon Silvia |
| Street name and Number, Floor Number, Apartment Number | Rua Dos Tres Irmaos, 245, 2º andar, apto 304 |
| District | Vila Progresso |
| City | Sao Paulo |
| Brazil (optional for domestic mail) | Brazil |
| CEP (Brazilian postcode) | 04536-908 |
If you live abroad and want to send mail to a client or customer in Brazil, you must follow the Universal Postal Union (UPU) format. It is a specialized agency of the United Nations that manages cross-border mail and package delivery. Brazil is one of its member countries. This establishment ensures harmonious global postal management by providing services like standardized address formats for international deliveries. The format is similar to the domestic one, except for minor differences. It will look like this.
| Title and Name of the Recipient | SR. JON SILVIA |
| Sector Quadra Block Floor | SBN-QUADRA 34-BLOCO C – 9º ANDAR |
| District | VILA PROGRESSO |
| City | SAO PAULO |
| CEP (Brazilian postcode) | 04536-908 |
| Country Name | BRAZIL |
Additionally, there are certain things you need to keep in mind when sending mail from abroad.
- Always capitalize all the elements, ensuring legibility and clarity, and helping postal workers distinguish it as international mail.
- You must add the country name in the last line.
- Add a hyphen to separate each element when mentioning sector, quadra, block, and floor in one line. However, it is imperative to place a comma when adding the street name, floor, and apartment number.
How Can You Benefit From Using Brazil Correios Address Validation Solution?
Cuts Down Expenses
When businesses send parcels to incorrect or incomplete addresses, it leads to failed deliveries. In this case, the shipping company might return the goods to you. You will spend money to correct the details and reship the product. You can apply the correct postal code to each package using the CEP system. This will ensure accurate delivery in the first time, thus preventing hassle and saving costs.
Adheres to Brazilian Postal Standards
In Brazil, postal codes are not just used for delivery but also play a crucial role in the country’s tax, billing, and administrative systems. They also help with customs clearance. Using this tool, you can ensure adherence to Correios CEP guidelines. This will help avoid regulatory issues and potential fines.
Improves Delivery Accuracy
It checks the state, street, city, district, and neighborhood details by matching them against the official database. This accurate information will help the agent make a correct delivery on the first try. When customers get their package on time and at the correct address, they will be satisfied and continue doing business with you.
What Does the Brazil Correios Address Validation Solution Lack?
Does Not Determine the Category
Knowing whether you are shipping to a residential or commercial area is crucial. Without this distinction, you might overcharge or undercharge customers. Additionally, knowing the type will help you plan the delivery logistics accordingly. For instance, a residential area can accept packages on weekends or in the evening of weekdays. However, you can send mail to a commercial location during business hours. A lack of this feature might lead to multiple attempts, irritating the recipient. Moreover, the numerous trips will increase the operational cost.
Limited to Brazil
You can only check addresses within Brazil. If you have a global customer base and use this tool to validate the details, you will end up with inaccurate information. Using these unverified details for mailing will result in failed deliveries. Moreover, relying on a single-country address verification solution like CEP will force you to confirm the international information manually. This will increase the operational cost and bring down the efficiency of the order fulfillment team.
Does Not Provide Premise-Level Details
It only validates basic details up to the street name. However, different units have the same street address in large apartment complexes or multi-story buildings. Without this feature, you must manually determine whether the building, apartment, and floor number are correct. This will create uncertainty, leaving room for misdelivery, delays, or shipment returns.
Does Not Offer API
There is no provision of an API in this solution. Businesses cannot verify addresses automatically during checkout or with their back-end systems. They will have to do it manually, which can be time-consuming and error-prone. Businesses in industries like ecommerce that manage deliveries on a large scale will have to purchase third-party solutions, adding to the operational cost.
Cannot Validate Address in Bulk
Batch validation is crucial for businesses managing a large customer base or high shipment volume. It helps them upload and validate hundreds of thousands of addresses simultaneously, streamlining the operation. Since CEP lacks this, you must check each location individually, requiring significant manual effort and slowing the processing time.
Does Not Provide Autocomplete Suggestions
It is a highly convenient feature that minimizes the possibility of errors, speeds up the data entry process, and ensures that the user only adds standardized and verified details. However, the CEP system does not offer this. Customers might make mistakes while entering the information, such as typos or not adding important elements. These incomplete, incorrect addresses might lead to delivery issues such as delays. Moreover, customers will have to make extra efforts to enter every component, which can frustrate them. It can result in loss of interest and cart abandonment.
What Makes PostGrid Address Verification the Right Alternative?
| Parameters | PostGrid Address Verification Platform | Brazil Correios Address Validation Solution |
| Focus | It offers real-time address verification, validation, standardization, and autocomplete recommendations. | It only validates the addresses. |
| Modes of Deployment | You can use it in three ways:
Integrate the API into your CRM, sales, or any tool. Install the software with a few clicks. Directly check the address from the website. |
You can either use the website or add the query service to your website. However, it does not offer an API, making the process challenging for businesses with large customer bases. |
| Batch Processing | You can verify over one million addresses by uploading a file with your customer’s details. | You can only check one address at a time. |
| Residential Delivery Indicator | It tells whether the address is commercial or residential. | You cannot determine what type of address you are shipping the package to. |
| Compliance | Depending on the region, it complies with leading industry standards like HIPAA, PIPEDA, SOC-2, GDPR, CCPA, and more. | It only adheres to Brazilian rules and regulations. |
| Global Address Verification | It has access to the official postal database of over 245 countries and territories. Whether your customers live in the US, Canada, Brazil, or any other major country, it will verify their addresses. | Its services are limited to Brazil. |
| Delivery Point Validation | It verifies whether or not the apartment or floor number exists and is deliverable. | It only validates information till the street name. |
| Autocomplete Recommendations | Your customers will get real-time and geolocation-based autocomplete suggestions, speeding up the checkout process while ensuring accuracy. | It does not provide predictive address suggestions. |
Use PostGrid to Get Highly-Specific Details for Addresses Across the World
From the details above, it is evident that relying solely on the CEP system will not provide comprehensive address verification. The lack of features like global validation, autocomplete suggestion, DPV, etc., might lead to inaccurate deliveries, increase the workload, and cause customer dissatisfaction. This is where PostGrid address verification can help you. No matter the quantity and location, we will verify each detail to the most specific element with the same precision. We will help you make the correct delivery on the first attempt. If you want to see how our solution works, request a demo now.
