A Few Notes about the Testing Environment

The FedEx test API seems to have been developed as a very basic test bed for you to check the formatting of requests, and nothing more. When a shipment is created, the API returns the requisite data, and that's all. It does not add fake tracking information or delivery confirmation, nor does any checking appear to be done when canceling a shipment request (any tracking number is accepted).

I would suggest testing your applications with the testing API as far as possible and using the sample XML responses provided in the documentation for the calls (like tracking) that return little. Then, after you get certified (and after changing the endpoint URL in your code), test a little more exhaustively.

Getting Certified to Go Live

The certification process isn't too difficult; the key requirement is mailing FedEx a sample shipping label to be examined to ensure it meets all of their requirements. The shipping label is discussed in greater detail a little later once the shipping request is presented, and is discussed at great length within the API documentation.