US Postal Service Clarifies Major Rule – Maine, New Hampshire, & Massachusetts Take Note

Even though the advent of email, text messaging, and online bill pay means that the United States Postal service handles much less mail than it did in the years before the internet was basically everywhere, the organization still deals with millions of pieces of mail each day.

As the USPS continues to adapt to changes in the way we live our lives, we have seen them make some major changes over the last few years.  Some of these changes were internal, but others, like the cost of shipping items, directly impacted their customers.

The latest change, which is more of a clarification of the rules, has some people really concerned.

The USPS Clarifies the Meaning of Postmarked

For years, people have counted on items being postmarked in order to prove that they were shipped on time.  While it can affect many different types of documents, the need for things to be postmarked by a certain date is often associated with tax documents.

Now, the United States Postal Service has clarified what it means for something to be postmarked.

According to an article on the KJ website, the postmark refers to when the USPS took possession of the mail.  So, just because you dropped an envelope in a mailbox on a given date, it does not mean that it will be picked up from the mailbox on that date.  Additionally, it may not make it to the regional hub where those postmarks are applied.

A rep for the USPS said:

That means that the date on the postmarks applied at our processing facilities will not necessarily match the date on which the customer’s mailpiece was collected by a letter carrier or dropped off at a retail location

The clarification comes as part of the Delivering For America plan, which went into effect in March of 2021.  The plan, which will make changes over the next decade, is meant to streamline and increase the efficiency of USPS operations.

You can read more about the postmarking procedures HERE