Effective June 24, 2012, the Postal Service™ will revise Mailing Standards of the United States Postal Service, Domestic Mail Manual (DMM®) 508.4 to incorporate reference to the Post Office Box™ fee refund policy for 3-month service periods.
On January, 22, 2012, the Postal Service expanded Post Office Box offerings to allow a 3-month service period for customers using the automatic renewal option. Previously, the refund policy for customers wishing to discontinue service after choosing a 3-month service period could only be viewed online at www.usps.com.
This revision incorporates the existing Post Office Box fee refunds for a 3-month service period into the DMM and also modifies the terminology for a 12-month service period as consisting of two 6-month (semi-annual) periods.
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Mailing Standards of the United States Postal Service, Domestic Mail Manual (DMM)
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500 Additional Mailing Services
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508 Recipient Services
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4.0 Post Office Box Service
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4.2 Basic Information for Post Office Box Service
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4.2.7 Service Period
[Revise the first sentence of 4.2.7 as follows:]
Post Office Box service is available in 3-, 6- or two 6-month (semi-annual) prepaid periods.***
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4.5 Basis of Fees and Payment
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4.5.4 Payment
[Revise the first sentence of 4.5.4 as follows:]
All fees for Post Office Box service are for 3-, 6- or two 6-month (semi-annual) prepaid periods, except as noted under 4.5.6, 4.5.7, and 4.5.10.***
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4.7 Fee Refund
4.7.1 Calculation
[Revise 4.7.1 in its entirety as follows:]
When Post Office Box service is terminated or surrendered by the customer, the unused portion of the fee may be refunded as follows:
a. If service is discontinued at any time within the first 3 months of the 6-month (semi-annual) service period, then one-half of the fee is refunded.
b. If service is discontinued after the beginning of the fourth month of the 6-month (semi-annual) service period, then none of the fee is refunded.
c. If service is discontinued and the customer has prepaid for the next 6-month (semi-annual) service period, then the entire fee for that next period is refunded.
d. If customers using the Automatic Renewal option choose a 3-month service period and service is discontinued anytime during that period, no refund is provided.
4.7.2 Discontinued Postal Facility
[Revise 4.7.2 by deleting the third sentence.]
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We will incorporate these revisions into the next update of the online DMM, which is available via Postal Explorer® at http://pe.usps.com.
— Product Classification,
Pricing, 5-31-12
