RALEIGH/DURHAM, NC – The deadline for mailing 2008 federal tax returns is Wednesday, April 15, and virtually all Post Offices in the Triangle area will close that day at its normal times. The Raleigh Main Post Office at Westgate Station, 1 Floretta Place, will be open for retail business until 6 pm and accept completed and stamped tax returns until 12 midnight; all other offices will be open regular business hours.

Fourteen 24-hour Automated Postal Centers (APC) will be available for purchasing postage with the required date, and six contract Post Offices will be open after 5 pm. La Plaza Latina Post Office in Durham will be open until 10 pm.

National figures show that 60% of Americans used e-file last year (2007 returns filed in 2008). However, according to IRS (Carolinas) Spokesman, Mark Hanson, "In North Carolina, last year more than 67% of NC individual taxpayers--both those who prepared their own and those who went to preparers--used e-file. As of April 2, more than 2.1 million NC individual taxpayers used e-file. The IRS estimates the total (both e-file and paper) 2008 returns to be 3.9 million."

Mailers are strongly advised to check the last pickup time posted on neighborhood blue collection boxes before depositing their returns as there will be no special or late collection of mail. Also, mailers using an Automated Postal Center, or self-service kiosk, should be aware that an APC does not provide “proof of mailing” as the date of the sale on the receipt does not necessarily represent the mailing date. These kiosks are available 24/7, and an April 15 postmark will be provided if the mail is deposited by the last pickup time posted.

Customers are encouraged to mail their tax returns as early in the day as possible and weigh their returns or extension requests on a postal scale to calculate the proper amount of postage needed. This is especially true if a customer is filing extra forms or schedules. Tax agencies will NOT pay postage due and the return or extension request will be considered delinquent, even if the mail piece has an April 15 postmark.

Following is a list of Automated Postal Centers and Contract Post Offices in the Triangle Area.

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An independent federal agency, the U.S. Postal Service is the only delivery service that reaches every address in the nation, 149 million residences, businesses and Post Office Boxes, six days a week. It has 34,000 retail locations and relies on the sale of postage, products and services, not tax dollars, to pay for operating expenses. Named the Most Trusted Government Agency five consecutive years by the Ponemon Institute, the Postal Service has annual revenue of $75 billion and delivers nearly half the world’s mail.