USPS® Premium Forwarding Service Program Guidelines for the 2-Year Experiment

Appendix D - Sample Application PFS Shipping Card and Instructions (Page 4-back - Post Office Shipping Copy)

Appendix E - USPS® Premium Forwarding Service, Disposition of Mail Chart (Post Office Copy)

This chart identifies what mail is included in the $10.00 weekly shipment and what mail costs extra.

LEGEND:

Included = Included in weekly PFS shipment at no additional cost.

¹Priority Mail items are included in the weekly PFS shipment unless including the item would delay its arrival at the customer's temporary address.

May be included = Included in weekly PFS shipment only if it fits after all the letters and flats (magazines and large envelopes) are included. If item does not fit, it will be rerouted separately incurring postage due charges at Priority Mail rates.

Not Included = Not included in weekly PFS shipment. These items are rerouted separately at no additional charge.

N/A = Not applicable

Postage Due = Not included in weekly PFS shipment. These items are sent separately incurring postage due charges at Priority Mail rates.

To avoid incurring postage due charges, customers are encouraged to have this mail sent directly to their temporary address.

²Oversized Parcel Post items are sent postage due at the applicable oversized Parcel Post rate.

Appendix F - USPS® Premium Forwarding Service, Disposition of Mail Chart (Customer Copy)

This chart identifies what mail could incur additional postage charges.

LEGEND:

N/A = Not applicable (additional cost not incurred)

May be included = Included in weekly PFS shipment only if it fits after all the letters and flats (magazines and large envelopes) are included. If item does not fit, it will be sent separately incurring postage due charges at Priority Mail rates.

Postage Due = Not included in weekly PFS shipment. These items are sent separately incurring postage due charges at Priority Mail rates. To avoid incurring postage due charges, customers are encouraged to have this mail sent directly to their temporary address.

¹Oversized Parcel Post items are sent postage due at the applicable oversized Parcel Post rate.

Appendix G - Sample PFS Master Tracking Log

Appendix H - Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

1. What is Premium Forwarding Service (PFS)?

PFS is a 2-year experiment of a new service that gives residential customers the option to have all of their mail reshipped to a temporary address while they are away from . For a minimal charge, the Postal Service will package all of the customer's mail weekly with some exceptions and send it by Priority Mail to the temporary address. PFS can be used for a minimum of 2 weeks up to a maximum of 1 year. It provides customers an additional option to the current piece-by-piece temporary forwarding and hold mail services.

2. When does this new service start?

PFS will be offered nationwide at all Postal Service Retail locations and community Post Offices beginning August 7, 2005.

3. How much does it cost?

The cost for PFS is $10 to enroll and $10 for each week of the designated service period. The enrollment fee is nonrefundable.

4. How do customers enroll?

Customers must complete and submit PS Form 8176, Premium Forwarding Service Application, in person at the Post Office (including any of its stations and branches) serving their primary address. The customer presents two types of valid identification (one with photo) along with proof of residency with the PFS application. Both the enrollment fee and the payment for each weekly shipment covering the period specified by the customer are due at the time of application.

5. Can customers enroll in PFS via phone and Internet?

Phone and Internet enrollment are not available at this time. However, future enhancements to the service are planned.

6. Do customers who use the service more than one time a year have to pay the $10 enrollment fee with each subsequent PFS application?

Yes. The $10 enrollment fee is due with each PFS application filed.

7. Can customers who have a COA or hold mail request on file enroll in PFS?

No. Customers with an active COA or hold mail request on file are not eligible to participate in PFS.

8. With PFS, do customers have the option to have their mail shipped to their temporary address weekly other than by Priority Mail service?

No.

9. Can the temporary address be a P.O. Box address?

Yes.

10. Can customers have their mail shipped to a mailbox at a UPS Store or MailBoxes, Etc. location?

Yes. The temporary address can be a commercial mail receiving agency (CMRA), but the primary address cannot be a CMRA or other single point delivery as defined in Postal Operations Manual (POM) 631.

11. Are there limits to the number of PFS applications that can be on file at one time from a single address?

No. There can be different PFS applications on file for multiple "individuals" from one primary address. However, there can be only one PFS application on file for an entire household from a primary address.

12. Can PFS customers elect to have their mail shipped to their temporary address more than once per week?

No.

13. Can customers extend the service or cancel or shorten the length of the service?

Yes. PFS customers can extend (up to 1 year), cancel, or shorten the service. To request a service modification, they must contact their primary Post Office (where the PFS application is on file) by phone or in writing prior to the last ship date. For service extensions, customers must make payments for the additional weeks prior to the new service period. With requests to shorten or cancel the service, customers must apply for a refund for any unused shipments by completing PS Form 3533, Application for Refund of Postage, Fees, Services and Withdrawal of Trust Accounts, and submitting it to the primary Post Office. The enrollment fee is nonrefundable.

14. With PFS, can a customer specify what mail (or what class of mail) they want forwarded to their temporary address?

No. PFS provides shipment of all mail, regardless of class or subclass, from a primary address to a temporary address as designated by the customer.

15. What are the restrictions for PFS?

PFS is available from and to domestic addresses only.

Customers whose primary address is an APO or FPO address are not eligible to use PFS. However, the temporary address may be an APO or FPO address.

Customers whose primary address is a business address are generally not eligible to participate in PFS.

Customers whose primary address is a P.O. Box size 3, 4, or 5 are not eligible to use PFS. (An exception is allowed customers who have a size 3, 4, or 5 Post Office Box because a smaller size was not available.)

Customers whose primary address is a centralized delivery point to which the Postal Service provides delivery in bulk to a third party (e.g., CMRAs) are not eligible to use PFS.

16. Do mailer endorsements affect reshipment through PFS?

No. Mail for PFS customers is reshipped or rerouted regardless of any mailpiece endorsements.

17. How does PFS differ from a temporary Change-of-Address Order?

A Change-of-Address (COA) Order, either temporary or permanent, provides for "piece-by-piece" forwarding of primarily First-Class Mail for a specified period of time. PFS provides a single weekly shipment of all mail via Priority Mail (with some exceptions). PFS mail is not processed through the Computerized Forwarding System (CFS) and endorsements do not apply.

18. Can individual offices elect not to offer PFS and continue to offer their informal temporary forwarding arrangements to customers?

No. PFS replaces all informal arrangements offered at some Post Offices to accommodate customers' temporary address changes. PFS will be available to customers at all retail locations beginning August 7, 2005.

19. What about items too large to fit into the weekly PFS Priority Mail shipment?

Priority Mail and First-Class Mail mailpieces too large to fit are rerouted individually to the temporary address at no additional cost. Standard Mail and Package Services parcels too large to fit are rerouted "postage due" at the applicable Priority Mail rate.

20. If there is a large weekly volume of mail for a PFS customer, will the Postal Service prepare and send more than one weekly PFS Priority Mail package to the customer's temporary address?

Yes. The Postal Service will prepare and send two or more PFS Priority Mail packages for one customer if the volume of letters, flats, large envelopes, and magazines requires additional packages. However, the preferred method is to use a larger box.

21. Will PFS provide a guaranteed time of delivery service?

No. PFS does not include a guaranteed time of delivery. PFS shipments are sent each Wednesday via Priority Mail service.

22. How are Delivery Confirmation and other accountable mailpieces handled with PFS?

Delivery Confirmation, accountable mail, Express Mail, and other mailpieces that require a scan will not be included within the weekly Priority Mail shipment. These items will be individually readdressed to the temporary address, scanned as "forwarded," and immediately rerouted to the temporary address. Express Mail and Priority Mail items are immediately rerouted at no additional charge. Standard Mail and Package Services mailpieces requiring a scan are immediately rerouted to the temporary address "postage due" at the applicable Priority Mail rate of postage, except that Parcel Post oversized items are rerouted "postage due" at Parcel Post oversized rates.

23. What about items arriving at the primary address "postage due"?

The Postal Service does not include items arriving "postage due" at the primary address Post Office for a PFS customer in the weekly Priority Mail shipment. These pieces are rerouted individually as follows:

• Postage-due First-Class Mail and Priority Mail items are rerouted to the temporary address "postage due under the same class of service."

• Postage-due Standard Mail and Package Services parcels (other than oversized Parcel Post) are rerouted to the temporary address "postage due" at the applicable Priority Mail rate.*

• Postage-due oversized Parcel Post items are rerouted to the temporary address at the applicable oversized Parcel Post rate.*

* The total "postage due" is the sum of the "postage due" at the time of receipt at the primary Post Office and the "postage due" for rerouting the item from the primary address Post Office.

24. With regards to PFS, what are the responsibilities of the Post Office serving the customer's primary address?

The primary address Post Office accepting the PFS application (PS Form 8176) is responsible for ensuring that the customer presents two types of valid identification (one with photo) along with proof of residency with the PFS application. The primary address Post Office prepares and sends the Priority Mail shipments each Wednesday, affixing Label 85, Premium Forwarding Service Penalty Label (G-400), to each PFS Priority Mail shipment. For items that are rerouted as "outsides," the primary address Post Office is responsible for readdressing the items to the temporary address on the day received. For Delivery Confirmation and other accountable items, the primary address Post Office is responsible for scanning the pieces as "forwarded" and readdressing the pieces to the temporary address. The primary address Post Office does not use Label 85 for mailpieces sent as "outsides." The primary address Post Office is also responsible for ensuring that PFS shipments stop on the original (or revised) end date specified on the PFS application and that delivery resumes to the customer's primary address.

25. How are the temporary address labels produced for PFS shipments?

Post Offices with appropriate label printing equipment and with existing procedures for producing labels should print PFS temporary address labels using the equipment they have on hand in their local office. If a Post Office requires assistance for production of the temporary address labels, please contact the district office for direction and assistance. The district office should determine the most efficient method for printing labels if additional assistance is needed for producing labels at the local office.

Note: Penalty Label 85 is used ONLY on the weekly Priority Mail shipments. The temporary address can also be printed directly onto Label 85.

26. Can a customer request hold mail service for 30 days and on day 31 activate a PFS order so all of the mail held for 30 days is included in the first PFS shipment?

No, customers are not allowed to combine a hold mail request with PFS.

27. What about requests to hold mail at the end of the PFS service period?

PFS has a 14-day hold mail feature built into the service. At the time of enrollment, the customer must indicate the date to resume mail delivery at the primary address. This date can be up to 14 days after the end date of service. For example, if the customer's end date is August 11, the latest possible resume delivery date is August 25. The mail is held during that period at the Post Office. The customer also has the option of picking up the mail from the Post Office during that holding period.

28. Can a customer enroll at the temporary address Post Office?

No, PFS customers must enroll at their primary address Post Office including any of its stations and branches.

29. Why are Post Offices not allowed to use the Priority Mail Flat-Rate box to reship PFS Mail?

The flat-rate box offering is a separate experiment with a different pricing structure and measurement criteria. To maintain the integrity of the two experiments, the flat-rate box should not be used to reship PFS mail.

30. Are the weekly shipments still sent on Wednesday?

Yes, the day of the week to ship the weekly PFS Priority Mail packages for all Post Offices nationwide is Wednesday. You may have heard it was changed to Friday in the first PSTN Broadcast that was aired on July 13, but shortly thereafter it was decided to keep the reship day as Wednesday.

31. I have four customers for whom I provide specialized service because of extenuating circumstances. Can I continue to provide the services as outlined below?:

"Kathy" lives in Brooklyn, NY, and has filed a temporary COA. She has had a problem with misdelivery of her mail and receiving her neighbors' mail. Letter-size pieces are especially an issue. Therefore, at her request, I forward her mail once a week in a flat penalty envelope with postage paid by our G-10 permit. She has had no trouble receiving the packet as opposed to individual pieces. Must I stop this practice? Yes, this special arrangement is not authorized.

"Angela" travels to Arizona in the fall and takes 3 or 4 weeks to get there, stopping at her children's s on the way. She files a COA, but during those travel weeks, I forward her mail in two packets. I mail them in care of her children at specified dates. After that, everything goes through CFS. May I continue to do this? No.

"Connie" makes frequent trips out of state, but only for a week or so at a time, and because of family circumstances, she is never sure when she's going to go or return. We forward by hand at her request. Is it permissible to continue this? No.

"Raymond and Ruby" go to Florida for a few weeks and leave postage-paid Flat-Rate Priority Mail envelopes with the request that I forward their First-Class Mail and Periodicals every few days. Is this okay? No.

Although those are great services for the customer, they were never authorized. The cost of providing the special services described above is not all recovered when offered for free. One of the reasons PFS was created was to eliminate all of these unauthorized informal types of arrangements, so that all of our services are available uniformly to all our customers no matter where they live. Therefore, when PFS begins on August 7, all informal mail forwarding arrangements must no longer be offered in accordance with section 2.2 on page 9.

32. Can I ship PFS customers' mail to international locations?

The 2-year experiment is only to and from domestic addresses. Mailing to international addresses is not permitted under PFS.

33. Why is PFS not available to Post Office Box customers who have size 3 or larger boxes? What do we tell these customers?

PFS is for residential customers and the price structure is based on 3 pounds of residential mail going across 6 zones. We suspect that boxes 3, 4, or 5 would be used by businesses that would typically get more than 3 pounds of mail a week. However, it is available to customers who use a size 3, 4, or 5 box because a size 1 or 2 was not available.

34. Why is Delivery Confirmation service not included with the PFS weekly shipment for tracking purposes?

It would add cost to the service which would increase the price for the customer. The mailpieces would require extra handling to apply and then scan the Del/Con notice. In essence, we would be charging the customer extra to track how well we shipped and delivered mail from one Post Office to another.

35. How are rural carriers compensated for packaging the mail and addressing Label 85 for mailing?

Rural carriers should not incur additional work as a result of PFS; therefore, compensation should not be an issue. Rural carriers should handle PFS mail as "hold mail," for which they are currently compensated.

Produced by the Premium Forwarding Service Team
Product Development
Product Management Direct Mail
July 2005

— Product Development, Product Management Direct Mail, 8-4-05

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