Domestic Mail

Effective September 15, 2005, we are revising Mailing Standards of the United States Postal Service, Domestic Mail Manual (DMM®) 709.8 to update procedures for the 2- year Premium Forwarding Service (PFS) experiment originally announced in Postal Bulletin 22157 (6-23-05, pages 6-8). The changes are as follows:

• We are adding a standard that prohibits customers from using an APO or FPO address as a temporary address for PFS.

• We are adding a standard that prohibits customers from using PFS if their temporary address is within the 969 3-digit ZIP CodeTM area, or is otherwise in a U.S. territory or possession that requires a Customs Declaration.

• We are clarifying that we cannot accept PFS applications with an "individual" designation if the primary address is a Post OfficeTM box.

• We are clarifying that payment for each weekly Priority Mail® shipment must be paid in full for the total weeks requested at the time of enrollment.

• We are modifying when and how we will reship or reroute certain Standard Mail® and Package Services mailpieces.

• We are adding procedures on how we handle mailpieces identified as "Surface Mail Only" or that have other hazardous material markings.

• We are adding standards that require USPS® examination of PFS mail for aviation mail security and hazardous material procedures prior to it being reshipped or rerouted.

Although APOs and FPOs are considered domestic addresses for rate purposes, certain mailpieces require Customs Declarations that must be completed by the customer or mailer who has personal knowledge about the contents of the mailpiece. Postal ServiceTM employees do not know the contents of the mail that is being reshipped and are therefore unable to complete the required Customs Declarations. Therefore, we encourage customers whose temporary address is an APO or FPO address to use traditional temporary forwarding service under DMM 507.2.2.6 instead of PFS.

In the article "Revision: Mailpieces to Guam Weighing 16 Ounces or More" in Postal Bulletin 22097 (3-6-03, page 25) USPS Network Operations Management announced that items mailed to ZIP Codes within the 969 area and weighing 16 ounces or more (other than items sent as Express Mail® or Registered Mail®) must bear a completed and signed Customs Declaration. Postal Service employees are unable to complete and sign the Customs Declaration, therefore PFS will not be available for customers whose temporary addresses are within the 969 3-digit ZIP Code area, or are otherwise in a U.S. territory or possession that requires a Customs Declaration.

We are also clarifying that when a customer's primary address is a Post Office box, the applicant must choose the "Entire Household" designation on the PFS application. An "Individual" designation on the PFS application is not permitted for Post Office box customers enrolling in PFS. This is consistent with current postal standards, which authorize the Post Office boxholder as the only person who may file a traditional change-of-address order.

We are also clarifying that any mailpiece arriving at the primary address bearing markings such as "Surface Mail Only" or other hazardous materials markings must never be placed in the weekly Priority Mail shipment, and must be separately rerouted using surface transportation.

Finally, we are modifying procedures for Standard Mail parcels and all Package Services mailpieces. Standard Mail parcels that require a delivery scan, contain contents intended for surface transportation only, or that are too large to fit into the weekly Priority Mail shipment will be separately rerouted at the applicable 1-pound single-piece Parcel Post® rate. All Package Services mailpieces will be separately rerouted postage due at the single-piece rate in the subclass in which the mailpiece was originally shipped (i.e., Parcel Post, Media Mail®, Bound Printed Matter or Library Mail).

We will incorporate these revisions into the printed version of the DMM and the September 29, 2005, update of the online version available via Postal Explorer® (pe.usps.com).

Mailing Standards of the United States Postal Service, Domestic Mail Manual (DMM)

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700 Special Standards

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709 Experimental Classifications and Rates

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8.0 Premium Forwarding Service

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8.2 Eligibility

8.2.1 Use

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[Revise item c to read as follows. Redesignate current items d through f as new items e through g. Add new item d. Revise new item g by deleting the reference to APO and FPO addresses as follows:]

c. Except as provided in item d, customers must designate on the application form whether the order is for an "Individual" or an "Entire Household."

d. For customers whose primary address is a Post Office box, only the boxholder is authorized to initiate the application and "Entire Household" must be designated on the application.

* * * * *

g. PFS is available to, but not from, single point delivery addresses (e.g., RV parks, hospitals, hotels) and U.S. Department of State addresses (see 703.3 for additional Department of State requirements).

8.2.2 Prohibited Use

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[Add items d and e to specify that customers whose primary or temporary address is an APO or FPO address, or whose temporary address is within the 969 3-digit ZIP Code area are prohibited from enrolling in PFS.]

d. Customers whose primary address or temporary address is an APO or FPO.

e. Customers whose temporary address is within the 969 3-digit ZIP Code area, or is otherwise in a U.S. territory or possession that requires a Customs Declaration.

8.3 Rates and Fees

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8.3.2 Charge Per Reshipment

[Revise 8.3.2 by adding the following sentence:]

***Payment for each weekly PFS shipment for the total weeks requested must be paid in full at the time of enrollment.

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8.5 Disposition of PFS Mail

8.5.1 Weekly Priority Mail Reshipments

[Revise 8.5.1 to read as follows:]

Regardless of any mailer's ancillary service endorsement on a mailpiece, all mail is reshipped in the weekly Priority Mail shipment, except as specified in 8.5.2 through 8.5.8.

[Renumber current 8.5.5 as 8.5.8. Revise current 8.5.4 to create three sections, 8.5.5, 8.5.6, and 8.5.7 as follows. Renumber 8.5.2 and 8.5.3 as 8.5.3 and 8.5.4. Add new 8.5.2 to indicate how we reroute mailpieces identified as "Surface Mail Only".]

8.5.2 Mailpieces Arriving at the Primary Address Endorsed "Surface Mail Only" or With Other Hazardous Materials Markings

Any mailpiece arriving at the primary address that indicates surface only transportation or bears other hazardous materials markings, e.g., Label 127, "Surface Mail Only," ORM- D, cannot be reshipped in the weekly Priority Mail shipment and must be separately rerouted via surface transportation.

8.5.3 Mailpieces Requiring a Scan or Signature at Delivery

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[Revise item b of new 8.5.3 as follows and add item c to indicate how we reship Package Services mailpieces requiring a scan or signature at delivery.]

b. Standard Mail parcels are separately rerouted postage due at the appropriate 1-pound Parcel Post single-piece rate.

c. Package Services mailpieces (i.e., Parcel Post, Media Mail, Bound Printed Matter, and Library Mail) are separately rerouted postage due at the appropriate single-piece rate in the subclass in which the mailpiece was originally shipped. (For Parcel Select items, the applicable rate is the Parcel Post rate.)

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8.5.5 Large First-Class Mail and Periodicals Parcels Mail Not Requiring a Scan or Signature at Delivery

First-Class Mail and Periodicals parcels (firm bundles) not requiring a scan or signature at delivery and which do not fit into the weekly Priority Mail shipment are separately rerouted at no additional charge.

8.5.6 Standard Mail Parcels Not Requiring a Scan or Signature at Delivery

Eligible Standard Mail parcels that do not require a scan or signature at delivery are included in the weekly Priority Mail shipment provided they will fit. Parcels that do not fit, or are otherwise ineligible (e.g., mailpieces identified as surface transportation only) are separately rerouted postage due at the appropriate 1-pound single-piece Parcel Post rate.

8.5.7 Package Services Mailpieces Not Requiring a Scan or Signature at Delivery

Package Service mailpieces not requiring a scan or signature at delivery are handled as follows:

a. Package Services mailpieces (i.e., Parcel Post, Media Mail, Bound Printed Matter, and Library Mail) are separately rerouted postage due at the appropriate single-piece rate in the subclass in which the mailpiece was originally shipped. (For Parcel Select items, the applicable rate is the Parcel Post rate.)

b. Oversized Parcel Post parcels are rerouted postage due at the appropriate oversized Parcel Post rate.

8.5.8 Mailpieces Arriving Postage Due at the Primary Address

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[Revise item c as follows:]

c. Postage due Package Services mailpieces, other than oversized Parcel Post pieces, are rerouted postage due at the appropriate single-piece rate in the subclass in which the mailpiece was originally shipped. (For Parcel Select items, the applicable rate is the Parcel Post rate.) The total postage due for Package Services mailpieces is the sum of the postage due at the time of receipt at the primary address plus the postage due for rerouting the mailpiece from the primary Post Office to the temporary address at the appropriate single-piece rate.

8.6 USPS Responsibility

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[Revise 8.6 by adding item d as follows:]

d. Aviation Mail Security (AVSEC) and Hazardous Material (HAZMAT) procedures apply to all PFS mail. Employees must examine the exterior of customers' mailpieces for AVSEC and HAZMAT indicators prior to mail being reshipped or rerouted. Mailpieces meeting either profile (AVSEC or HAZMAT) must be treated in accordance with USPS AVSEC and HAZMAT procedures. Never place these mail types into PFS Priority Mail shipments.

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— Mailing Standards,
Pricing and Classification, 9-15-05

Effective September 15, 2005, the Postal ServiceTM is slightly modifying the Premium Forwarding Service (PFS) Program Guidelines, which were published as an article titled "USPS® Premium Forwarding Service Program Guidelines for the 2-Year Experiment" in Postal Bulletin 22160 (8-4-05, pages 94-119). These changes, which incorporate some refinements to better serve our customers, include the following:

• Clarifications concerning the size of shipping container that should be chosen for the weekly PFS Priority Mail® shipment.

• Prohibitions on mail to and from APOs and FPOs.

• Restrictions on mail to U.S. territories and possessions requiring a Customs Declaration - i.e., mailpieces weighing 16 ounces or more to addresses with a 969 ZIP CodeTM require a Customs Declaration. These are U.S. Pacific Rim territories such as Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, and Palau.

• Safety measures.

• Specific handling instructions for some "outside" packages (i.e., packages that are not included in the weekly PFS Priority Mail shipment with letters and flats) by class of service.

• The handling of Post OfficeTM box enrollments and reshipments.

Please circulate this information widely upon receipt.

See the revised "Disposition of Mail Chart (Post Office Copy)" on page 1 in this issue of the Postal Bulletin and the revised "Disposition of Mail Chart (Customer Copy)" on page 2 in this issue of the Postal Bulletin. Remember to provide each customer enrolling in PFS with a copy of the "Disposition of Mail Chart (Customer Copy)."

PFS Shipping Container

The size and type of Priority Mail container chosen for the weekly PFS Priority Mail shipment is based on the volume of letters and flats to be reshipped. The PFS shipping container chosen on the basis of the letters and flats to be reshipped should not be changed in order to accommodate packages.

Packages that are not allowed or do not fit within the weekly PFS shipping container are rerouted separately at the class of service originally intended. If there is sufficient room in the weekly PFS shipping container selected for letters and flats, those packages allowed may be included. See sections 3, 4, and 6 for further details on eligibility, rate, and packaging requirements.

An additional Priority Mail container should not be used just to accommodate a package; instead, the package should be rerouted separately outside the weekly PFS shipping container.

APOs and FPOs

All APOs, FPOs, and some U.S. territories and possessions (addresses with a 969 ZIP Code, which are U.S. Pacific Rim territories such as Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, and Palau) are excluded from the PFS Program. This is because APOs, FPOs, and some U.S. territories and possessions that have a domestic address have content restrictions and Customs Declaration requirements that cannot be fulfilled by Postal Service employees reshipping mail to these addresses via PFS.

There are separate provisions for forwarding mail to APOs, FPOs, and U.S. territories and possessions through the Postal Service's change-of-address service for temporary and permanent moves. These forwarding options provide free alternatives to our customers.

Surface Mail Only

Articles bearing Label 127, Surface Transportation Only, or otherwise identified as "surface only" must not be placed in the weekly PFS Priority Mail shipment.

Mail identified as "surface only" will remain in the ground transportation network and be reshipped in the same class of service originally received. Postage-due charges will apply to Standard Mail® and Package Services parcels (see section 6 for details on rate requirements).

Aviation Mail Security and Hazardous Material Procedures

Aviation Mail Security (AVSEC) and Hazardous Material (HAZMAT) procedures apply to all mail, including mail reshipped via PFS. Employees are reminded to be watchful for any indicators that could identify a potential item as an AVSEC or HAZMAT threat and to follow proper procedures for handling such items.

Mailpieces identified as ORMD (Other Regulated Materials - Class "D") or HAZMAT are not to be included in the weekly PFS Priority Mail shipment and will be rerouted at the same class of service initially paid.

Post Office Box Customers

Eligible Post Office box customers enrolling in PFS can choose only the "Household" designation on the PFS application - the "Individual" designation is not allowed. This is consistent with existing forwarding regulations for Post Office boxes. All mail in the Post Office box must be reshipped, and the PFS service request can be initiated only by the box holder.

Packages/Parcels

Express Mail®, Priority Mail, and First-Class Mail® packages reshipped as an "outside" package are not subject to postage-due charges.

Standard Mail Parcels: Standard Mail parcels (which by definition must be less than 16 ounces) are eligible for inclusion in the weekly PFS Priority Mail shipment if they do not bear markings or indicators that require "surface-only" treatment. Pieces that do not fit into the weekly PFS Priority Mail shipment will be rerouted postage due as an "outside" package at the applicable 1-pound Parcel Post® rate since there is no single-piece Standard Mail rate.

Package Services Parcels (Parcel Post, Bound Printed Matter, Media Mail®, and Library Mail): Package Services parcels are never included in the weekly PFS Priority Mail shipment. Therefore, all Parcel Post, Bound Printed Matter, Media Mail, and Library Mail pieces are to be rerouted postage due as an "outside" package at the level of service initially paid.

— Product Management Direct Mail,
Product Development, 9-15-05

LEGEND:

Included = Include in weekly PFS shipment at no additional cost.
* Include Priority Mail items in the weekly PFS shipment unless including the item would delay its arrival at the customer's temporary address.

May be included = Include 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, reroute separately, postage due, at the appropriate single-piece Parcel Post rate since Standard Mail single-piece rate is not available.

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

N/A = Not applicable - Delivery Confirmation is not available on Standard Mail letters and flats.

Postage Due = Do not include in weekly PFS shipment. These items are sent separately incurring postage due charges at the appropriate single-piece rate in the Package Services subclass (e.g., Parcel Post, Bound Printed Matter, Library Mail, Media Mail) in which it was originally mailed (Standard Mail parcels incur postage due charges at the appropriate single-piece Parcel Post rate since there is no single-piece Standard Mail rate). To avoid incurring postage due charges, customers are encouraged to have Standard Mail parcels and Package Services mail sent directly to their temporary address.

Revised September 2005

Premium Forwarding Service (PFS)

Disposition of Mail Chart (Customer Copy)

This chart identifies what mail could incur additional postage charges.

LEGEND:

N/A = Not applicable - Delivery ConfirmationTM is not available on Standard Mail letters and flats.

Included = Included in weekly PFS Priority Mail^® shipment at no additional cost.

May be included = Included in weekly PFS Priority Mail 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 the applicable Parcel Post^® rate.

Postage Due = Not included in weekly PFS Priority Mail shipment. These items are sent separately incurring postage due charges at the applicable Package Services rate.

NOTE: To avoid incurring postage due charges, customers are encouraged to have Standard Mail parcels and Package Services mail sent directly to their temporary address.

Revised September 2005