Effective August 2, 2010, the Postal Service™ will revise Mailing Standards of the United States Postal Service, Domestic Mail Manual (DMM®), sections 201.3.13 and 301.1.8, to remove a restriction that requires relocatable labels to be affixed on the outside of a reply mailpiece. This change allows flats and letters, in a certain range of sizes, to have attached labels that are designed to be removed and affixed either on the outside or on the contents of a reply mailpiece, under applicable standards. Mailers must continue to meet content eligibility standards when affixing labels to First-Class Mail® pieces or Periodicals publications.
We also revise DMM 201.3.13 and 301.1.8 to allow up to two release cards to the outside of letters and flats of specific size ranges, subject to placement restrictions. This change accommodates the needs of a changing market by providing more flexibility for mailers who would like to affix more than one release card per mailpiece.
Mailing Standards of the United States Postal Service, Domestic Mail Manual (DMM)
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200 Commercial Letters and Cards
201 Physical Standards
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3.0 Physical Standards for Machinable and Automation Letters and Cards
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3.13 Labels, Stickers, and Release Cards Affixed to the Outside of Letter-Size Mailpieces
3.13.1 Use
***These attachments may be:
a. A label or sticker less than 0.007 inch thick, other than repositionable notes affixed under 705.21.0, as follows:
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[Revise item a2 to read as follows:]
2. A relocatable label to be placed on the outside of, or on the contents of, a reply mailpiece. Labels must be affixed under 3.13.2 or 3.13.3.
[Revise item b to read as follows:]
b. Up to two release cards, each at least 0.007 inch and no more than 0.012 inch thick, secured to a letter with a liner or backing under 3.13.4.
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3.13.4 Letter-Size Piece with Attached Release Cards
[Revise the last sentence of item 3.13.4 as follows:]
***A letter-size mailpiece, with one or two attached release cards, must have the following characteristics:
[Revise item a to read as follows:]
a. Be between 8 and 9-1/2 inches long (inclusive). With one release card affixed, be between 4 and 6 inches high (inclusive); with two release cards affixed, be between 5-1/2 and 6 inches high (inclusive).
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[Revise item f to read as follows:]
f. All letter-size pieces other than enveloped letters and card-type pieces (such as folded self-mailers and booklets) must have a maximum thickness of 0.10 inch as mailed. Mailpieces with two affixed release cards must meet the following additional conditions:
1. Pieces requiring tabs must be sealed with 1-1/2 inch nonperforated tabs, unless larger tabs are required by standards for the specific mailpiece design.
2. Booklets must have a minimum cover weight of 70-pound book-grade paper (see 3.2).
3. Folded self-mailers must have a minimum cover weight of 100-pound book-grade paper (see 3.2).
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3.13.5 Standards for Release Cards
[Revise the introductory sentence of 3.13.5 to read as follows:]
One or two release cards, each at least 0.007 inch thick and no more than 0.012 inch thick, attached to a letter-size mailpiece must:
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[Revise item b to read as follows:]
b. Be between 2 and 2-1/2 inches (inclusive) high, and between 3 and 3-1/2 inches (inclusive) long. Affix each card with either edge parallel to the length of the mailpiece. Affix two cards on the same side of the mailpiece under these conditions:
1. Stack cards vertically, one above than the other.
2. Do not affix the cards side by side across the mailpiece length.
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[Revise item d to read as follows:]
d. Be affixed 1 inch (+/- 1/8 inch) from the bottom of the mailpiece and must not interfere with readability of the address, barcode, or postage information. When affixing two cards to a mailpiece, these additional conditions apply:
1. When affixing two cards on the address side, maintain a space of at least 1/2 inch from the leading edge, the trailing edge, and the top edge.
2. When affixing two cards to the nonaddress side, the right edge of a card must be placed between 5 and 6 inches from the leading edge of the mailpiece, but no closer than 1/2 inch from the trailing edge. Maintain a space of at least 1/2 inch from the top edge.
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300 Commercial Flats
301 Physical Standards
1.0 Physical Standards for Flats
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1.8 Labels, Stickers, and Release Cards
1.8.1 Use
***These attachments may be:
a. A label or sticker less than 0.007 inch thick, other than repositionable notes affixed under 705.21.0, as follows:
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[Revise item a2 to read as follows:]
2. A relocatable label, to be placed on the outside of, or on the contents of, a reply mailpiece. Labels must be affixed under 1.8.2 or 1.8.3.
[Revise item b to read as follows:]
b. Up to two release cards, each at least 0.007 inch thick and no more than 0.012 inch thick, when affixed according to 1.8.4 and 1.8.5.
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1.8.4 Flats with Attached Release Cards
[Revise the last sentence of item 1.8.4 as follows:]
***Flat-size mailpieces, with up to two attached release cards, must be between 6 and 12 inches (inclusive) high, 8 and 15 inches (inclusive) long, and 0.02 and 0.75 inch (inclusive) thick as mailed, and meet the following conditions:
[Revise item a to read as follows:]
a. All flats must be at least 6 inches high, at least 8 inches long, and at least 0.02 inch thick. In addition, nonautomation and carrier route flats must have at least one dimension larger than one maximum letter-size dimension. A flat with two attached release cards must have a minimum cover thickness of 0.003 inch.
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1.8.5 Standards for Release Cards
[Revise the introductory sentence of 1.8.5 to read as follows:]
One or two release cards, each at least 0.007 inch thick and no more than 0.012 inch thick, may be attached to the same side of a flat-size mailpiece, and also must:
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[Revise item d to read as follows:]
d. Be affixed, on the address side of the mailpiece, a minimum of 4 inches from the bottom of an enveloped or card-type mailpiece or from the binding of a bound flat and must not interfere with the readability of the address, barcode, or postage information. Maintain a clear space of at least 1/4 inch from all other edges when a release card is on the address side. Maintain a clear space of at least 1/4 inch from all edges when a release card is on the nonaddress side of a mailpiece.
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We will incorporate these revisions into the next printed version of the DMM and into the monthly update of the online DMM, which is available via Postal Explorer® at http://pe.usps.com.
— Mailing Standards,
Pricing, 7-15-10
