Effective June 3, 2013, the Postal Service™ will revise Mailing Standards of the United States Postal Service, Domestic Mail Manual (DMM®) 705.18 to include new tags and labels for Express Mail Open and Distribute™ and Priority Mail Open and Distribute™ mailings prepared under an authorized Electronic Verification System (eVS®) manifest mailing system.
Express Mail Open and Distribute will now have a blue Tag 257-EVS, yellow Tag 267-EVS, and blue Label 257S-EVS. Priority Mail Open and Distribute will now have a green Tag 161-EVS, pink Tag 190-EVS, and pink Label 190S-EVS. The eVS version of the tags and labels will not require a postmark or signature during the acceptance and verification process. Instead, the eVS tags and labels will bear the marking “APPROVED eVS MAILER” in the space normally designated for postmark and signature.
Mailing Standards of the United States Postal Service, Domestic Mail Manual (DMM)
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700 Special Standards
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705 Advanced Preparation and Special Postage Payment Systems
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705.18 Express Mail Open and Distribute and Priority Mail Open and Distribute
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18.1 Prices and Fees
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18.1.5 Payment Method
Postage payment methods are as follows:
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[Revise the second sentence of item 18.1.5b as follows:]
b. ***Express Mail postage must be affixed to the applicable tag in 18.5.3a, to the Open and Distribute tray box, or part of the address label.
[Revise the second sentence of item 18.1.5c as follows:]
c. ***Priority Mail postage must be affixed to or hand-stamped on the applicable tag in 18.5.3b, the Open and Distribute tray box, or part of the address label.
18.1.6 Postage Statement for Enclosed Mail
[Revise the first and last sentence of 18.1.6 as follows:]
The mailer must provide the correct postage statement for the enclosed mail unless prepared under the Electronic Verification System (eVS).***
***A postage statement is not required for the Express Mail or Priority Mail portion of the Open and Distribute shipment, unless Priority Mail postage is paid by permit imprint not prepared under eVS.
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18.5 Preparation
18.5.1 Containers for Expedited Transport
Acceptable containers for expedited transport are as follows:
[Revise items 18.5.1a through 18.5.1c as follows:]
a. An Express Mail Open and Distribute shipment must be contained in a USPS-approved sack using the applicable tag in 18.5.3a or in a USPS-provided Express Mail Open and Distribute tray box (Tags are not required for tray boxes; only the 4x6 address label should be applied), except as provided in 18.5.1c and 18.5.1d.
b. A Priority Mail Open and Distribute shipment must be contained in either a USPS-approved sack using the applicable tag in 18.5.3b or a USPS-provided Priority Mail Open and Distribute tray box (Tags are not required for tray boxes, only the 4x6 address label should be applied), except as provided in 18.5.1c and 18.5.1d.
c. An Express Mail or Priority Mail Open and Distribute shipment destined to a DDU may be contained in USPS-provided Express Mail Flat Rate Boxes and envelopes using the applicable label in 18.5.3a, or Priority Mail Flat Rate Envelopes and boxes using the applicable label in 18.5.3b.
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18.5.3 Tags 257 and 267 — Express Mail Open and Distribute
[Revise the text of 18.5.3 as follows:]
Blue Tag 257 and yellow Tag 267 provide a place to affix Express Mail postage and the address label for the destination facility. For mailings prepared under the Electronic Verification System (eVS), use blue Tag 257-EVS and yellow Tag 267-EVS. The applicable tag must be attached to each Express Mail sack, in addition to the Express Mail sack label, to identify it as an Express Mail Open and Distribute shipment as follows:
a. Attach yellow Tag 267 or yellow Tag 267-EVS to sacks used as Express Mail Open and Distribute containers destined to a NDC, ASF, ADC, or SCF facility.
b. Attach blue Tag 257 or blue Tag 257-EVS to sacks used as Express Mail Open and Distribute containers destined to a DDU. Blue Label 257S or blue Label 257S-EVS may be affixed to containers used for Express Mail Open and Distribute shipments prepared under 18.5.1c or 18.5.1d.
18.5.4 Tags 161 and 190 — Priority Mail Open and Distribute
[Revise the text of 18.5.4 as follows:]
Green Tag 161 and pink Tag 190 provide a place to affix Priority Mail postage and the address label for the destination facility. For mailings prepared under the Electronic Verification System (eVS), use green Tag 161-EVS and pink Tag 190-EVS. The applicable tag must be attached to each Priority Mail sack, in addition to the Priority Mail sack label or container, to identify it as a Priority Mail Open and Distribute shipment as follows:
a. Attach green Tag 161 or green Tag 161-EVS to sacks used as Priority Mail Open and Distribute containers to a NDC, ASF, ADC, or SCF facility.
b. Attach pink Tag 190 or pink Tag 190-EVS to sacks used as Priority Mail Open and Distribute containers to a DDU. Pink Label 190S or pink Label 190S-EVS may be affixed to containers used for Priority Mail Open and Distribute shipments prepared under 18.5.1c or 18.5.1d.
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[Add new 18.6.3 as follows:]
18.6.3 Postmark and Signing Tags and Labels
Upon completion of the verification and acceptance of the contents, all Open and Distribute tags and labels must be postmarked and signed in the space provided unless prepared under an authorized Electronic Verification System (eVS) manifest mailing system. Open and Distribute eVS tags and labels bear the marking “APPROVED eVS MAILER” in the space normally designated for the postmark and signature.
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We will incorporate these revisions into the next update of the online DMM, which is available on Postal Explorer® at http://pe.usps.com.
— Product Classification,
Pricing, 5-16-13
