Effective January 26, 2014, the Postal Service™ will revise Mailing Standards of the United States Postal Service, Domestic Mail Manual (DMM®), throughout various sections to modify full-service Intelligent Mail® requirements when mailing postcards (First-Class Mail® only), letters, and flats when mailed using the following services: First-Class Mail, Standard Mail®, and Periodicals; also, flats mailed at Bound Printed Matter prices. Additionally, the 10/24 transitional barcoded tray label format is eliminated, and mailers are required to use the 24-digit Intelligent Mail barcode (IMb™) format on tray, tub, and sack labels.
On April 18, 2013, the Postal Service published a notice of final rule making in Federal Register (78 FR 23137-23149), which required mailers to use full-service Intelligent Mail to qualify for automation prices. These revisions were also published in Postal Bulletin 22376 (11-14-13, pages 30, 63-67). This requirement is deferred until further notice. Specifically, this deferral applies to the requirements specified in the notice in DMM 233.5.1 (First-Class commercial letters and cards); DMM 243.6.1.2, 243.6.4.1, 243.6.5.1, and 243.7.1 (Standard Mail letters); DMM 333.5.1 (First-Class automation flats); DMM 343.7.1 (Standard Mail automation flats); DMM 363.4.1 and 363.6.1 (Bound Printed Matter flats); DMM 705.24.1 (advanced preparation and special postage payment systems); and DMM 707.13.4, 707.14.1, and 707.14.2 (Periodicals).
However, existing and new mailers who claim the full-service incentives for First-Class Mail ($.003 per piece) and Standard Mail ($.001 per piece) are required to meet all full-service requirements.
To ensure clarity regarding full-service Intelligent Mail requirements, the Postal Service has issued this updated bulletin.
Full-service Intelligent Mail combines the use of unique barcodes with the provision of electronic information regarding the makeup and preparation of mail, which provides high-value services and enables efficient mail processing.
Mailings must bear Intelligent Mail barcodes on mailpieces, trays, and containers, where applicable. Also, mailers must submit mailing documentation electronically.
When preparing full-service mailings, mailers are required to:
n Apply unique Intelligent Mail barcodes (IMb) to identify each postcard, letter, and flat mailpiece. Small mailings containing fewer than 10,000 pieces can use the same serial number for all pieces, if postage is affixed to each piece at the correct price, or all pieces are of identical weight and separated by price.
n Apply unique Intelligent Mail tray barcodes (IMtb) on trays, tubs, and sacks.
n Apply unique Intelligent Mail container barcodes (IMcb) on placards for containers such as pallets, when required.
n Schedule appointments through the Facility Access and Shipment Tracking system (FAST®) if mail is accepted at an origin facility and entered at a downstream USPS® processing facility.
n Use an approved electronic method to transmit mailing documentation and postage statements to the Postal Service.
n If the mailing is prepared or presented on behalf of another entity, the electronic documentation (eDoc) must include additional information to support the by/for mailing relationships. Mail service providers (agents) do not have to provide by/for data for mail owners with 5,000 or fewer pieces in a mailing. All other mailings must include by/for information. The mail owner and mailing agent are described as follows:
Mail Owner: The mail owner is the business entity, organization, or individual who makes business decisions regarding the mailpiece content, directly benefits from the mailing, and ultimately pays for postage on the mailpiece directly or by way of a mailing agent.
Mailing Agent: The mailing agent is a business entity, organization, or individual acting on behalf of one or more mail owners by providing mailing services for which the mail owners compensate the mailing agent. A business entity, organization, or individual whose services define it as a mailing agent may also be considered a mail owner, but only for its own mail or the mail of its subsidiaries. Mailing agents include, but are not limited to the following: Printers, letter shops, address-list providers/managers; mail preparers, postage payment providers, mailing logistics providers, mailing tracking providers, ad agencies, and mailing information managers.
The strategic vision of the Postal Service is to create 100 percent visibility for mail in the mail stream. This visibility provides full-service mailers with near real-time data that specifies the location of mailpieces within the postal mail stream and the delivery day.
The Postal Service continues the ongoing transformation of data visibility and evolution of technological innovations to achieve this vision.
The mailer’s use of full-service Intelligent Mail is an integral part of the Postal Service’s ongoing strategy to provide cost-effective and service-responsive mailing services. Efficient use of postal resources can be achieved with advance information about the content and makeup of the mail. The planning data acquired through the submission of full-service mailings provides significant opportunities for improvements in efficiency and service performance.
If all guidelines are followed and requirements met, full-service Intelligent Mail offers advantages to both mailers and the Postal Service.
n Mailers receive free undeliverable-as-addressed information including address correction service (ACS) and nixie service. (A nixie is a mailpiece that cannot be sorted or delivered because of an incorrect, illegible, or insufficient delivery address. Nixie service enables the processing of mail that cannot be forwarded or delivered as addressed and notifies mailers electronically of the specific reason for non-delivery.)
n A mailer receives start-the-clock information indicating when the mail was accepted by the Postal Service.
n Mailers receive container, tray, bundle, and mailpiece scans from induction to destination processing.
n Mailers are provided with comprehensive information on the status of mailings as they progress through the Postal Service mail stream.
n Visibility enables mailers to respond more effectively to customer inquiries on the status of bills, statements, catalogs, and publications.
n A mailer’s annual mailing permit fee is waived when the mailer enters 90 percent or more of full-service volume using the associated permit within the year.
n The “Mail Anywhere” program allows the use of a single permit at any PostalOne!® site for mailings containing 90 percent or more of full-service mailpieces. This simplifies permit management and enables the mailer to maintain a single account to enter and pay for mailings.
n Full-service mailers may also use the “Pay Anywhere” program, which allows customers to make deposits to their permit trust accounts at any Point of Sale (POS) retail site that supports business mail entry unit (BMEU) transactions.
n Simplified mail entry and acceptance through programs enabled by full-service including eInduction and Seamless Acceptance.
n Visibility into the flow of mail through the Postal Service mail stream enables enhanced diagnostics of service performance. The ability to measure service performance is available for each full-service mailing.
n Scan data allows the Postal Service to measure the number of hours and minutes between operations.
n Scan data allows the Postal Service to identify operational bottlenecks and continue to improve service for commercial First-Class Mail, Standard Mail, Periodicals, and BPM.
n Ability to provide real-time alerts to Postal Service operations enables employees to respond to and avoid potential service failures.
n Advance notification of volume and makeup of commercial mail enables improved resource planning.
n Ability to accurately track mail volumes as they move through the Postal Service network enables improved management and staffing of operations.
n Simplified mail acceptance processes increase productivity. With the availability of full-service mailing data and unique identifiers, the business mail acceptance procedures are streamlined with programs such as eInduction and Seamless Acceptance.
For questions regarding full-service requirements, contact the Postal Service by email at fullservice@usps.gov or call the PostalOne! Help Desk at 800-522-9085.
Mailing Standards of the United States Postal Service, Domestic Mail Manual (DMM)
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500 Additional Mailing Services
503 Extra Services
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[Revise the title of 14.0 to read as follows:]
14.0 Intelligent Mail Barcode Tracing
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14.1 Basic Information
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14.1.1 General Information
[Revise the text of 14.1.1 to read as follows:]
Participation in Intelligent Mail barcode (IMb) Tracing service is available at no charge without a subscription. Requirements for participation in IMb Tracing include:
n Use of an IMb on mailpieces entered as part of a full-service mailing under 705.24.0.
n Use of a Mailer Identifier that has been registered (through the Business Customer Gateway, accessible on http://usps.com) to receive scan data.
n Verification by the Postal Service that the IMb as printed meets all applicable postal standards.
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700 Special Standards
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705 Advanced Preparation and Special Postage Payment Systems
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[Delete current 24.1.1 and 24.1.2 in their entirety.]
24.2 General Eligibility Standards
[Revise the introductory paragraph of 24.2 to read as follows:]
First-Class Mail, Periodicals, and Standard Mail letters and flats meeting eligibility requirements for automation or carrier route prices (except for Standard Mail ECR saturation flats), and Bound Printed Matter flats (except for Presorted DDU-entered and carrier route flats) are potentially eligible for full-service incentives. All pieces entered under full-service pricing must:
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[Revise item 24.2c to read as follows:]
c. Be part of a mailing using unique Intelligent Mail container barcodes on all destination-entry pallets and other containers optionally or required to be prepared under 8.0 or as part of a customer/supplier agreement. Pallets or approved alternate containers, with unique Intelligent Mail container barcodes, must also be used whenever a mailing is entered at the dock of a USPS-processing facility and meets minimum container/pallet volume requirements under 705.8.0. A customer/supplier agreement is authorized with a service agreement signed by the mailer, the USPS District Manager, Customer Service, and the USPS Processing and Distribution Center manager. The service agreement contains provisions regarding mailer and USPS responsibilities.
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24.4 Preparation
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24.4.2 Intelligent Mail Tray Labels
[Revise the second sentence of 24.4.2 to read as follows:]
***Mailing documentation, when required, must associate each mailpiece to a corresponding tray or sack, or to a logical tray or sack, as described in 24.4.4.
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24.4.3 Intelligent Mail Container Placards
[Revise the second sentence of 24.4.3 to read as follows:]
***Mailing documentation, when required, must associate each mailpiece (and tray or sack, if applicable) to a corresponding container (or a logical container) as described in 24.4.4, unless otherwise authorized by the USPS.
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24.4.4 Electronic Documentation
[Revise the text of 24.4.4 to read as follows:]
Mailers must electronically submit postage statements and mailing documentation to the PostalOne! system. Documentation must describe how each mailpiece is linked to a uniquely identified tray or sack, and how each mailpiece and tray or sack is linked to a uniquely identified container. Linking to logical trays, sacks, and containers via sibling records is an option when linking to a specific tray, sack, or container is not feasible. The documentation must also meet the requirements in A Guide to Intelligent Mail for Letters and Flats (at http://ribbs.usps.gov). Mailers must transmit postage statements and documentation to the PostalOne! system using Mail.dat, Mail.XML, or Postal Wizard (see 24.5.3).
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24.5 Additional Standards
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24.5.3 Special Standards — Small Volume Mailings
[Revise the text of 24.5.3 to read as follows:]
For mailings of fewer than 10,000 pieces, when postage is affixed to each piece at the correct price, or each piece is of identical weight and the mailpieces are separated by price, the serial number field of each Intelligent Mail barcode can be populated with a mailing serial number that is unique to the mailing, but common to all pieces in the mailing. This unique mailing serial number must not be reused for a period of 45 days from the date of mailing. These mailings are not required to submit electronic documentation for full-service, only an electronic postage statement. Unique mailing serial numbers must be populated in the Postal Wizard entry screen field or in the electronic documentation.
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708 Technical Specifications
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6.0 Standards for Barcoded Tray Labels, Sack Labels, and Container Placards
6.1 General
6.1.1 Tray and Sack Labels
[Revise the text of 6.1.1 to read as follows:]
Intelligent Mail tray labels are the USPS-approved method to encode routing, content, origin, and mailer information on trays and sacks. Intelligent Mail tray labels are designed for optimum use with Intelligent Mail barcoded mail and have the capacity to provide unique identification throughout postal processing, but are required for use on all trays and sacks in presorted mailings.
6.1.2 Container Placards
[Revise 6.1.2 by adding items “a” and “b” to read as follows:]
a. Intelligent Mail container placards are not required for small mailings of Standard Mail, Periodicals, and Bound Printed Matter letters and flats when entered at a BMEU, if the mailing is less than 500 pounds of bundles or sacks, and fewer than 72 linear feet of trays.
b. Intelligent Mail container placards are not required when entering mail at a co-located BMEU within the service area where mail is entered, if the mailing consists of 100 but less than 250 pounds of bundles or sacks, and at least 12 but fewer than 35 linear feet of trays.
6.2 Specifications for Barcoded Tray and Sack Labels
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6.2.2 Line 1 (Destination Line)
The destination line must meet these standards:
a. Placement. The destination line must be the top line of the label. An exception is that one line of extraneous information may appear above the destination line on tray and sack labels as provided in 6.3.2, and 6.3.2f. The destination line must be completely visible when placed in the label holder. Visibility is ensured if the destination line is no less than 1/8 (0.125) inch below the top of the label, when the label is cut and prepared.
[Delete Exhibit 6.2.2a, Barcoded 2-inch Sack Labels, in its entirety.]
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[Delete Exhibit 6.2.2b, Barcoded 1-inch Sack Labels, in its entirety.]
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6.2.5 Line 3 (Origin Line)
[Revise the first sentence of 6.2.5 to read as follows:]
The origin line must appear below the content line, except as allowed under 6.3.4, and 6.2.5a and 6.2.5b. ***
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[Delete current 6.3, Additional Standards — Barcoded 2-Inch Sack Labels and Barcoded Tray Labels, and 6.4, Additional Standards — Barcoded 1-Inch Sack Labels, in their entirety.]
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[Renumber current 6.5 as new 6.3 and revise the title to read as follows:]
6.3 Specific Standards for Intelligent Mail Tray Labels
6.3.1 Definitions
[Revise the text of renumbered 6.3.1 to read as follows:]
Intelligent Mail tray labels are 2-inch labels used on trays and sacks to provide unique identification within postal processing. 24-digit Intelligent Mail tray labels include only a 24-digit barcode printed in International Symbology Specification (ISS) Code 128 subset C symbology (see Exhibit 6.3.3). Intelligent Mail tray labels also include a human readable field designed to indicate the carrier route for carrier route mailings, display an “AUTO” indicator text for automation mailings, or remain blank for nonautomation mailings. Mailers using Intelligent Mail tray labels must print labels in the 24-digit Intelligent Mail tray label format. Detailed specifications for the tray label and barcode formats are at http://ribbs.usps.gov.
[Delete current Exhibit 6.5.1, 10/24 Transitional Intelligent Mail Tray Label, in its entirety.]
[Delete current 6.5.2, Transitional Intelligent Mail Tray Label Format, in its entirety.]
[Renumber current 6.5.3 through 6.5.7 as new 6.3.2 through 6.3.6.]
[Renumber current 6.6 as new 6.4.]
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We will incorporate these revisions into the next update of the online DMM, which is available via Postal Explorer® at http://pe.usps.com.
— Product Classification,
Pricing, 1-9-14
