Effective March 12, 2020, the Postal Service™ is revising Handbook F-101, Field Accounting Procedures, in various sections to increase the cash refund limit to $35. This will improve service to customers when refunds are necessary.
Handbook F-101, Field Accounting Procedures
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20 Payment Types
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20-6 Employee Uniform Cap Reimbursement
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[Revise the text of item c. to read as follows:]
c. The RA issues cash (up to $35.00) or a no-fee money order and enters the amount of the payment in AIC 610 on PS Form 1412. If a no-fee money order is issued, report the fee amount in AIC 586; RSS and e1412 units use Reason Code 29, One-time Local Purchase.
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21 Refunds and Exchanges
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21-1 Overview
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21-1.1 Refunds for $500 or Less
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[Revise the text of items b. and c. to read as follows:]
b. If the refund is paid in cash (limited to $35), instructs the payee to sign and date Part 5, Disbursements for Refunds, of PS Form 3533.
c. If the refund amount is greater than $35, issues a no-fee money order to the customer and records the money order serial number and date issued in Part 5 of PS Form 3533.
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[Revise the title of 24 to read as follows:]
24 Single Drawer Accountability
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24-10 Refunds and Exchanges
24-10.1 Refunds
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24-10.1.1 Refunds Processed by Single Drawer Accountability Office
[Revise the text of 24-10.1.1 to read as follows:]
Refunds are limited at SDA units to cash refunds of $35. Issuance of no-fee money orders is not permitted. To issue cash refunds of $35 or less, the RMPO employee does the following:
a. Have customer complete Part 1, Application, and Part 5, Disbursements for Refunds, of PS Form 3533.
b. Enter the amount of the refund in the appropriate refund AIC on the unit PS Form 1412.
c. If no witness is available, annotate on appropriate line “NWA.”
Exception: PO Box refunds greater than $35 require approval from the Administrative Post Office before the SDA unit can process and post on the unit PS Form 1412.
24-10.1.2 Refunds Processed by Administrative Post Office
[Revise the text of 24-10.1.2 to read as follows:]
For refund amounts greater than $35 with the exception of PO Boxes, the RMPO office must send PS Form 3533 to the Administrative Post Office for approval and payment. If applicable, the Administrative Post Office submits the PS Form 3533 via eIWS Online Forms. To issue cash refunds greater than $35, the RMPO employee does the following:
a. Have customer complete Part 1 of PS Form 3533.
b. Reviews the PS Form 3533 to ensure the form is complete and provides proper support.
c. Submits PS Form 3533 to the Administrative Post Office for processing.
Note: The RMPO Office does not perform any refund workflows in RSS when submitting PS Form 3533 to the Administrative Post Office.
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The Postal Service will incorporate these revisions into the next update of Handbook F-101, Field Accounting Procedures, which is available on the Postal Service PolicyNet website:
n Go to blue.usps.gov.
n In the left-hand column, click Essential Links, and then click PolicyNet.
n Go to the right-hand side under “Published Forms and Directives.”
n Click Handbooks.
The direct URL for the Postal Service PolicyNet website is blue.usps.gov/cpim.
— Revenue and Field Accounting
VP Controller, 3-12-20
