Effective October 7, 2021, the Postal Service™ is revising Mailing Standards of the United States Postal Service, International Mail Manual (IMM®), section 136.3, to reflect that counterfeit and pirated items are prohibited in international mail. Currently, the IMM states that the prohibition is related only to outbound mail, but by removing the word “outbound,” the language accurately coincides with Section V, Prohibitions and Customs Matters, Article 19.2.1.3 of the Universal Postal Union Convention Manual.
Mailing Standards of the United States Postal Service, International Mail Manual
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1 International Mail Services
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130 Mailability
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136 Nonmailable Goods
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136.3 Counterfeit and Pirated Items
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[Revise the sentence by deleting the word “outbound” to read as follows:]
Any type of counterfeit or pirated article is prohibited in international mail.
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Although effective October 7, 2021, the Postal Service will incorporate this revision into the next edition of the online IMM, which is available via Postal Explorer® at pe.usps.com.
— Product Classification,
Product Solutions, 10-7-21
