The United States Postal Service (USPS) recently made changes to its transportation operations — and that might mean postmark dates will no longer match the actual mailing date.
Due to the changes, mail might not reach processing facilities on the same day it’s collected. In other words, simply getting your tax return to your local USPS branch on April 15 or dropping off an election ballot on Election Day no longer ensures that it will be postmarked right away.
Although postmark dates won’t always coincide with the mailing date, USPS emphasizes that the postmarking process itself hasn’t changed. In a statement on its website, the agency says:
“The Postal Service has not changed and is not changing our postmarking practices, which have been consistent since we began moving away from hand-canceling every item at Post Offices decades ago. Postmarks are generally applied by machines at our originating processing facilities and will continue to be applied at those facilities in the same manner and to the same extent as before.”
In fact, USPS has updated its Domestic Mail Manual language to clarify that postmarks were never intended as a customer service for proving mailing dates. The postmark’s primary purpose has always been operational and was not intended to provide proof of when customers sent their mail.
The USPS emphasizes that not all mail gets postmarked, and never has.
How to make sure you meet mail deadlines
If you are rushing with your tax return or another important document, don’t simply assume that dropping it off at a USPS branch automatically gives you proof that you mailed the document on time.
Instead, if you need proof of mailing date, use another option, including:
- Request a free manual postmark at the retail counter
- Purchase a Certificate of Mailing
- Use Certified/Registered Mail services
In addition, online filing eliminates concerns about missing mail-by deadlines by providing immediate proof of submission and avoiding postal delays.
For example, AARP suggests that if you have a tax return, electronic filing through IRS e-file or software such as TurboTax or TaxAct gives instant confirmation of receipt.
If you plan to use mail-in voting, AARP recommends you send ballots well before Election Day or use drop boxes and hand delivery at election offices per local regulations.
For more pointers like these, check out “8 Things You Should Not Be Putting in the Mail.”
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