December 30, 2025
You know that post mark that comes on every piece of mail? Well – surprise! As of last week — the United States Postal Service changed the definition of that postmark. And that may not sound like a big deal – but it will absolutely impact the way lots of people pay their bills and vote.
Back in august USPS filed this notice in the federal register of a new proposed rule that would not only officially define what should be included in a post mark, but also officially describes what that post mark means and most importantly what it doesn’t mean. That rule became final last week on December 24th.
According to the official document from USPS that was posted in the federal register– the postmark that appears on your piece of mail may not necessarily represent the day the post office was in possession that piece of mail. That postmark may actually represent the date USPS processed your mail. Some times that can happen on the same day you put it in the mailbox or drop it off at the post office but it might also be the next day or the day after depending on where you live. Now – that becomes very important if say, you’re mailing your mortgage payment or your utility bill and it must be post marked by a certain date in order for you to avoid a late fee. Or say if you’re mailing in your election ballot and it has to be post marked by a certain day otherwise your vote won’t count.
Now – the government, the courts, the IRS and all of us for decades have relied on those postmarks as proof that we mailed whatever we were required to mail on time. But according to USPS in its official final rule – they say we’re all wrong and we’ve all been wrong about the postmark for years. USPS says our view of the postmark – “does not reflect the realities of postal operations.” This final rule clarifies that postmarks only confirm the postal service handled that piece of mail on that date – however the postmark does not necessarily indicate the first day the postal service was in possession of the piece of mail. USPS says it’s always been this way and the government, the courts the IRS – what they call third-parties – have put emphasis on their postmark dates incorrectly.
And here’s the thing – according to USPS — stamping the postmark on your mail on a day that isn’t the same day the post office actually receives it is going to become more common because of the regional transportation optimization initiative which was implemented by USPS in 2025. That’s initiative changed the service standards for mail delivery. So what can you do? Well USPS gave us three options. They say, –one– we can “make adjustments” to our mailing behavior –aka – but your letters, ballots, bills and packages in the mail earlier if you really want that postmark before a due date. Or two– we can physically walk into a post office and ask for a manual postmark at no additional cost. Or three – we can purchase a certificate of mailing which shows that you sent the mail when you say you did. As of 2025 a Certificate of Mailing cost $2.40. That is different than Certified Mail – which not only proves when you sent the mail but also gives you confirmation of delivery and requires a signature from the recipient. As of today, that service costs $5.30
New Postmark rule from USPS here.
Propose rule here.
