I need to mail something and have it postmarked September 29th, but I don’t want to mail it any earlier than necessary.
So I thought I’d mail it from home tomorrow. The question is, if I put the letter in the outgoing mail slot in my apartment house, and the mail carrier collects it tomorrow, is it guaranteed to be postmarked the same day? What if the mail carrier doesn’t get to my house until late in the day?
I think it depends on whether you live in a town with a postal processing center or an office that’s open late. I do, so I am speaking from my personal experience. YMMV.
Mail is generally postmarked on the day of pickup, but not always. If your local post office closes at 5pm and your mail isn’t picked up until 4pm, it probably won’t get a postmark until the next day. If you live in a rural area, it may take even longer. However, any mail you bring to the post office will be postmarked immediately if you hand it to a clerk, or before midnight if dropped in the mail slot in the building. If it’s important to you that the mail receive a postmark by a certain date, I would not leave it in my mailbox at home. Bring it in to the office. Also, mail dropped on Saturday or Sunday should receive a Monday postmark.
btw, I couldn’t find any info on the USPS site about this.
You’re playing a dangerous game, if the date is really important.
Have you never noticed that on the mail you receive there is often a missing date, blurred postmark, or no postmark at all?
You can take it to the window and get certified mail, and they will stamp your copy, so you can prove things later.
If this is really important, like for a lawsuit, or tax liability, the $2 fee is well worth it.