# Mailing a tax return to a P.O. Box: can we use Express Mail? Need answer fast **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [April 14, 2010, 9:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mailing-a-tax-return-to-a-p-o-box-can-we-use-express-mail-need-answer-fast/536127 "2010-04-14T21:53:20Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 15\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![teela\_brown](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/d9b06d/32.png) [@teela\_brown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/teela_brown)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2010, 9:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mailing-a-tax-return-to-a-p-o-box-can-we-use-express-mail-need-answer-fast/536127/1 "2010-04-14T21:53:20Z")
My boss wants to use Express Mail to send his tax return in. It’s going to a P. O. Box. The IRS website says “You must use the u.S. Postal Service to mail any item to an IRS P.O. box address”. For the IRS’s purposes, is Express Mail the U.S. Postal Service? ---
**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2010, 9:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mailing-a-tax-return-to-a-p-o-box-can-we-use-express-mail-need-answer-fast/536127/2 "2010-04-14T21:56:26Z")
Why on earth wouldn’t it be? [Express Mail page at the USPS web site.](http://www.usps.com/shipping/expressmail.htm) What they’re telling you is that you can’t use FedEx, UPS, DHL, or any other non-USPS carrier to deliver your return. “Express Mail” is just USPS’s brand name for “overnight.” ---
**Author:** ![beowulff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beowulff/32/542_2.png) [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2010, 1:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mailing-a-tax-return-to-a-p-o-box-can-we-use-express-mail-need-answer-fast/536127/3 "2010-04-15T01:14:45Z")
Why would you spend the extra money? It only needs to be _postmarked_ by the 15th - not received by then. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2010, 1:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mailing-a-tax-return-to-a-p-o-box-can-we-use-express-mail-need-answer-fast/536127/4 "2010-04-15T01:26:06Z")
> [@beowulff](#): > > Why would you spend the extra money? > It only needs to be _postmarked_ by the 15th - not received by then. Certified with a return receipt is a better idea. Any USPS service will deliver to any US Post Office Box. FedEx and UPS won’t. ---
**Author:** ![Rumor\_Watkins](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/d9b06d/32.png) [@Rumor\_Watkins](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rumor_Watkins)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2010, 1:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mailing-a-tax-return-to-a-p-o-box-can-we-use-express-mail-need-answer-fast/536127/5 "2010-04-15T01:49:40Z")
> [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](#): > > Certified with a return receipt is a better idea. the return receipt is superfluous. certified mail provides for proof of delivery. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2010, 1:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mailing-a-tax-return-to-a-p-o-box-can-we-use-express-mail-need-answer-fast/536127/6 "2010-04-15T01:57:11Z")
The return receipt comes with it - some people just don’t bother to use it. ---
**Author:** ![Rumor\_Watkins](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/d9b06d/32.png) [@Rumor\_Watkins](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rumor_Watkins)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2010, 2:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mailing-a-tax-return-to-a-p-o-box-can-we-use-express-mail-need-answer-fast/536127/7 "2010-04-15T02:27:22Z")
> [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](#): > > The return receipt comes with it - some people just don’t bother to use it. No, it costs extra. [http://www.usps.com/prices/extra-services-prices.htm](http://www.usps.com/prices/extra-services-prices.htm) ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2010, 2:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mailing-a-tax-return-to-a-p-o-box-can-we-use-express-mail-need-answer-fast/536127/8 "2010-04-15T02:56:41Z")
> [@Rumor\_Watkins](#): > > the return receipt is superfluous. certified mail provides for proof of delivery. Yes, if you are worried just send it Certified. For the IRS- proof of _mailing_ by the due date is fine. Do get your little receipt stamped by the PO. ---
**Author:** ![Keeve](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/f07891/32.png) [@Keeve](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Keeve)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2010, 2:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mailing-a-tax-return-to-a-p-o-box-can-we-use-express-mail-need-answer-fast/536127/9 "2010-04-15T14:53:28Z")
> [@beowulff](#): > > Why would you spend the extra money? > It only needs to be _postmarked_ by the 15th - not received by then. But if the IRS gets it faster, then the OP would get his refund faster. Of course, mailing it last week or last month would have been that much better, but… ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2010, 3:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mailing-a-tax-return-to-a-p-o-box-can-we-use-express-mail-need-answer-fast/536127/10 "2010-04-15T15:36:09Z")
If he needed the money that bad he’d have filed his return three months ago, and done it electronically. ---
**Author:** ![teela\_brown](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/d9b06d/32.png) [@teela\_brown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/teela_brown)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2010, 4:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mailing-a-tax-return-to-a-p-o-box-can-we-use-express-mail-need-answer-fast/536127/11 "2010-04-15T16:58:28Z")
Being able to trace the package should it get lost was important to him, not the speed of delivery. I knew that the U.S.P.S. postmark was important, and wasn’t sure if the Express Mail option was going to satisfy this requirement, even if they were technically the U.S.P.S. I found relevant pages on the post office’s pages regarding mailing to the IRS, and they said various carriers were acceptable to the IRS for delivering to a post office box (although not Federal Express). As it turned out, my boss chose certified mail as his option, as it provided both a tracing feature and the U.S.P.S. postmark. I have all the little receipts all stamped as being mailed yesterday. ---
**Author:** ![Flymaster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/c4cdca/32.png) [@Flymaster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Flymaster)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2010, 12:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mailing-a-tax-return-to-a-p-o-box-can-we-use-express-mail-need-answer-fast/536127/12 "2010-04-16T00:14:15Z")
> [@](#): > > they said various carriers were acceptable to the IRS for delivering to a post office box (although not Federal Express). What carriers are those? Because only USPS will deliver to a PO Box, to my knowledge. ---
**Author:** ![johnpost](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f17d59/32.png) [@johnpost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/johnpost)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2010, 12:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mailing-a-tax-return-to-a-p-o-box-can-we-use-express-mail-need-answer-fast/536127/13 "2010-04-16T00:49:09Z")
> [@Flymaster](#): > > What carriers are those? Because only USPS will deliver to a PO Box, to my knowledge. both UPS and FedEx have a shipping product where it is delivered to the local post office for the post office to deliver it to you. it then can be delivered to your PO box. ---
**Author:** ![Flymaster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/c4cdca/32.png) [@Flymaster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Flymaster)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2010, 1:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mailing-a-tax-return-to-a-p-o-box-can-we-use-express-mail-need-answer-fast/536127/14 "2010-04-16T01:11:51Z")
> [@johnpost](#): > > both UPS and FedEx have a shipping product where it is delivered to the local post office for the post office to deliver it to you. it then can be delivered to your PO box. Huh. I did not know that. ---
**Author:** ![Fuzzy\_Dunlop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/848f3c/32.png) [@Fuzzy\_Dunlop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fuzzy_Dunlop)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2010, 1:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mailing-a-tax-return-to-a-p-o-box-can-we-use-express-mail-need-answer-fast/536127/15 "2010-04-16T01:20:56Z")
> [@johnpost](#): > > both UPS and FedEx have a shipping product where it is delivered to the local post office for the post office to deliver it to you. it then can be delivered to your PO box. But surely those IRS PO box addresses are large mail processing centers not actual post office boxes? They each get millions of returns mailed to them. I don’t see why they couldn’t advertise that they’re able to deliver to IRS tax return addresses and then arrange internally to deliver to those few addresses, unless the IRS won’t let them for some reason.