Bringing the Holidays to Military Men and Women

Postal Service Outlines Guidelines for Shipping to Military Installations Overseas

TOPEKA, Kan. — Military families and organizations preparing care packages to mail to service members overseas for the holidays need to mark Nov. 13 on their calendars.

Packages being sent by Parcel Post to all Air/Army Post Office (APO) or Fleet Post Office (FPO) ZIP Codes should be mailed no later than Saturday, Nov. 13, to reach troops stationed overseas in time for the holidays. Letters and cards sent by First-Class Mail should be posted no later than Dec. 11. There are more than 80 military installations worldwide.

“We are asking families and supporters to mail and ship early this year to ensure a happy holiday for our troops,” said Topeka Postmaster B. Steven Pinkerton.

To address current demand, the Postal Service has created a special “kit” that contains the necessary mailing materials based on the most popular items ordered to send care packages to the troops. This kit may be ordered by calling 1-800-610-8734 and requesting CAREKIT04. The kit contains 10 Priority Mail boxes, five “Mili-Pacs,” one roll of Priority Mail tape, and 10 customs forms with envelopes. There is no charge for the kit.

Mili-Pacs, developed with the Military Postal Service Agency, are Tyvek envelopes with Old Glory on one side and feature detailed addressing information. It is encouraged that this process be followed for all mail destined for military units overseas. The address block on the Mili-Pac accommodates service member’s full name, rank or rating, military organization or unit, APO/FPO with 9-digit ZIP Code.

All packages and mail must be addressed to individual service members, in accordance with U.S. Department of Defense regulations. All military units are assigned an APO or FPO ZIP code and in many cases that ZIP Code travels with the unit. The Postal Service places APO/FPO mail on special charter flights, commercial airlines and military service aircraft to reach armed services members overseas as quickly as possible. A complete list of military mailing deadlines follows.

MILITARY MAILING DEADLINES

Military Mail Addressed to	Express Mail® Military Service (EMMS)1	First-Class Mail® Letters/Cards	Priority Mail®	Parcel Airlift Mail (PAL)2	Space Available Mail (SAM)3	Parcel Post®
APO/FPO AE ZIPs 090–092	Dec 18	Dec 11	Dec 11	Dec 4	Nov 27	Nov 13
APO/FPO AE ZIP 093	N/A	Dec 4	Dec 4	Dec 1	Nov 27	Nov 13
APO/FPO AE ZIPs 094–098	Dec 18	Dec 11	Dec 11	Dec 4	Nov 27	Nov 13
APO/FPO AA ZIPs 340	Dec 18	Dec 11	Dec 11	Dec 4	Nov 27	Nov 13
APO/FPO AP ZIPs 962–966	Dec 18	Dec 11	Dec 11	Dec 4	Nov 27	Nov 13

1 EMMS is available to selected military post offices. Check with your local Post Office to determine if this service is available to your APO/FPO of address.

2 PAL is a service that provides air transportation for parcels on a space-available basis. It is available for Parcel Post items not exceeding 30 pounds in weight or 60 inches in length and girth combined. The applicable PAL fee must be paid in addition to the regular surface rate of postage for each addressed piece sent by PAL service.

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An independent federal agency, the U.S. Postal Service is the only delivery service that visits every address in the nation, 146 million homes and businesses, six days a week. It has 37,000 retail locations and relies on the sale of postage, products, and services to pay for operating expenses, not tax dollars. The Postal Service has annual revenues of $75 billion and delivers nearly half the world’s mail.