USPS Postmark Change Could Lead To Late Fees & Penalties

OneEyedDiva

OneEyedDiva

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New Jersey
Although below it refers to changes that will take place in 2026, the synopsis in Chrome search, ahead of links to news articles about this change states it already started on December 24th.

"The U.S. Postal Service is making new changes in 2026, including adjustments to the postmark process, which could result in late fees and penalties for anyone mailing time-sensitive documents such as tax returns or bill payments."

"A USPS postmark used to indicate the date when mail was dropped in a mailbox or submitted at the post office counter. Now, USPS is clarifying in a new rule that the postmark will reflect the date an envelope is first processed by an automated USPS sorting machine, potentially days after it was dropped off – not the actual drop-off date."
Postmark change could impact getting ballots, bills in on time
 

Naturally said:
@OneEyedDiva ... I think you're right. It has already started.
I dropped a letter off at my local post office Monday the 22nd (after 7P.M.)
The recipient told me the letter was postmarked Dec 24th.
So virtually a 2 day delay in postmark, after I dropped the letter off.

I'd thought it was just because of the busy holiday season. Guess not eh.
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Well, so much for automation making things better! :cautious:
 

The bank that I worked for always went by the date payments were received and not by the postmark.

It was hard for some people to understand but we tried to explain that you owed the money to the bank and not to the post office.

We did occasionally allow some leeway to zip codes that were going through some sort of weather related natural disaster but that was extremely rare.
 
I have been noticing that I am getting more than the usual number of mailings from businesses that do not have a postmark date at all. I started noticing after I received a bill that said it was due in three days and the correspondence inside was dated over a week prior. They are not mailing them on the date on the enclosures.
 
DebraMae said:
I have been noticing that I am getting more than the usual number of mailings from businesses that do not have a postmark date at all. I started noticing after I received a bill that said it was due in three days and the correspondence inside was dated over a week prior. They are not mailing them on the date on the enclosures.
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Yes, that's annoying. No date on the envelope and no date on the letter inside either.
 
The Post Office is very much on the decline. They need to find other ways to make money.

Its one of the last businesses to escape the responsibilty of cutting waste and streamlining operations to remain solvent.

The theft of mail to me is the last straw. If you can't guarantee the sanctity of my parcels, then goodbye.
Whoever conceived the idea of electronic bill payment foresaw the inevitabilty of employee thefts as the demographic of the USPS employees changed and people with no fear of retribution took jobs with them.
 
It's a pain but if I really need a postmark I go to the counter and have them hand stamp it which usually that day. But when it's actually processed/shipped and delivered is a different story.

I've had businesses tell the post office isn't their problem. If it's due by a certain date you get it here by that date.
 
WhatInThe said:
It's a pain but if I really need a postmark I go to the counter and have them hand stamp it which usually that day. But when it's actually processed/shipped and delivered is a different story.

I've had businesses tell the post office isn't their problem. If it's due by a certain date you get it here by that date.
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It will matter when mailing tax documents and payments, including property taxes, because those go by postmark date. May be true for some other documents, too.
 
StarSong said:
It will matter when mailing tax documents and payments, including property taxes, because those go by postmark date. May be true for some other documents, too.
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I wonder if in the case of an IRS penalty for late mailing that is contested, would showing a certified mail receipt get the penalty reversed. :unsure:
I never mail important documents without using the USPS certified mail option, which has to be stamped with the date. Of course, with this new change, it would be best just to give the mail plenty of time to get there. The post office is known to lose mail, however, so no matter how early I mail time sensitive documents, I'd still use certified mail. Usually I e-file my taxes, but last year there was an error re my AGI, either by H & R Block's program or the IRS, so my e-file was not accepted. I sure hope that doesn't happen this year.

20260102_191031.jpg
 
OldFeller said:
The Post Office is very much on the decline. They need to find other ways to make money.

Its one of the last businesses to escape the responsibilty of cutting waste and streamlining operations to remain solvent.

The theft of mail to me is the last straw. If you can't guarantee the sanctity of my parcels, then goodbye.
Whoever conceived the idea of electronic bill payment foresaw the inevitabilty of employee thefts as the demographic of the USPS employees changed and people with no fear of retribution took jobs with them.
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I agree, OldFeller. What gripes me is that USPS is used far less than it was 20-25 years ago because so much correspondence and billing is now done online. But the Post Office doesn't want to cut expenses, so they have to keep raising the price of postage.

This, of course, is the exact opposite of what a well run business would do. When sales go down, prices also must come down. But the bloated government-think can never see it that way because they have almost unlimited funding, or the ability to raise prices-- completely irrespective of the demand for their "product".

Having post service is in the U.S. Constitution. But it would be far more efficient and less costly if it were a private enterprise.
 
Postal service has only gotten worse.
It is not logical for any business or entity to rely on postmark anymore.
Remittance by mail is ridiculous. My place of work we mailed a check sent from a customer to branch office on west coast to the accounts receivable in Chicago took 10 days. That was NOT a week with a holiday or anything just standard 10-day time frame. It always looks like our customers pay late but around 10 days has become on time.
 
Jeni said:
Postal service has only gotten worse.
It is not logical for any business or entity to rely on postmark anymore.
Remittance by mail is ridiculous. My place of work we mailed a check sent from a customer to branch office on west coast to the accounts receivable in Chicago took 10 days. That was NOT a week with a holiday or anything just standard 10-day time frame. It always looks like our customers pay late but around 10 days has become on time.
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I generally find the USPS efficient and lower in cost than UPS or FedEx for small packages and documents. Cross country mail usually takes under five days, cross city arrives within two to three. Occasionally there are anomalies, but in my experience the USPS is very reliable.
 
Just thinking in print. The new method is probably the same as it always has been. The difference is the volume of items flowing through the network vs the manpower and machines in place. Personnaly I can't think of any bills that we pay by USPS these days. For us it is a combination of direct draft and autopay on credit cards that are paid in full by direct draft each month. When dealing with time sensitive payments the date/time stamp of electronic payments is much more reliable. Why not save the expense of postage and move on in this century.

I'm sure someone will say they can't do things electronically. Surely that won't be a response on this electronic forum though-------- or will it.
 

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