U.S. to Enforce Rules for Mail to Canada

WASHINGTON - Most mail to Canada must bear the complete name and address of both sender and recipient or it won't be allowed into the country, the U.S. Postal Service said Wednesday. The tighter addressing requirements are in response to increased security.

Even such sender or recipient identifications as "Grandma" or "Aunt Ruth" can result in mail being rejected, the agency said.

All mail, except post cards, that does not show the complete name and address of sender and recipient — in Roman letters and Arabic numerals — is being denied entry.

Canada Post spokesman John Caines said that Canadian customs officials have become increasingly vigilant about enforcing the requirement that all international mail have a complete address for both the sender and recipient.

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story2&u=/ap/20041020/ap_on_go_ot/mail_to_canada

to be Arabic.

Indians invented the decimal system. Arabs became familiar with it because of trade with India and adopted it. The Europeans were exposed to it by the Arabs and thus the misnomer "Arabic numerals."

http://www-history.mcs.st-and.ac.uk/history/HistTopics/Indian_numerals.html

Thanks for the education.

It was missing from western thought and that lack was a serious impediment to the development of advanced mathematics, think calculus, where the limit of a function as x approaches zero is an essential idea.

I thought the "Muslim" academicians thought that up, but I would like to give credit where credit is due.

My post office has enforced this rule since October 2001, the anthrax attacks. Yes, even to Canada!

Maybe not "all" mail was being turned back from Canada that didn't follow the rules but our post office was getting enough mail turned back that they didn't want the hassle. So we've been doing this for quite awhile.

Most of my Canadian mail goes to Quebec. Do I have to put the address down in French only (as is my custom), or in BOTH English and French (or else the US won't send it, monolinguists that we tend to be in this country)?

Just wondering....because I send packages and I don't want them kicked back for something stupid.

who are sending the mail back, not the US. The US is just enforcing the Canadian rules so the mail WON'T be sent back.

I'm a senior management official for the USPS (over 25 years)and this is just a reminder to a policy that has been in effect for over 40 years.
Parcels from the US to Canada must all have a customs form (2976, 2976A) adhered to the package. The 3-ply (2976A) has an area for the senders' return address. No packages should ever be taken by a window clerk without the return address. Even if it says "Grandma"....Grandma must still supply her address on both the package and the and the customs form.

name and address of both sender and recipient or it won't be allowed in or out of the prison.

America is rapidly becoming a gigantic prison under Bu$h.

Either way, it seems awfully stupid. I guess that is it for letters to Santa Claus. But it will foil potential terrorists, who would never dream of making up a return address.

it's Canadian since they are the ones returning mail to the US thus causing the USPS to take steps to make sure the mail is correct BEFORE it gets sent to Cnada.

It is not outside of the realm of possibility that the initiative was American, and Canada was requested to reciprocate. It may be that the U.S. Postal Service was refusing to accept all improperly addressed mail to the U.S., and the Canadian system is responding in kind. An article in the media is not likely to give a complete picture. Either way, it still seems like a silly over-reaction on someone's part to some assumed terrorist threat.

... candy, etc. -- to the US. US Customs will turn it back. Apparently home-made things are still okay (our postal staff joked "I guess they assume terrorists can't bake") -- but I can't send chocolates, smoked salmon, or even dog biscuits -- to friends in the US.

They might as well just put up a "Do Not Feed the Americans" sign on the border.


p.s. I suspect that a lot of this is "look busy" work imposed due to the demands (some from Opposition benches, some from the US government) that Canada tighten its security.

I used to send Japanese tea and rice crackers to the US once in a while, but now it's no longer being allowed.

Mail comes to my house addressed to people who don't even live here.
That and that bastard "Occupant"...

to make it easy on the postal service there. Officially, they can all read Roman letters, but there was a time when I lived there when a new mailman came onto my route, and he simply decided to give me all the mail addressed in Roman letters rather than figure it out for himself. I had to take the mis-delivered letters to the post office four days in a row before the mix-ups stopped.

Oh, and just so you know how the USPS knows where to send the letters, I DO write "Japan" in English on the envelopes, so the USPS at least knows which plane to put them on. Once they arrive at Narita or wherever, the Japanese postal service takes over.

I would get mail for other people just because it was addressed in Roman letters and I was the only "gaijin" in the neighborhood.