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Holiday packages destined for AOR must be mailed earlier

  • Published
  • By Linda Welz
  • 452 AMW Public Affairs
MARCH AIR RESERVE BASE, Calif. --  "Mail early" is the advice the U.S. Postal Service is offering to those sending holiday packages overeas.

The deadlines for mailing holiday packages for arrival by Dec. 25 are:
  • Nov. 26 for space-available mail;
  • Dec. 3 for parcel airlift mail;
  • Dec. 10 for priority mail and first-class mail, letters and cards;
  • Dec. 18 for express mail military service.
  • Holiday packages and mail going to Iraq and Afghanistan must be sent a week earlier than these deadlines and express mail is not available.
Each country has restrictions for APO/FPO/DPO addresses. Some countries do not allow tobacco products, horror comic books, anything depicting nude or semi nude persons, bulk quantities of religious materials contrary to the Islamic faith, pork or pork by-products and registered mail.

Restrictions by individual APO/FPO/DPO zip code can be found in each Postal Bulletin in the Pull-out Information section. To find Postal Bulletins, go to pe.usps.com and select Postal Bulletins in the blue navigation bar on the left and click on Pull-out Information.

Free flat rate boxes and other postal supplies are available at usps.com or in the post office during normal business hours.

(Cheryl Pellerin, American  Forces Press Service, contributed to this story.)