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The Delivery Address Line and the Last Line of addresses output to the mailpiece should be complete, standardized, and validated with the ZIP+4 File and City State File, respectively.
It is recommended that delivery address information be stored in a minimum of 30 bytes or spaces in your computer system. The optimum recommendation is 64 bytes or spaces to be compatible with the Postal Service National ZIP+4 database.
The Postal Service defines a complete address as one that has all the address elements necessary to allow an exact match with the current Postal Service ZIP+4 and City State Files to obtain the finest level of ZIP+4 and delivery point codes for the delivery address. A complete address may be required on mail at some automation rates. See DMM A010 for more detailed information.
A standardized address is one that is fully spelled out, abbreviated by using the Postal Service standard abbreviations (shown in this publication) or as shown in the current Postal Service ZIP+4 File.
Format all lines of the address with a uniform left margin. Uppercase letters are preferred on all lines of the address block.
Lowercase letters in various type styles are acceptable provided they meet postal guidelines for OCR readability. Chapter 4 of Publication 25 provides complete guidelines for OCR readability that should be met when preparing a standardized mailpiece. Section C800 of the DMM contains OCR readability requirements that must be met for automation rates (other rates may also apply).
Secondary address unit
designators, such as
APARTMENT or SUITE, are
preferred to be printed on the
mailpiece for address locations
containing secondary unit
designators. The preferred
location is at the end of the
Delivery Address Line. The pound
sign (#) should not be used as a
secondary unit designator if the
correct designation, such as APT
or STE, is known or is shown in
the ZIP+4 File.
The most common unit designators are:
| APARTMENT | APT |
| BUILDING | BLDG |
| FLOOR | FL |
| SUITE | STE |
| UNIT | UNIT |
| ROOM | RM |
| DEPARTMENT | DEPT |
| Note: See Appendix C.2 for approved designators. | |
If the pound sign (#) is used, there
must be a space between the
pound sign and the secondary
number.
If all Delivery Address Line
information cannot be continued in
the Delivery Address Line above
the city, state, and ZIP Code,
place secondary address
information on the line
immediately above the Delivery
Address Line.
The Attention Line is placed above the Recipient Line, that is, above the name of the firm to which the mailpiece is directed.
Eliminate dual addresses on the output mailpiece, if possible, although mailer files may maintain both mailing and physical addresses. However, if dual addresses are used, place the intended delivery address on the line immediately above the city, state, and ZIP+4 code. This normally is the Post Office Box address. The other address must be placed on a separate line above the Delivery Address Line. The ZIP+4 code used must be the correct code for the delivery address on the line directly above the city, state, and ZIP Code.
It is strongly recommended that addresses use only approved Last Line (city) names as described in the Postal Service City State File currently in effect.
City names with the City State Mailing Name indicator flag set to YES in the City State File are considered part of a complete and standardized address; city names with the flag set to NO in the City State File should not be used in a complete and standardized address. For a complete and standardized address, abbreviations for city or state names must be shown in the Postal Service City State File. If you are preparing prebarcoded mail, city names set to NO for mailing name can be used.
With the exception of the hyphen in the ZIP+4 code, punctuation may be omitted in the delivery address block.
Spell city names in their entirety. When abbreviations must be used due to labelling constraints, use only the approved 13-character abbreviations provided in the City State File.
Note: Normally, the abbreviations follow the logic of using existing abbreviations, such as for suffix or directional words.
Format the Last Line with at least one space between the city name, two-character state abbreviation, and ZIP+4 code.
Note: Two spaces are preferred between the state abbreviation and ZIP+4 code.
Overseas military addresses must contain the APO or FPO designation along with a two-character "state" abbreviation of AE, AP, or AA and the ZIP Code or ZIP+4 code.
AE is used for armed forces in Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and Canada; AP is for the Pacific; and AA is the Americas excluding Canada.
Use only the approved city name as listed in the City State File, along with the two-character state abbreviation and the ZIP Code or ZIP+4 code.
The preprinted Delivery Point barcode must be correct for the delivery address, city, state, and ZIP+4 code that appear on the mailpiece.
· See Publication 25, Designing Business Letter Mail, Chapter 5.
· See DMM A800 and C840 for the barcode requirements that must be met to qualify for automation rates.
· For a list of vendors certified for various barcoding products, please visit our Website at www.usps.gov or call 1-800-238-3150.
The Delivery Address Line, as matched against the ZIP+4 File, must be broken down into its individual components on the mailpiece with one space between address elements.
These components are the primary address number, predirectional, street name, suffix, postdirectional, secondary address indentifier, and secondary address range.
The Postal Service uses the parsing logic below to enter address information into the files. When parsing the Delivery Address Line into the individual components, start from the right-most element of the address and work toward the left. Place each element in the appropriate field until all address components are isolated. This process facilitates matching files with AIS products and produces the correct format for output to a mailpiece.
Note: Mailers may use any parsing logic to achieve the same result.
Information found in the primary name field of the ZIP+4 File is used as the street name. The ZIP+4 File indicates the preferred primary street name to ensure that the correctly designated primary street record is matched during the address standardization processes.
Punctuation is normally limited to periods, slashes, and hyphens:
· Periods: 39.2 RD
· Slashes (fractional addresses): 101 1/2 MAIN ST
· Hyphens (hyphenated addresses): 289-01 MONTGOMERY AVE
Note: Hyphens in the address range are significant and are not removed. Hyphens in the street or city name, however, normally are not significant and may be replaced with a space.
This is a term the Postal Service uses to refer to the part of the address that gives directional information for delivery (i.e., N, S, E, W, NE, NW, SE, SW).
Abbreviate directionals (if they are one of the eight standard directionals listed in AIS files) to the appropriate one- or two-character abbreviation.
When parsing the address from right to left, if a directional word is found as the first word in the street name and there is no other directional to the left of it, abbreviate it and locate it in the predirectional field of the ZIP+4 File for standardization purposes.
When parsing from right to left, if a directional word is located to the right of the street name and suffix, abbreviate it and locate it in the postdirectional field.
When two directional words appear consecutively as one or two words, before the street name or following the street name or suffix, then the two words become either the pre- or the postdirectionals. Exceptions are any combinations of NORTH-SOUTH or EAST-WEST as consecutive words. In these cases the second directional becomes part of the primary name and is spelled out completely in the primary name field.
The other exception is when the local address information unit has determined that one of the directional letters is used as an alphabet indicator and not as a directional.
Note: In this example, the two-word directional is the primary street name.
When parsing from right to left, if the directional word appears between the street name and the suffix, then it appears as part of the primary name spelled out in the ZIP+4 File and is spelled out on the mailpiece.
The exception is when the local AIS unit has determined that the letters (E, N, S, or W) are used as alphabet indicators and not as directionals.
The suffix of the address should conform with the standard suffix abbreviations listed in the ZIP+4 File (see Appendix C).
If an address has two consecutive words that appear on the suffix table (Appendix C), abbreviate the second of the two words according to the suffix table and place it in the suffix field. The first of the two words is part of the primary name. Spell it out on the mailpiece in its entirety after the street name.
Numeric street names, for example, 7TH ST or SEVENTH ST, should be output on the mailpiece exactly as they appear in the ZIP+4 File.
Spell out numeric street names only when there are duplicate street names within a postal delivery area and the only distinguishing factor is that the one you matched is spelled out.
Corner addresses are replaced by physical street addresses in all AIS files.
The following are recommended standardized examples of county, state, and local highways (see Appendix F for an expanded table).
| Address | Name | |
|---|---|---|
| 101 | COUNTY ROAD 20 | |
| 11216 | COUNTY HIGHWAY 140 | |
| 1501 | HIGHWAY 50 | |
| 220 | INTERSTATE 680 | |
| 22604 | ROAD 123 | |
| 1650 | STATE HIGHWAY 335 | |
| 7777 | STATE ROUTE 39 | |
| 1155 | US HIGHWAY 70 | |
| 3000 | TOWNSHIP ROAD 20 | |
The Delivery Address Line for all APO/FPO military mail must be standardized as follows:
All domestic military mail must have a conventional street style address (see section 231).
Print rural route addresses on mailpieces as: RR N BOX NN. Do not use the words RURAL, NUMBER, NO., or the pound sign (#).
A leading zero before the rural route number is not necessary.
Print hyphens as part of the box number only when they are part of the address in the ZIP+4 File.
Change the designations RFD and RD (as a meaning for rural or rural free delivery) to RR.
There should be no additional designations, such as town or street names, on the Delivery Address Line of rural route addresses. Because street names used together with route and box numbers can create potential matching difficulty, mailers are encouraged to use only one style of addressing. If secondary name information is used, however, place it above the Delivery Address Line.
When applying a ZIP+4 code to a rural address, an exact match is preferred. If a box number is included in the address, the mailpiece must bear the appropriate ZIP+4 code representing the range for that box number. When box number information is not available, the Rural Route base record must be used.
Print highway contract route addresses on a mailpiece as: HC N BOX NN. Do not use the words HIGHWAY CONTRACT, ROUTE, NUMBER, NO., STAR ROUTE, or the pound sign (#).
A leading zero before the highway contract route number is not needed.
Print hyphens as part of the box number only when they are part of the address in the ZIP+4 File.
Change the designation STAR ROUTE, which usually refers to highway contract route, to HC.
There should be no additional designations, such as town or street names, on the Delivery Address Line of highway contract route addresses. Street names used together with route and box numbers can create potential matching difficulty. Mailers are encouraged to use only one style of addressing. If secondary name information is used, however, place it above the Delivery Address Line.
When applying a ZIP+4 code to a highway contract route address, an exact match is preferred. If a box number is included in the address, the mailpiece must bear the appropriate ZIP+4 code representing the range for that box number. When box number information is not available, the highway contract base record must be used.
Use the words GENERAL DELIVERY, uppercase preferred, spelled out (no abbreviation), as the Delivery Address Line on the mailpiece. Each record will carry the -9999 add-on code.
The ZIP Code or ZIP+4 code must be correctly applied for the general delivery record as found in the ZIP+4 File.
Mail addressed to the United States Postal Service must contain a complete address.
Addresses may be located in the ZIP+4 File as street, firm, or Post Office Box records (record type S, F, or P, respectively). Most records carry the -9998 add-on code. However, many areas use different add-on codes.
The ZIP Code or ZIP+4 code must be correctly applied for the United States Postal Service record as found in the ZIP+4 File.
Post Office Box addresses are output as PO BOX NN on the mailpiece.
Post Office Box numbers that are preceded by significant leading zeroes are identified in the ZIP+4 File by a hyphen (-) preceding the box number. Convert the hyphen into a zero on the output mailpiece.
PO Box addresses often appear with the word CALLER, FIRM CALLER, BIN, LOCKBOX, or DRAWER. Change these to PO BOX as output on a mailpiece.
Private companies may uniquely identify, by number, individuals or offices within their company for the purpose of simplifying their internal mail distribution. Print this number, called a MailStop Code (MSC), above the Recipient Line or the Attention Line. The words POST OFFICE BOX or PO BOX and the private mailbox number cannot be used on the Delivery Address Line. Only the Postal Service is entitled to provide delivery to a PO Box.
The Delivery Address Line is the standardized address of the private company.
Private companies offering mailbox rental services to individuals and businesses are considered commercial mail receiving agencies (CMRA). Addresses on mail received at a CMRA must adhere to specific requirements in the use of their private mailbox number (PMB). Mail sent to an addressee at a CMRA must include either the PMB identifier or the #, followed by the appropriate private mailbox number. Use of any other identifier is prohibited. Either a three line or four line address format can be used with a CMRA address and the PMB or # identifier, with the exception noted below. Where the CMRA's physical address requires its own secondary address element, the PMB or # address must follow the specific format rules stated below. It is not permissable to combine the secondary address element of the mailing address for the CMRA and the CMRA customer's private box number.
Examples:
Exception:
When the CMRA mailing address contains a secondary address element (e.g. rural route box number, suite, # or other term), the CMRA customer must use PMB when utilizing a three line address format:
Examples:
UNACCEPTABLE
Puerto Rico's common addressing consists of various formats, such as:
Apartment Building with Street Address
Number, Street, and Apt. No.
City, State, and ZIP+4
1234 AVE ASHFORD APT 1A
SAN JUAN PR 00907-1021
Condominium with Street Address
Condominium Name
Number, Street, and Apt. No.
City, State, and ZIP+4
COND LAS AMAPOLAS
1230 CALLE AMAPOLAS APT 103
CAROLINA PR 00979-1126
Exception
Name
Number and Urbanization
City, State, and ZIP+4
MR JOHN DOE
1234 URB LOS OLMOS
PONCE PR 00731-1235
Four-line Address
Name
Urbanization
Street and Number
City, State, and ZIP+4
MRS JANE DOE
URB LAS GLADIOLAS
150 CALLE A
SAN JUAN PR 00926-0221
Three-line Address
Name
Number and Street
City, State, and ZIP+4
MR JOHN DOE
1234 CALLE AURORA
MAYAGUEZ PR 00680-1234
Exception
Name
Number and Urbanization
City, State, and ZIP+4
MR JOHN DOE
1234 URB LOS OLMOS
PONCE PR 00731-1235
Apartment Buildings - Condominiums
Number, Street, and Apt. No.
City, State, and ZIP+4
1234 AVE ASHFORD APT 1A
SAN JUAN PR 00907-1021
Condominium with Street Address
Condominium Name
Number, Street, and Apt. No.
City, State, and ZIP+4
COND LAS AMAPOLAS
1230 CALLE AMAPOLAS APT 103
CAROLINA PR 00979-1126
Exception
Name
Condominium Name
Building No. and Apt. No.
City, State, and ZIP+4
MR RALPH DOE
COND GARDEN HILLS PLAZA
TORRE 2 APT 905
GUYANABO PR 00966-2325
Exception
Name
Condominium Name and Apt. No.
City, State, and ZIP+4
D MR JOHN DOE
COND DEL MAR APT 103
SAN JUAN PR 00907-1112
Certain condominiums are not located on a named street or have an assigned number to the building. The name of the condominium is substituted for the street name.
Name
Residential Name
Building No. and Apt. No.
City, State, and ZIP+4
MR JUAN DOE
RES LAS MARGARITAS
EDIF 1 APT 104
CAGUAS PR 00725-1103
The word CALLE is commonly placed before the street name and number. CALLE means STREET in Spanish, and placing the word CALLE prior to other address components is proper utilization based on Spanish composition. In addition to the word CALLE, the word AVENIDA or its abbreviation AVE may also appear in this position.
Urbanization denotes an area, sector, or development within a geographic area. In addition to being a descriptive word, it precedes the name of the area. This URB descriptor, commonly used in urban areas of Puerto Rico, is an important part of the addressing format, as it describes the location of a given street.
The following is a list of commonly used phrases that may appear in Puerto Rico addresses:
| Spanish | English |
|---|---|
| Apartado | PO Box |
| Buzon | Box |
| Buzon Rural | Rural Box |
| Ruta Rural | Rural Route |
| Ruta Estrella | Highway Contract |
| Edificio | Building |
The following is a list of Spanish words and their corresponding abbreviations:
| Spanish Word | Abbreviation | Spanish Word | Abbreviation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Apartamento | APT | Extencion | EXT |
| Barriada | BDA | Hospital | HOSP |
| Building | BLDG | Industrial | IND |
| Bloque | BL | Jardines | JARD |
| Barrio | BO | Mansiones | MANS |
| Carretera | CARR | Parcelas | PARC |
| Caserio | CAS | Quebrada | QBDA |
| Condominio | COND | Reparto | REPTO |
| Cooperativa | COOP | Residencial | RES |
| Corporacion | CORP | Sector | SEC |
| Departamento | DEPT | Terraza | TERR |
| Edificio | EDIF | Urbanization | URB |
| Entrega General | GEN DEL | Villa | VIL |
Directionals are not commonly used in Puerto Rico addresses because other descriptions, such as urbanization, identify geographic areas. When they do appear in addresses, however, they may appear as follows:
| Spanish | English | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Directional | Abbreviation | Directional | Abbreviation |
| Norte | N | North | N |
| Noreste | NE | Northeast | NE |
| Noroeste | NO | Northwest | NW |
| Sur | S | South | S |
| Sureste | SE | Southeast | SE |
| Suroeste | SO | Southwest | SW |
| Este | E | East | E |
| Oeste | O | West | W |
| Note: The only discrepancies between English and Spanish abbreviations occur in West directionals. In the ZIP+4 File, the English equivalents are used. | |||
The components of the Delivery Address Line are the primary address number, street name, secondary address identifier, and secondary address range.
Note: In Puerto Rico there are usually no directionals or suffixes. Additionally, most apartment buildings do not have a street address. In this situation, the building name is part of the primary address identifier. If directionals are present in an address, they are part of the street name. Do not translate to directionals.
Do not abbreviate street names if at all possible. Consult the abbreviation tables prior to making any abbreviation. For matching purposes, eliminating the word CALLE from named streets is recommended. Always print CALLE, AVENIDA, etc. on the mailpiece.
Numbered streets must always contain the word CALLE. This avoids misinterpretation of the delivery information between numbered streets and house numbers.
Note: Do not translate CALLE to the suffix ST. This translation makes the address undeliverable.
House numbers may have fractional or alphabetic modifiers. To make an address more deliverable because of alphanumeric ranges, place the house number before the street name.
Due to the amount of numbers within a block and a house number in Puerto Rico addresses, many identifiers are used to separate address elements, including BLOQUE, NUM, NO, CASA, and LOTE. None of the identifiers are part of the address, and they are not in the AIS files.
Certain rules have to be established to eliminate these identifiers from address files. Placing the house number before the street name is recommended.
When placing alphanumeric house numbers prior to the street name, avoid using hyphens.
However, hyphens in the address range may be significant. When addresses contain up to three-digit numeric block numbers, it is necessary to include a hyphen.
This process facilitates matching customer files against AIS since hyphens are present in the AIS files.
Because urbanizations are the most important part of the address, they are abbreviated to URB followed by the urbanization name.
Urbanizations are not repeated within five-digit zones and in most cases are served by one single carrier route. Therefore, a list of urbanization names serves for Five-Digit ZIP Code verification.
Note: Certain urbanizations are known as extensiones, mansiones, repartos, villas, parques, and jardines. When these names are present, there is no need to place the abbreviation URB prior to the name of the urbanization.
Note: Some areas in Puerto Rico served in urbanizations do not have a street name. The urbanization becomes a street name and is located in the primary identifier of the AIS files.
Print Post Office Box addresses as PO BOX on the mailpiece.
PO Box addresses often appear with the words CALLER, CALL BOX, GPO BOX, PO BOX S-1190, APTDO, APARTADO, BOX, BUZON. These are changed to PO BOX as output to a mailpiece.
In certain areas, the station name appears in the line above the city, state, and ZIP Code. We recommend that it is either eliminated from the output address or relocated, placing PO BOX above the city and state and placing the station name on the line above. Station names are not present on the ZIP+4 File.
Rural route addresses are output on a mailpiece as RR N BOX NN. Do not use the words RURAL, RUTA RURAL, BUZON, or BZN.
A leading zero before the rural route number is not necessary.
The designations RFD, RD, and RT (meaning rural route) are changed to RR.
There should be no additional designations, such as sector names, on the Delivery Address Line of rural addresses. Sector names used together with route and box numbers can create potential matching difficulty. Mailers are encouraged to use only one style of addressing. Eliminate this information in Puerto Rico addresses.
