Are you moving? Wondering how your mail will get to your new home? You can do that easily with a change of address form at your local post office.
A change of address form is simply a form you fill out to let the post office know that you are moving to a new address. Once they process the form, your mail starts getting delivered to the new address instead of your old way. It’s a simple and effective way to make sure there are no gaps in your mail delivery.
You can file a change of address online. However, you can also visit a local post office. Not sure where the closest post office is? You can find one at findpostoffice.org.
How to File a Change of Address
There are two simple ways to get your change of address started. One is online. You can simply go to the website for the United States Postal Service. One of the options on the main page is a link for “Change of Address.”
Click on that and you will be prompted to answer some basic questions. For example, they will want to know your name, your current address, and your new address. They will also want to know what day this change should take place.
Once you hit the submit button, you’re done. Your change of address is submitted and the post office will take care of making the change. Be sure to record the confirmation code you receive at the end of the process.
The other option is to into your post office directly. There you can talk with a person and fill out a paper form. The paper form will ask many of the same questions that you would answer on the website. You complete the form and turn it in and then the post office will process the request.
Updating or Canceling Your Change of Address
It’s possible you may need to update or even cancel your change of address request. For instance, maybe you are buying a new house and the closing date changes. That could alter your move-in date. You may need to change the date that your change of address goes into effect.
Or perhaps your plans change and you’re not going to move after all. In that case, you definitely don’t want your mail going to a new location.
The good news is that it’s very easy to update or cancel a change of address request. Again, you can do this online. Simply go to the United States Postal Service website and scroll to the bottom. You will see an option to “Update, cancel, or dispute your change of address.” Click on that link.
When you click on that link, you will be asked for your address and the confirmation code you received when you initially requested the change of address. Enter that information and your change of address request will appear.
At this point, you can edit whatever information needs to be changed. You can delete the change of address. You can change the date it should start. You can even change your new address if it turns out that you are moving to a new location.
If you don’t want to do this online and would rather talk to someone in person, you can visit your local post office. You will need your identification. They will be able to pull up the change of address request in their system.
You can then work with the individual in the post office to edit whatever information needs to be changed. Again, just like the online option, you can edit the start date or the new address. Or you can cancel the request altogether.
How early should you request a change of address or update the request?
Generally, earlier is better when it comes to requesting a change of address or updating it. The post office has to have time to process the request. Keep in mind that there is mail in transit while the request is being processed. If you request a change of address or alter the change request the day before you move, it’s likely that some of the mail won’t make it to your new address on time.
In most cases, a week is plenty of time to process the request. However, even a few days should be enough time. If you need to update the request or cancel it, do so as soon as you know that the change needs to be made.
That way, you won’t risk missing mail or having mail go to the wrong address.
Moving can be an exciting time, but it can also be a stressful one. There are many things that need to be done to make sure you keep your life rolling during the transition. The post office offers several convenient ways to change your address and edit the change request so your mail keeps arriving on-time at the correct location.