The U.S. Postal Service is proposing changes to make its International Mail products easier to use. The changes will introduce the most familiar and trusted USPS domestic product names First-Class Mail, Priority Mail and Express Mail into the International product portfolio, making it easier for customers to mail cards, letters and packages worldwide.

Whether its a retailer shipping products to another country or an individual keeping in touch with loved ones, customers will be able to connect with their friends and relatives around the world through an array of International Mail product choices, said Postmaster General John E. Potter. Simplifying our International offerings by using the familiar domestic product names  that people know and trust will give customers the Quick, Easy, Convenient choices they need.

The proposal will reorganize eight International Mail products now offered at postal outlets and online at usps.com into four simplified groupings: Global Express Guaranteed, Express Mail International, Priority Mail International and First-Class Mail International.

Online tools already are available to make mailing easier, combining customs forms and address labels into one document for many International Mail products. Soon, online shipping will be easier on the budget too, with discounts for postage purchased using Click-N-Ship at www.usps.com or through authorized postage vendors. Popular flat-rate shipping options also will be added.

Customers will be able to use many of the same recognizable packaging supplies available free from USPS for both domestic and International Mail shipments. Online customers also can request Free Package Pickup for certain International parcel services at their home or office for even more convenience.

The following table illustrates the proposed International Mail product simplifications.

Along with the product name changes, USPS is proposing to restructure International Mail prices for the first time in more than five years, resulting in an average increase of 13 percent. The price adjustment for First-Class Mail International would average 8.6 percent. The cost to mail a letter to Canada or Mexico would change from 63 cents to 69 cents.

For full details of the proposal, see the notice available through the link to Proposed International Mail Changes Dec. 20, 2006 Federal Register at the bottom of the following page on http://www.usps.com/ratecase/simplified_international_rates.htm.

Comments on the proposed changes are being accepted through January 19, 2007. Written comments should be sent to the manager of Mailing Standards, U.S. Postal Service, 475 LEnfant Plaza, SW, Room 3436, Washington DC 20260-3436. The proposed changes will be presented to the Postal Service Board of Governors for consideration after the 30-day comment period. If approved by the Governors, the changes would take effect in Spring 2007, at the same time as the domestic mail price adjustments now before the Postal Rate Commission.

         About the USPS

Since 1775, the United States Postal Service and its predecessor, the Post Office Department, have connected friends, families, neighbors and businesses by mail. An independent federal agency that visits more than 146 million homes and businesses every day, the Postal Service is the only service provider delivering to every address in the nation. It receives no taxpayer dollars for routine operations, but derives its operating revenues solely from the sale of postage, products and services. With annual revenues of $72 billion, it is the worlds leading provider of mailing and delivery services, offering some of the most affordable postage rates in the world. The U.S. Postal Service delivers more than 46 percent of the worlds mail volume some 213 billion letters, advertisements, periodicals and packages a year and serves 10 million customers each day at its 37,000 retail locations nationwide.