How changes at the U.S. Postal Service could affect when your mail is postmarked

Mailing your tax returns this year or planning to vote by mail in the upcoming primary elections?

Changes at the U.S. Postal Service could lead to a filing delay.

The Postal Service announced in December that more mail may not be postmarked the day it’s dropped off, due to adjustments in its transportation operations. Historically, a postmark has been applied the same day you mail an item and indicates the date your mail was processed.

The agency said the adjustments could delay mail arrival by a day to local processing facilities.

The change is a part of the Postal Service’s 10-year strategic plan, called Delivering for America. It’s a 2021 pledge to implement significant operational and infrastructure changes to boost efficiency and reduce costs.

The plan calls for consolidating some of its facilities into the agency’s regional centers, which means some mail may now travel “hundreds of miles away” instead of a short distance, according to the Brookings Institution.

Postmark delays could have legal and administrative consequences for consumers, especially around tax season and elections.

Illinois voters can begin submitting their ballots on Feb. 5 for local and state primary elections, ahead of Election Day on March 17. Meanwhile, taxpayers can start filing on Jan. 26 to meet the April 15 deadline.

Most consumers go online to file their taxes or pay bills, but some people still mail time-sensitive documents through the Postal Service.

Of the roughly 2.4 million early votes from Illinois in the 2024 General Election, 832,898 were cast by mail, according to data from the University of Florida’s Election Lab. More than 93% of individual tax returns were filed electronically in Illinois last year, IRS data shows.

The operational change “disrupts an evidentiary tool that has long been woven into election law, tax administration, court procedure, and many other regulatory frameworks,” Brookings Institution Senior Fellow Elena Patel wrote in a report last month.

Approximately one-third of Illinois voters are at risk of experiencing postmark delays, the Brookings report found, which is more moderate exposure compared to other high-risk states like South Dakota and Arkansas.

The agency said the postmark wasn’t intended to serve as proof of when mail is sent. A postmark also doesn’t necessarily indicate the date on which the item was collected, but it can serve as proof of possession by the agency, according to the Postal Service.

In order to meet mailing deadlines, the agency said customers can request a free manual postmark at the retail counter, or send their item via certified mail for $5.30, which includes a return receipt showing when the item was delivered.

There's also a certificate of mailing that can be purchased for $2.40, which serves as the customer's proof of delivery.

With anticipated delays for some mail, the best practice would be sending time-sensitive documents at least several days ahead of its due date.

Separately, some shipping prices will increase starting Sunday.

Prices would increase by about 6.6% for priority mail service, 5.1% for priority mail express, 7.8% for USPS ground advantage and 6% for parcel select, the agency said on its website.