United States Postal Service (USPS)

Forwarding and stopping a deceased person's mail

The United States Postal Service handles mail forwarding and redirection for deceased persons. Mail addressed to someone who has died may be received at that address by anyone who would normally receive their mail there (DMM 508.1.4.4). To redirect the mail to a different address, an appointed executor or administrator files a change of address with the deceased's local Post Office, in person or by mail, with legal authorization documents; a death certificate alone does not qualify.

Notifying the USPS when someone dies

The executor or personal representative reports the death. USPS's page on what to do after a death →

Executors and administrators

Forward the deceased's mail by taking or mailing these to the deceased's local Post Office; an online change of address may not work:

•Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration; a death certificate alone does not qualify
•A completed PS Form 3575, free in the Mover's Guide packet at the counter
•The executor's own valid primary photo identification, when filing in person

Allow up to 2 weeks for forwarding to begin. It lasts 12 months, and Extended Mail Forwarding adds 6, 12 or 18 months, bought in 6-month increments with no cancellation or refund.

Decide what happens to a PO box the deceased held:

•Keep service: file a temporary change of address at the Post Office where the box is located
•Close it: file a permanent change of address, which surrenders the box

Register the deceased on the Deceased Do Not Contact List for a $6 fee to reduce advertising and fundraising mail, which drops within about three months.

Report mail fraud, mail theft or identity theft involving the deceased to the U.S. Postal Inspection Service at uspis.gov/report or 1-877-876-2455.

People who shared the address

Open and manage the deceased's mail as needed. Anyone who normally receives mail at the address may receive it.

Forward a single piece to the executor by crossing out the address, printing Forward to and the new address on the envelope, and leaving it in the mailbox, a blue collection box or a Post Office lobby drop.

Take over a PO box on which the survivor is already listed by filing a new PS Form 1093 with the required identification.

Required Documents

Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration: The probate court's executor or court-appointed-representative documents. A death certificate alone does not qualify.
Valid primary photo identification: when filing in person as an authorized agent. The filer's own.
Change of Address Order, PS Form 3575: Free in the Mover's Guide packet at any Post Office.

Timeline

Forwarding may begin within 3 business days of the request but can take up to 2 weeks. Mail begins arriving at the new address within 7 to 10 postal business days of the start date.

What happens to each matter1

Mail and PO Box

Mail continues to be delivered to the address until someone files a change of address; there is no deadline to file one.¹

When a delivery employee personally knows the addressee is deceased and the mail cannot properly be delivered to another person there, the employee marks it "Deceased" and it goes back to the sender. The endorsement is made personally and is never rubber-stamped.²

Standard forwarding lasts 12 months. Extended Mail Forwarding may be bought in 6-month increments for an additional 6, 12 or 18 months, 18 at most, and cannot be cancelled or refunded.³

During months 13 through 18, mail is returned to the sender with the new address attached; after month 18 it is returned without it.²

First-Class Mail, USPS Ground Advantage, Priority Mail and Priority Mail Express are forwarded free for 12 months. Periodicals such as magazines and newsletters are forwarded free for 60 days.⁴

Library Mail, Bound Printed Matter and Media Mail are forwarded for 12 months to domestic addresses only and may be subject to postage due. USPS Marketing Mail is forwarded only if the mailer asks for it; otherwise USPS disposes of it.⁴

A post office box is not surrendered because the box customer dies before the end of the period it was issued for. To keep mail service to the box, another person listed on it or the appointed executor or administrator may file a temporary change of address.^{5, 6}

Another person already listed on the box's PS Form 1093 may become the permanent box customer by filing a new PS Form 1093 with the required identification. A permanent change of address filed by the box customer or the executor or administrator surrenders the box.^{5, 6}

What USPS's rules say3

What the agency does and does not handle

USPS has no death-notification system and does not receive death reports from other agencies. It has no stop-mail option for a deceased person; the mail is redirected with a change of address.¹

Who may act for the estate or the survivor

Forwarding the mail elsewhere takes proof that the filer is the appointed executor or administrator: "Executor documents, Court Appointed Representative", in practice Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration. A death certificate does not qualify as legal authorization.¹

Anyone who would normally receive the addressee's mail at the address may receive it, so a person who shared the address may open and manage the deceased's mail without court documents.^{6, 1}

Processing and payment

The authorization and the change of address form go to the deceased's local Post Office in person or by mail. An online change of address may not be possible for a deceased individual.¹

Forms USPS issues2

PS Form 3575: Change of Address Order

Forwards a deceased person's mail. It is submitted to the deceased's local Post Office with executor or court-appointed-representative documents.³

Completed by the appointed executor or administrator. Completed at an office.

PS Form 1093: Application for Post Office Box Service

Filed by a person already listed on a deceased customer's box who wants to become the box customer, with the required identification, at the Post Office where the box is located.⁵

Completed by a person already listed on the box. Available to download.

Other agencies and offices involved2

U.S. Postal Inspection Service: Mail fraud, mail theft and identity theft involving the deceased's mail or identity⁷
Phone: 1-877-876-2455
Mailing address: Criminal Investigations Service Center, Attn: Mail Fraud, 433 W. Harrison Street, Room 3255, Chicago, IL 60699-3255
Association of National Advertisers: The Deceased Do Not Contact List, which reduces advertising and fundraising mail; USPS links to it⁸