Post Office Sending Mail Back Because Its Not a Po Box
 International Mailing Address Formatsand Other International Mailing Information | | |
Formats
Listed by destination country, in alphabetical order
OF THE PLACE YOU
ARE MAILING TO
Argentina
- Mostly adapted from Correo Argentino (Argentina's Postal Service) website:
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Juana Aguirre [recipient] Piedras No 623 [street address (street name + house/building number)] Piso2 Dto.4 ["Piso2"="2nd floor". "Dto.4"="(Weird abbreviation for department: Dpto. would be more usual) 4". Piso/Depto-Barrio stuff may occur in this line, but only applies to some addresses.] C1070AAM Capital Federal [postal code + city/town/locality. Yes, currently (writing as of March 2005) an Argentina postal code ("CPA") has one letter + four digits + three letters.] ARGENTINA [country name, when mailing from outside Argentina] Daniela Sosa [recipient] Casilla de Correo 432 [Post Office Box 432] Correo Central ['Central Post Office' (Which post office. Optional for some post office box addresses.] C1000WAM Capital Federal [postal code + city/town/locality] ARGENTINA [country name, when mailing from outside Argentina] At. Sr. Hiro Gordo-Globo [recipient name, literally "ATTN: Mr. Hiro Gordo-Globo". The ATTN:/At. is certainly optional.] Sumo Informática S.A. [business name] Calle 39 No 1540 [street address] Here the street is named "Calle 39" and 1540 is the house number. B1000TBU San Sebastian [postal code + city/town/locality] ARGENTINA [country name, when mailing from outside Argentina] Prof. Carlo Francis Xavier [recipient] Escuela Rural 45 [name of a rural school or other appropriate named rural place] X5187XAB San Clemente [postal code + city/town/locality] ARGENTINA [country name, when mailing from outside Argentina]
- Adapted from the UPU:
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CPA [recipient] Sarmiento 151, Piso 3, Oficina 311 BIS [street name + house/building number, Floor 3, Office 311 BIS] C1000ZAA BUENOS AIRES [postal code + city/town/locality] ARGENTINA [country name, when mailing from outside Argentina]
- Addresses in the Spanish Language section.
- Postal abbreviations, honorifics, and more about addressing mail in Spanish.
- In Spanish only: Some useful pages at the Correo Argentino (Argentine Postal Service) website.
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- Addressing format information, somewhat focusing on postal code usage. (in Spanish, with example addresses)
Some guidelines:- The postal code (aka CPA) should be printed with capital letters.
- The lines of address text should be flush left.
- You needn't write the province name; the postal code implies it.
- "ATTN" ("At.") lines should be in the addressee part of the address, NOT down with the postal code!
- About Argentina postcodes (U.S.ians call it a "zip code"; Argentina calls it a "CPA".) (in Spanish)
- Addressing format information, somewhat focusing on postal code usage. (in Spanish, with example addresses)
- Postal Code Lookup Form (Requires Javascript; in Spanish)
- Works fairly well, but fails on some heavily abbreviated addresses. For help expanding an abbreviated address, see address correction/completion and address finding resources listed on this page.
- Completing/repairing a partial address
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- Interactive map of Buenos Aires (may require Javascript; in Spanish)
- Surprisingly useful for helping fix over-abbreviated, incomplete or slightly broken addresses in Buenos Aires.
You can find an address by using a search form in the lower left corner (as of 2010 June) labeled "LOCALIZADOR DE DIRECCIONES". This can be useful for getting more complete forms of abbreviated street names, and for figuring out a location within the large city. Also useful for getting an address into the more complete form sometimes required by the Argentine Post's (Correo Argentino's) postcode lookup form.
- You can check that an address at least exists with Correo Argentino's Postal Code Lookup Form (Requires Javascript; in Spanish)
What Postcode Lookup Form Field Names Mean Localidad: neighborhood/quarter Nombre de la Calle: street name Número: number Búsqueda: search
Format Examples
Format Information
Find Postcodes / Postal Codes
Address Validation, Verification, and/or Correction
Australia
- Australia Post's "Correct Addressing."
- This is fairly complete, but as usual, if you are mailing to Australia from another country, don't forget to write AUSTRALIA (the destination country) as the bottom line of the address.
Mr S Tan 200 Broadway Av WEST BEACH SA 5024 AUSTRALIA
- State/Territory Abbreviations
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ACT Australian Capital Territory NSW New South Wales NT Northern Territory QLD Queensland SA South Australia TAS Tasmania VIC Victoria WA Western Australia
- Abbreviations for Types of Streets/Roads/etc. (commonly used)
ALLEY Alley ARC Arcade AVE Avenue (but we've also seen Australia Post using "AV" or "Av".) BVD Boulevard CL Close CRES Crescent CT Court DR Drive ESP Esplanade GR Grove HWY Highway LANE Lane PDE Parade PL Place RD Road SQ Square ST Street TCE Terrace
(Yeah, how many people would've expected the floor and the thoroughfare address would go on the same line UNDER the suite?)MONKEY MAN ENTERPRISES SUITE 109 FLOOR 5 240 WANDALOO ESP NEW CANBERRA WA 1234 AUSTRALIA
There are multiple formatting options relating to unit number, suite number, or apartment number. For example, you may use a slash to separate the number of the unit, apartment, or suite from the house number or building number; however, this won't work for a floor number or if a floor number is involved.
(This could be Suite 101 at 3910 Koala Bark Drive. The "NL" refers to the legal/business status of SLZ Agency.)"RIP" ULYSSES HOFF SLZ AGENCY NL 101/3910 KOALA BARK DR NEW CANBERRA WA 1234 AUSTRALIA
- Abbreviations for "Building/Complex Sub Unit"
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APT Apartment FY Factory F Flat MB Marine Berth OFF Office RM Room SHED Shed SHOP Shop SITE Site SE Suite U Unit VLLA Villa WE Warehouse
- Abbreviations for Floor/Level
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B Basement FL Floor G Gound Level L Level LG Lower Ground Floor M Mezzanine UG Upper Ground Floor
- A House/Property Number [Building Number] can sometimes include a number range.
- (Mr. Heisenberg appears to live in Unit 235 of a property having street numbers 201-203. Whether he lives at 201, 202, or 203 is uncertain.)
MR W HEISENBERG U 235 201-203 BROADWAY AVE WEST BEACH SA 5024 AUSTRALIA
- The Australian Post's "Australia Post Terms and Conditions" Appendix "Correct Addressing Standards": not only for nitpickers, but also for the utterly perplexed!
- Australia Post's Australian Postcode Lookup
- If you know an addresses' town, suburb, city or village and territory, but don't know the numeric postcode.
- Ever wanted to 'unsend' a letter five minutes after you sent it?
- Australia Post provides a special service to 'withdraw' mail before it's delivered.
Format Information
Find Postcodes / Postal Codes
Fun Fact
Austria
- Talented programmer R. Fellner
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R. Fellner [recipient] Pazmaniteng 24-9 [street address] A-1020 Vienna [postal code + city/town/locality] The A- is an optional country code for mailing within the EU. AUSTRIA [country name]
- Council of Europe Publications: Sales Agents
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Gerold und Co Weihburggasse 26 A-1010 VIENNA AUSTRIA
- When name of destination is different from name of post office (adapted from UPU)
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Frau ["Mrs." (sometimes also used for "Miss")] Mag. Maria Muster [recipient (roughly: Maria Muster, MSc)] Gartenweg 8 [street address] Rafing [city/town/locality] 3741 PULKAU [postal code + city/town/locality OR post office's name AUSTRIA [country name]
- The Austrian Post's website includes some formatting and packaging information
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- in German (link good as of 2009 July 15).
- Dimensions and weight requirements for domestic mail within Austria in English (link good as of 2009 July 15).
- The bottommost 15 mm of an envelope should be left blank.
- The return address on an envelope should extend no more than 40 mm from the top of the envelope, and should not extend within 74 mm of the envelope's right edge.
- The recipient address should be at least 40 mm from the top of an envelope, possibly should extend no more than 140 mm from the envelope's right edge, should be at least 15mm from the envelope's right edge, and should be surrounded on the right and left by blank zones at least 15mm wide.
Format Examples
Format Information
Belgium
- UPU Model Address
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M. André Dupont Rue du Cornet 6 B-4800 VERVIERS BELGIUM
- ABB Flexible Automation World-Wide Contacts
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Asea Brown Boveri S.A. - N.V. Flexible Automation Division Hoge Wei 27 B-1930 Zaventem BELGIUM
- Postcode search form is the form on the right side of this page, headed "Zoek locaties van bpost of gemeente". (May require javascript; in Flemish)
- Enter the town/city name into the box labeled "postcode of gemeente", and if you get a list of one or more city/town/quarter names as your result, click through on the city name(s) to get a map in which you can complete your search.
straat - street name nr / nummer - building/house number
- The form on the left side of this page, headed "Zoek locaties van bpost in de buurt van dit adres" is somewhat helpful for checking the format and reasonableness of an address. (May require javascript; in Flemish)
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straat - street name nr / nummer - building/house number Postcode - four-digit postcode / postal code inside Belgium en gemeente - town/city/quarter/area Zoeken - Search
Format Examples
Find Postcodes / Postal Codes
Address Validation, Verification, and/or Correction
Brazil
- Please use the Brazil page on international mailing, address formats, and shipping-related issues.
Canada
- Special Bottom Margin for Canada
- When mailing an envelope or postcard to or from Canada, leave at least the bottom 19 millimeters (3/4 inch) blank on both front and back.
- The Canada Post Addressing Guidelines
- Postal Symbols (Abbreviations) Recognized by Canada Post
- Province and Territory Symbols
Abbrev. English Name French Name, If Different AB Alberta BC British Columbia Colombie-Britannique MB Manitoba NB New Brunswick Nouveau-Brunswick NL Newfoundland and Labrador Terre-Neuve-et-Labrador NT Northwest Territories Territoires du Nord-Ouest NS Nova Scotia Nouvelle-Écosse NU Nunavut ON Ontario PE Prince Edward Island Île-du-Prince-Édouard QC Québec SK Saskatchewan YT Yukon All values confirmed up-to-date as of 2010 January. - Street Types
e.g. ABBEY, ACRES, ALLÉE, ALLEY, AV, AVE, BLVD, CTR, CIR, DR, PL, RD, RTE, ST, WAY, etc. Some standard abbreviations for French-language addresses differ from the English-language.
- Street Directions
Of the form: N, E, S, W, NE, NW, etc.
The one exception is, in French-language addresses Ouest is represented by an O.
So, W-->O, NW-->NO, etc. - Unit Designators
These are: APT, APP, SUITE, BUREAU, UNIT, UNITÉ
- Province and Territory Symbols
- "Provincial and State Abbreviations"
- a street address from Canada Post website, including features that only some addresses have
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JOHN JONES MARKETING DEPARTMENT 10-123 1/2 MAIN STREET NW [10 is a unit number, such as a suite or apartment number.] MONTREAL QC H3Z 2Y7 [MONTREAL is the city; QC is the province abbreviation; H3Z 2Y7 is the postal code.] CANADA [If you were sending your mail from Canada, you wouldn't need this.]
- Postal code lookup:
- At Canada Post (Requires Cookies)
Format Information
Format Examples
Find Postcodes / Postal Codes
Chile
- In Spanish only: CorreosChile (Chile Post)
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- Postal Code Map/Lookup (in Spanish language)
Postal code lookup form vocabulary:
Calle = street Número = number Comuna = town or municipality Dato Requerido = required data Buscar = search
- Postal Code Map/Lookup (in Spanish language)
- How to Address Mail in Spanish Even If You're an English Speaker: Addresses in the Spanish Language section (all information in English language.)
- Postal abbreviations, honorifics, and more about addressing mail in Spanish.
Find Postcodes / Postal Codes
Format Information
China
- Please see People's Republic of China / Mainland China, Taiwan, Republic of China, and Hong Kong.
Costa Rica
- Spanish-Language Addressing
- costarica.com website:
- A bit of information about the postal system in Costa Rica, including example formats for post office box addresses..
- Tips for travelers for sending and receiving mail in Costa Rica
Miscellaneous Information
Crimea (Autonomous Republic of)
-
Service Interruptions/Suspensions Resulting from Russian Takeover of Crimea,
and Possible Work-Arounds -
As of the spring of 2014:
- Ukraine Post is no longer able to deliver domestic mail to Crimea (Ukraine postal codes 95000 to 99999), because of Russian interference.
- Russia Post offers to deliver mail mailed from Russia to Ukraine.
- The postal systems of countries (such as the United States, Canada, Australia, the United Kingdom, and various others) which do not recognize the Russian takeover of Crimea, are generally unable at present to deliver mail to Crimea. (Ukraine Post is blocked by armed force from delivering mail to Crimea, and those countries' postal systems refuse to deliver through Russia Post to Crimea.)
If you have a package or letter you need delivered to Crimea, probably the most effective methods at present are:
- to have someone mail it from a country such as Russia that recognizes the Russian takeover of Crimea and has updated postal services accordingly, or
- to inquire with a private delivery service such as FedEx or DHL about the current status of their delivery service(s) to Crimea, or
- to have someone hand-deliver it.
Czech Republic
- In a town with delivery office (from UPU documentation)
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Pan Martin Parma [recipient name] Prujezdna 320/62 [street name + block number / building number] 100 00 PRAHA 10 [postal code + city name + one to three digit numeric identifier for post office] CZECH REP. [country name (suitable for mailing to Czech Republic from most other countries)]
- Czech Post (from UPU documentation)
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Czech Post [recipient name] Headquarters [recipient name] Mail Traffic Department [recipient name] Prujezdna 9 [street name + block number and/or building number] 225 99 PRAHA 3 [postal code + city name + one to three digit numeric identifier for post office] CZECH REP. [country name (suitable for mailing to Czech Republic from most other countries)]
- Czech Post postal code lookup form
- Czech postal address information document at the UPU website.
Format Examples
Find Postcodes / Postal Codes
Format Information
Denmark
- from the UPU:
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Hr. Niels Henriksen [recipient] Kastanievej 15 [street address] DK-8660 SKANDERBORG [country code + postal code + city/town/locality. The "DK-" is an optional country code.] DENMARK [country] Post Denmark [recipient] International Post and Jetpost [recipient] Tietgensgade 37 [street address] DK-1566 COPENHAGEN V [country code + postal code + city/town/locality. The "DK-" is an optional country code.] DENMARK [country]
- from the Theseus list of Danish libraries and archives:
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Botanisk Centralbibliotek [recipient] Sølvgade 83, opg. S [street address (street name + building number, additional delivery information] DK-1307 København K. [country code + postal code + city/town/locality + letter additionally indicating delivery office/district/zone] DENMARK [country]
- Chris Herborth's Example:
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Thanks to Peter Mogensen, we have an entry for Danish addresses:
Peter Mogensen Name c/o Fictional Company Office or whatever (optional) Niels Bohrs Alle 23, 1330 Street address floor 13 More address (optional) Dalum Local area or village (optional) 5230 Odense M Zip code and postal district Odense City (optional) Danmark Country (optional)
The city is optional, only the postal district is relevent, so a minimal address would be:
Peter Mogensen Niels Bohrs Alle 23, 1330 5230 Odense M
- "Danish language locale for Denmark, Narrative Cultural Specification"
- Includes some postal abbreviations. See "Clause 25: Mail addresses". Alas, this document is kind of old (1996).
Storey specification is placed after the street number. The following conventions apply: English Danish Danish abbreviation Ground floor stuen st 1st floor 1. etage 1 basement kælderen kld right til højre th left til venstre tv middle midt for mf
- Specifications for mailed items: includes some addressing format information.
- (Quoted from http://www.postdanmark.dk/iis/english/erhvervsservice/til_forsendelse/forsendelsesformer/udformning/udformning_start.htm)
[Parts of an Address, Including Optional Parts]:
- Customer or registration number
- Title and name of recipient
- For the attention of (+ name)
- Street/road number and floor
- Location
- P.O. Box number
- Postcode and city (delivery office)
The address should be without extra space between the individual characters and words and without extra line spacing between the lines of the address. However, there must be a two-type space between postcode and city. Please do not underline the address.
- Danish postal code / postcode lookup:
- Postcode lookup (Requires Javascript)
Format Examples
Format Information
Find Postcodes / Postal Codes
Estonia
- Please use the Estonia page.
Fiji
- Use the Fiji page on international mailing, address formats, and shipping-related issues.
Finland
- Finnish Postal Service's English-Language Instructions For Addressing Mail
- From the English-language website of the Finnish postal service.
- from a version of the tidily formatted Greenland Guide:
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Saga Matkat OY [recipient] Saga Tours Ltd Albertinkatu 36 B [street address] 00180 HELSINKI [postal code + postal district IN CAPITALS. (FI- could optionally be added before the postal code.)] FINLAND [country]
- A UPU example, but updated & edited by us:
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Ms. Aulikki Laasko [recipient] Vesakkotic 1399 [street address] FI-00630 HELSINKI [country code + postal code + postal district. The "FI-" is an optional country code.] FINLAND [country]
There is still some controversy over whether it's preferable on intercontinental mail to use the official country code of FI or to use FIN instead. - Finnish Postcode Search (in Finnish)
- English explanation of how to use the Finnish form.
When searching for a street name, you may also use partial match search which requires at least 6 characters + %, for example by entering Kirkko% the search result will display all street names in Finland starting with the word 'Kirkko'.kadunnimi = street name
postinumero = postal code
postitoimipaikka = post office
kunta = municipality
hae = search
tyhjennä = clear
Format Information
Format Examples
Find Postcodes / Postal Codes
Formosa (Taiwan)
- Please see Taiwan (Republic of China).
France
- from the UPU, but updated by us:
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Madame Duval Some people prefer to write the recipient's last name in ALL CAPITAL LETTERS, but the UPU does not deem this necessary. 27 RUE PASTEUR [street address (house/building number + street name)] People USED TO include a comma between house/building number and street name. Presently, La Poste prefers no comma. 14390 CABOURG [postal code + city] La Poste prefers now that you DO NOT precede the postal code with France's country code and a dash. FRANCE M. Bernard this is a variant "Small locality" format IMPASSE VIVALDI VAUCE 53300 COUESNES VAUCE FRANCE
- Sending mail to France
- Includes "Writing a French Address."
By La Poste (the French Postal Service) - The Universal Postal Union listing for France is one of the best, most informative of the UPU country listings. (in PDF format)
- AskOxford: Writing Letters in French includes some information about addressing letters sent to French destinations.
- English-language search form
- "Test your addresses"
- Provides some help with formatting and partial plausibility checking of addresses.
- French<->English Postal Glossary
- "International mail often uses French terms and phrases..."
- France's Postal Service ("La Poste") lets you send a registered letter 'through the Internet.'
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- The letter is printed and delivered physically by La Poste.
- This could be an unusual way to deliver a letter across the world very quickly!
Format Examples
Format Information
Find Postcodes / Postal Codes
Address Validation, Verification, and/or Correction
Miscellaneous Information
Fun Fact
Germany
- German Post Office (Deutsche Post) sample addresses:
- A normal address:
Herrn ["to Mr." (form of address)] Eberhard Wellhausen [name] Wittekindshof [institution / company name] Schulstrasse 4 [street address] 32547 Bad Oyenhausen [postal code + city/town] The German Postal Service prefers that you no longer prefix the numeric postal code with the letter(s)-based country code. GERMANY [country]
A PO Box ("Postfach") type of address:Firma ["company"] Wellhausen [company's name] Postfach 10 01 65 ["PO Box" + its number] 32547 Bad Oyenhausen [postal code + city/town] GERMANY [country]
The Deutsche Post website has a lot of advice for making your mail machine-readable for speedy and accurate delivery, but I think much of it may be less important when mailing internationally. Some of this advice is translated and summarized in Addressing a Letter in Germany (English Language Instructions.) - ABB Group
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ABB Flexible Automation GmbH [company name] Grüner Weg 6 [street address] 61169 Friedberg [postal code + city/town.] GERMANY [country] ABB Lackieranlagen GmbH [company name] Schorbachstrasse 9 [street address] Postfach 260 [PO Box number] This letter will probably be delivered to the post office box, because it occurs lower in the address. 35510 Butzbach [postal code + city/town.] GERMANY [country]
- Postal code lookup information, for German and English speakers.
- This form lets you find a German address's postal code (German equivalent of a U.S. zip code.)
- Exeter Beginners' German textbook on the WWW
- "Addresses and postcodes" partly explains German address format, but for more information you should also read "German letter layout," which gives more address formatting details.
- Addressing a Letter in Germany (English Language Instructions) shows the unintentional humor and pathos of addressing a letter in a machine-processing age.
Format Examples
Find Postcodes / Postal Codes
Format Information
Great Britain (United Kingdom, England, Scotland, Wales, Channel Islands, Isle of Man, U.K., Northern Ireland)
- Royal Mail Guide to Preparing Mail - Addressing
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Some oddities of the Royal Mail include:
- A preference for the return address to be on the back of the envelope.
- A Locality line that only some addresses have (between the street address and town/city.)
- The "full stops" you are requested not to use in an address are periods.
From the Royal Mail website (as of September 2009):
"What is a correct Postal Address?
Every house and business in the UK has a complete postal address that helps Royal Mail deliver mail quickly, accurately and cost effectively.
We've laid out below the elements that make up a postal address and those that are required for us to deliver mail.You do not need to include a County name provided the Post Town and Postcode are used."Address Is it Required? Information Mr A Smith When applicable Addressees Name Acme Plc When applicable Company/Organisation Acme House Yes (except if it has a number) Building Name 3 High Street Yes Number of building and name of thoroughfare Hedle End Yes but only if a similar road name exists within a Post Town area Locality Name SOUTHAMPTON Yes Post Town please print in capitals SO31 4NG Yes Postcode please print in capitals The Royal Mail (British Postal Service) keeps reorganizing their website, but you might find addressing information here and/or here.
- Nildram Systems
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Nildram Ltd [recipient] Ardenham Court [probably the building name: see Format Information. Not all addresses have this part.] Oxford Road [street name] AYLESBURY [postal town (town/city)] BUCKINGHAMSHIRE [county (not needed)] HP19 3EQ [postal code] UNITED KINGDOM [country name]
- from the UPU:
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Mr. Walter C. Brown 49 Featherstone Street LONDON EC1Y 8SY UNITED KINGDOM
- Post Code Finder provides U.K. postcode search.
- Click on the "Find an Address" tab for a form that provides some free address validation help.
- Limited number of free searches per day.
Format Information
Format Examples
Find Postcodes / Postal Codes
Address Validation, Verification, and/or Correction
Greenland
- You can find some addresses in the Travel and Accommodations section of the 'Greenland Guide'.
- These addresses are taken from various versions of the helpfully tourism-promoting Greenland Guide. It appears that 'Postbox' is an accepted alternate way of saying 'P.O. Box.' The example address below includes both street address and P.O. Box address in case either is undeliverable or out of date.
Tikilluarit Nuuk Tourism A/S [recipient] Hans Egedesvej 29 [street address] P.O. Box 199 [P.O. Box + box number] DK-3900 Nuuk [postal code + postal district. The "DK-" is an optional ISO country code; it is actually the country code of Denmark, because Greenland is still in some senses a part of the Kingdom of Denmark.] GREENLAND [country name]Note: Greenland is still in some senses part of the Kingdom of Denmark and uses a similar address system, so also see Denmark.
Format Examples
Hong Kong (Hongkong)
- Example address from HongKong Post (see Format Information)
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Mr. CHAN Kwok-kwong Flat 25, 12/F, Acacia Building 150 Kennedy Road WAN CHAI HONG KONG
- New Systems Online
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Flat D, 6/F, Golden Industrial Center, Block 4, 182-190 Tai Lin Pai Road, Kwai Chung (In an older address format, ", N.T." might be written on this line after Kwai Chung, and HONG KONG written below.) NEW TERRITORIES HONG KONGBelow is an older format for the New Systems Online address, which would probably still reach its destination:New Systems Online Flat D, 6/F, Golden Industrial Center, Block 4, 182-190 Tai Lin Pai Road, Kwai Chung, N.T., (Here "N.T." stands for "NEW TERRITORIES") HONG KONG - Address Formatting Information, based largely on information from HongKong Post with some international mailing additions
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Although Hong Kong is now a special region within the People's Republic of China, Hong Kong has its own separate postal system and customs area. So mail sent into Hong Kong should be addressed to the 'country' of Hong Kong, (not China, nor PRC etc.)
Partial summary of information useful for people mailing from outside Hong Kong:
- For Hong Kong, the address should always include:
1. Name of addressee,
2. Flat and Floor numbers,
3. Name of building,
4. Number of building and name of street,
5. Name of village, town or district (in CAPITAL LETTERS),
6. (Optional depending on destination) HONG KONG, KOWLOON, or NEW TERRITORIES as appropriate (in CAPITAL LETTERS).
7. (At least if previous line was not HONG KONG) HONG KONG (in CAPITAL LETTERS to show the 'destination country.')
Mr. CHAN Kwok-kwong Flat 25, 12/F, Acacia Building 150 Kennedy Road WAN CHAI HONG KONG
- For items mailed internationally to P.O. Boxes in Hong Kong, the address should always include:
1.Name of addressee,
2.P.O. Box number,
3.Name of Post Office (in CAPITAL LETTERS) at which the box is located,
4. (Optional depending on destination) HONG KONG, KOWLOON, or NEW TERRITORIES as appropriate (in CAPITAL LETTERS).
5. (At least if previous line was not HONG KONG) HONG KONG (in CAPITAL LETTERS to show the 'destination country.')
- If an address includes an "MCN" / (Mail Collection Number) line, and you are mailing from outside Hong Kong, the country name "HONG KONG" should be the bottom line of the address, and the MCN line should be directly above that bottom line.
- If you are sending mail from within Hong Kong to a destination also in Hong Kong, the above formats should work except that you should omit the country line.
- For Hong Kong, the address should always include:
- Cultural notes
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- When addressing mail to Chinese, use blue or black ink--never red! Writing a name in red is considered inauspicious.
- A red envelope suggests a special gift of money, so a different color of envelope might be better for most purposes.
- Hong Kong has no postcodes (no postal codes) at this time! The special territory still lets humans be humans and robots be robots.
Format Examples
Format Information
Find Postcodes / Postal Codes
Iceland
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Gudmundur Jonasson Travel [recipient] Borgartun 34 [street address] 105 REYKJAVÍK [postal code + locality. The country code "IS-" is optional before the postal code, e.g. IS-105] ICELAND [country name]
- Example format for a P.O. Box address
-
Elmér Fúdd [recipient (person)] Wabbitwatchin Excursions [recipient] Pósthólf 1034 [PO BOX + boxnumber] 121 REYKJAVÍK [country code (IS-) + postal code + locality. The country code "IS-" is optional because ICELAND is written below.] ICELAND [country name]
- English-language version of Iceland Post home page.
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- Addressing and Labeling
- P.O. Box information includes address format for P.O. Box Addresses
If the letter's contents are delicate and the envelope may not be folded for it to be put in a mailbox it is imperative to write "Má ekki brjóta" in the bottom right corner on the address side.
[Excerpt from Iceland Post website, 2008]
Format Examples
- Example street address
Format Information
India
- From the UPU:
- Address format isn't very standardized.
Mr. I. K. Taneja Flat No. 100 Triveni Apartments Pitam Pura NEW DELHI 110034 [city/town/locality + postal code (equivalent of U.S. zip code)] INDIA Steel Authority of India Ltd. Ispat Bhavan Lodhi Road NEW DELHI 110003 INDIA Department of Posts Business Development Directorate Dak Bhavan Parliament Street NEW DELHI 110001 INDIA - Post Office Box: XYZ Example Exports
-
XYZ Example Exports Post Office Box 924 Ludhiana 141003 INDIA
- Indiapost "PIN Code" (postal code / zipcode) lookup form
- The India Post website might not have much format information.
- Don't use the sleazy fake "India Post" website now at indiapost.org.
Format Examples
Find Postcodes / Postal Codes
Format Information
Indonesia
- The self-declared 'Weblog Wannabe'
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Firda Beka Jl. Perhubungan IV/25 [For privacy we may have used an out-of-date address or changed it.] Pondok Betung Tangerang 15224 [city/town/locality + postal code (equivalent of U.S. zip code)] Indonesia
- From the UPU:
-
Mr. N. Suprapto 73, Jalan Cilaki BANDUNG 40115 INDONESIA PT Pos Indonesia International Relations Dept. 30 Jalan Banda BANDUNG 40115 INDONESIA
The (non)punctuation of street addresses is wonderfully variable, no? - The Postcode search is not in English.
- The PT POS Indonesia website is mostly not in English.
Format Examples
Find Postcodes / Postal Codes
Format Information
Ireland
- "Ireland Mailing Address Formats (snail mail)"
- An easy-to-understand guide, but outdated or potentially misleading on two points:
- Irish addresses now have optional postcodes (like USA zip codes.)
- For a few addresses, an extra line above the town/city name may be needed to disambiguate an address.
- An Post
- Ireland's national postal service.
Selected address formatting guidelines from the An Post website as of 2017, with additions for mailing from outside Ireland to Irish addresses:
- For a few cities (Dublin and Cork) there may be a one or two digit zone number. This is completely different from the postcode/'Eircode'. For the least confusion, write it on the address's city line, after the city name. (Some people might write the zone number after the street name, but that could be more confusing.)
An example is shown below, with the zone number written after the city of Dublin.
An Post Business Desk GPO O'Connell Street Lower Freepost Dublin 1 D01 F5P2 IRELAND
You should write your address in Ireland using the following guidelines:
- Each line should start at the same distance from the left hand edge of the cover, i.e. the address should not be written in the indented format.
- Each line should be limited to 32 characters.
- Individual characters should have a minimum height of 2mm (5/64 inch), a maximum height of 7mm (8/32 inch) and a maximum width of 7mm (8/32 inch). (So character height and width of 1/4 inch to 1/8 inch are certainly within the specified size range.)
- The address must be written in a compact form without a blank line between the Post Town or County Name (if required) and the other elements of the address. It is important that no part of the address is underlined.
Note: The Official Postal Address does not contain any abbreviations and An Post recommends that you use the full spelling when addressing a mail piece, for example Road not Rd.
A few addresses are special cases:
- The post town and county in a mailing address can be different from the real physical location. To ease logistics, a particular area's mail might be delivered through a nearby town in a different county. In this case, the official mailing address might incorporate the "post town" and the post town's county, instead of the physically accurate geography.
- Locality is an extra line required in a few addresses above the city/town, and optional in others.
An Post says "The name of the locality or second thoroughfare should...always be included in the address where it is necessary to distinguish between two or more streets in the same postal district, for example"
Pembroke Cottages Ringsend Dublin 4 OR Pembroke Cottages Donnybrook Dublin 4
- For a few cities (Dublin and Cork) there may be a one or two digit zone number. This is completely different from the postcode/'Eircode'. For the least confusion, write it on the address's city line, after the city name. (Some people might write the zone number after the street name, but that could be more confusing.)
- Ireland's government has created and adopted a postcode system (somewhat like the USA's zip codes) in which the postcode is called an "Eircode."
- Postcode/Eircode Search
- When you address mail to a destination in Ireland, the postcode/'Eircode' is not mandatory.
- An Irish postcode/'Eircode' is three letters and/or numbers, followed by a space, followed by four more letters and/or numbers.
- Most addresses in permanent buildings now have postcodes. Relatively new buildings or addresses might not yet have postcodes assigned (that could take a few months.)
- The first three characters of an Eircode indicate the post town or area; the last four characters indicate a particular address within that area.
- When sending mail into Ireland and using the postcode/'Eircode', the postcode would go on a line of its own just above the country name IRELAND. Otherwise, the postcode would be the bottom line of the address.
- A relatively critical explanation of the Irish Eircode / postcode system is available from Padraig O'Mara (July 2015).
- Free Address Correction and Verification and 'Check An Address' online forms provided by the Irish postal service.
- Limited number of addresses per day on free plan.
Format Information
Find Postcodes / Postal Codes
Address Validation, Verification, and/or Correction
Isle of Man
- Please see United Kingdom / Great Britain.
- Women also live on this island. :-)
Israel
- Council of Europe Publications Sales Rep
-
R.O.Y. International PO Box 13056 ISL-61130 TEL-AVIV ISRAEL
- The UPU Example
-
M. Ploni Almoni 16, Rue Yafo 94142 JERUSALEM ISRAEL
- Israeli Postal Authority's mail-order address for buying stamps by mail
-
The Israel Philatelic Service 12 Shderot Yerushalayim 68021 Tel Aviv - Yafo ISRAEL
Format Examples
Italy
- A simple street address
-
SIG MARIO ROSSI [recipient] VIALE EUROPA 22 [street + house/building number] 00144 ROMA RM [postal code + city + province code] Province code is two letters. ITALY
(Old UPU documentation has a different, outmoded form of this address.) - Street address with slash / used to separate main house/building number from "exponent" number
-
MARIA RUSSO [recipient] VIA APPIA NUOVA 123/4 [street + main house number / "exponent"] 00184 ROMA RM [postal code + city + province code] ITALY
- Address with PO Box ("Casella Postale" in Italian)
-
TASTIERA SRA [recipient, in this case a business name] UFFICIO ROMA TRULLO ["UFFICIO" + post office location name possibly including a number] This is the name of the post office where the box is. CASELLA POSTALE 1234 ["POST OFFICE BOX" + box number] 00149 ROMA RM [postal code + city + province code] ITALY
- Address with 'Attention:' some person
-
TASTIERA SRA [recipient, in this case a business name] C.A. FELIX GATTO ["Attn:" Felix Gatto (a person's name)] UFFICIO ROMA TRULLO ["UFFICIO" + post office location name possibly including a number] This is the name of the post office where the box is. CASELLA POSTALE 1234 ["POST OFFICE BOX" + box number] 00149 ROMA RM [postal code + city + province code] ITALY
- Street address with a 'kilometric civic number'. Kilometric numbers may be written with commas for readability.
-
ALDO DE LUCA [recipient] VIA CARDANO KM 1,234 [road name + KM (kilometers) + 'kilometric number'] 20042 OMATE MI [postal code + city + province code] ITALY
- How to write Italian addresses
-
Based on various sources of information from Poste Italiane (the Italian postal service), but for clarity we've reorganized, edited, and written some new explanations.
The general rule is, the address must contain three to five lines, plus an extra line at the bottom for the country name.
(*) With the exception of San Marino and the Vatican City-StateStreet Address Format Address Line / Element Must All Addresses Include This? 1. Recipient / Addressee YES 2. Additional information about the recipient
(e.g. specific person within an organization)N 3. Additional information about the building or location (which floor, suite/apartment number, etc.; in some unusual cases, district or village) N 4. Street Name + House Number
YES 5. Postal Code (like a U.S. zip code) + Locality (city/town/village) + Province Abbreviation (two letters) YES 6. Country Name YES FOR FOREIGN COUNTRIES (*)
(*) With the exception of San Marino and the Vatican City-StatePost Office Box ('CASELLA POSTALE') Address Format Address Line / Element Must All Addresses Include This? 1. Recipient / Addressee YES 2. Additional information about the recipient
(e.g. specific person within a recipient organization)N 3. Specific post office where the box is located
('UFFICIO' + post office name possibly including a number)YES (to avoid processing delays and potential confusion) 4. 'CASELLA POSTALE' (Italian for 'PO BOX') + Box Number YES 5. Postal Code (like a U.S. zip code) + Locality (city/town/village) + Province Abbreviation (two letters) YES 6. Country Name YES FOR FOREIGN COUNTRIES (*) Rules for best addressing and address format
- Write rows in the correct order, as given in the table above.
- Always write all required rows.
- Print (not cursive) and use ALL CAPITAL LETTERS.
- Usually it's best to avoid punctuation and other special characters.
In some cases slash '/', commas, periods, apostrophes, and accent marks are acceptable. - Don't underline!
- House/building number comes after the street name, never before.
- The postal code ("Codice di Avviamento Postale" = CAP, like a US zip code) must be used on every type of mail.
- Use correct & consistent postal code, city, and province abbreviation.
- Use your specific address's postal code, not a generic postal code for a large city/area. Otherwise your mail might be delayed.
An older, outmoded address style included a dash between your postal code and locality (city/town/village) and parentheses around the province abbreviation. Mail with these will probably be delivered anyway.
- Address Composition Standards (2007 PDF published by Post Italia, the Italian postal service)
- Italian Post Code Search (in Italian, but not hard to figure out)
- An Italian postcode is also called a "CAP" or a "Codice di Avviamento Postale".
Format Examples
Format Information
Find Postcodes / Postal Codes
Japan
- Postal Information for Japan from japan-guide.com
- Nice; includes additional links.
- sci.lang.japan FAQ section 13.3. "How does the Japanese addressing system work?"
- Japanorama: Japanese Address Formats
- Has some good examples, but postal code format shown is the old three digit instead of the new longer format.
Also, be sure to write 'Japan' on a line below the rest of the address when you mail from the United States or other Western countries to Japan. - Bruce "Tog" Tognazzini's perspective on the Japanese address system
- "How to write Japanese address" ("Wayback Machine" copy)
- Sometimes slow to download, but good. Includes information about latest postal code change. (Link is to a "Wayback Machine" copy because original page was recently taken down.)
- Postcode finder (not in English)
Format Information
Find Postcodes / Postal Codes
Korea
- Please see South Korea.
Latvia
- Try the "Addressing the Mail" page on the Latvija Pasts website.
Format Information
Luxembourg
- Luxembourg address format seems mostly similar to France's format, except that:
- The postal code is a four-digit number.
- Of course, the letter that you can optionally write before the postal code is L- for Luxembourg (not F- for France.)
for example, L-1316.
M. Andrée TROMMER [(M. = Monsieur) recipient name] BP 5019 [P.O. Box + number] L-1050 Luxembourg [(optional country code L-) + postal code + city/locality] LUXEMBOURG [country name]
- from the UPU:
-
M. Jacques Muller [(M. = Monsieur) recipient name] 71, route de Longwy [street address (house number + street name)] L-4750 PETANGE [(optional country code L-) + postal code + city/locality] GRAND DUCHY OF LUXEMBOURG [country name]
Format Information
Format Examples
Malaysia
- Example from Pos Malaysia website
-
Ahmad Bin Gh azali 75 Kg Sg Ramal Luar [House Number/Lot Number/Floor and Building Name] 43000 Kajang [postal code + city] Selangor [state] Malaysia [country name (for mailing to Malaysia from other countries)]
- Pos Malaysia postal code search form
-
- This Pos Malaysia help page includes information about
properly formatting addresses -- scroll to bottom of that page! -
Format Examples
Find Postcodes / Postal Codes
Format Information
Mexico
- from the UPU:
-
Sra. Otilia Ramos Perez ["Mrs. Otilia Ramos Perez"] Urión 30 [street address] (in this case, street name + building number) Col. Atlatilco [Neighborhood/Quarter Atlatilco] ("Col."="Colonia"=neighborhood/quarter) 02860 MEXICO, D.F. [postal code + ("MEXICO, D.F." represents "Mexico, Districto Federal"; compare to "Washington, D.C.")] MEXICO [country name] Alonso Reyes Diáz [recipient] Super Manzana 3 - 403 [street name + building number - apartment number] Puerto Juarez [village] 77520 CANCUN, Q. ROO [postcode + locality name, province abbreviation] MEXICO [country name] Departmento de Asuntos Internationales Nezahualcoyotl 109 Piso 8 [street name + house/building number + floor 8] piso = floor. So this is street name (Nezahualcoyotl) + building number (109) + 'Floor' (Piso) + floor number (8). Centro [neighborhood/quarter] 06082 MEXICO, D.F. [postal code + (MEXICO, D.F." represents "Mexico, Districto Federal"; compare to "Washington, D.C.)] MEXICO [country name]
- from a copy of US Postal Bulletin S-1 (but updated by us):
-
Jaime Lopez [recipient name] 8th Straco # 69 [street address] 46800 Puerto Vallarta, JAL [postal code + city, province/state abbreviation] MEXICO [country name]
- ABB Group
-
ABB Sistemas, S.A. de C.V. Flexible Automation Division Via Gustavo Baz No. 166 Col. San Jerónimo Tepetlacalco 54090 Tlalnepantla, Edo. de México P.O. Box 58 BIS Col. Centro 06600 México, D.F. MEXICO
- Addresses in the Spanish Language section.
- Postal abbreviations, honorifics, and more about addressing mail in Spanish.
- In Spanish only: Servicio Postal Mexicano
- Province abbreviations
-
Aguascalientes AGS Morelos MOR Baja California BC Nayarit NAY Baja California Sur BCS Nuevo Leon NL Campeche CAM Oaxaca OAX Coahuila COAH Puebla PUE Colima COL Queretaro QRO Chiapas CHIS Quintana Roo Q ROO Chihuahua CHIH San Luis Potosi SLP Distrito Federal DF Sinaloa SIN Durango DGO Sonora SON Guanajuato GTO Tabasco TAB Guerrero GRO Tamaulipas TAMPS Hidalgo HGO Tlaxcala TLAX Jalisco JAL Veracruz VER Mexico MEX Yucatan YUC Michoacan MICH Zacatecas ZAC
- Postal Code Search Form (English speakers use glossary below; requires Javascript)
- English language 'cheat sheet':
Estado: state/province Municipo: city/town Asentiamento: (rest of address) Código Postal: postal code / postcode
Format Examples
Format Information
Find Postcodes / Postal Codes
Miscellaneous/Other
- Please see Other Guides to International Postal Address Formats.
Netherlands
- Koninklijke TNT Post BV
-
Koninklijke TNT Post BV [recipient name] Prinses Beatrixlaan 23 [street address (street name + house number / building number)] 2595 AK 'S-Gravenhage [postal code + town/locality. The 'S is part of the city/town/locality name. The - within this specific city's name is a relatively recent change to preferred address format.] NETHERLANDS [country name (if sending mail across national borders]
- A fictional government bureau.
-
Geschillencommissie Allerei [recipient name] Surinamestraat 27 [street address (street name + house number / building number)] 2585 GJ Den Haag [postal code + town/locality] NETHERLANDS [country name (if sending mail across national borders]
- A post office box address, with company name, department, person's name. (An example from the Dutch postal service, with annotations added by us)
-
Enigma Audio en Video [recipient name (name of a business)] Afdeling Salessupport [recipient name (name of a department within the business)] t.a.v. dhr. A. Jansen [recipient name ('Attn: Mr. A. Jansen')] Postbus 90222 ['PO BOX' + boxnumber] 2554 FG 's-GRAVENHAAG [postal code + town/locality] NETHERLANDS [country name (if sending mail across national borders]
- Sending an envelope to business reply service provided by the Dutch postal service. (An example from the Dutch postal service, with annotations added by us)
-
TNT Post Business Service [recipient name (name of a business)] Antwoordnummer 53040 [Business Reply Service No. 53040] 3505 VB UTRECHT [postal code + town/locality] NETHERLANDS [country name (if sending mail across national borders]
- Dutch postcode finder.
- Please see the Netherlands Details Page for additional information.
Format Examples
Find Postcodes / Postal Codes
Format Information
New Zealand
- Addressing Mail
- Includes explanations of special New Zealand format variants such as the apartment number -- house number format.
Don't forget to write NEW ZEALAND as the bottom line of the address when mailing from distant countries like the USA!
(Note: a "full stop" is what is called a "period" in the USA.)Mrs Brown [recipient] Flat 2 [apartment number] 173 Park Road [house number + street name] Johnsonville [suburb (only in some addresses)] Wellington 6004 [city + postal code] NEW ZEALAND [country]
- Rural Address Formats
- Addresses are formatted differently away from cities and towns, on rural delivery routes.
John Sample [recipient] Flat 2 [apartment number] 56 Maple Boulevard [house number + street name] RD 2 ['RD' + rural delivery (route) number] Wellington 6004 [postal town + postal code] NEW ZEALAND [country]
- Use �RD� plus the RD number instead of a suburb.
- �RD� has no spaces or punctuation (eg. �RD 1� not �R D 1�).
- Include the name of a registered occupant if the rural address doesn�t have a street number.
- Don�t use floor levels in rural addresses.
- Use the correct mail town, ie. the town name of the rural delivery route -- this is not always the town closest to the address.
- Post Code Finder (Requires Javascript)
- from the UPU:
-
Mr. ......... Private Bag 39 990 "Private Bag" addresses are not typical. I don't know why the UPU didn't provide a normal address also. WELLINGTON 1 NEW ZEALAND
Format Information
Find Postcodes / Postal Codes
Format Examples
Norway
- Please use the Norway page.
Oman
- UPU example, with annotations added
-
Mr Ahmed Al-Ballushi [recipient] BP 15 [BP + (post office box's number)] 133 [postcode] AL-KHOER [city/town] OMAN [country name]
Direction générale des postes [recipient] BP 338 - RUWI [BP + (post office box's number) - (district or quarter of the city)] 112 [postcode] MUSCAT [city/town] OMAN [country name]
- If you are sending international mail to an address in Oman, the destination will almost certainly be a post office box.
- Acceptable terms for 'post office box' in an address include "BP", "P.O.Box", "P.Box".
- In theory, lines in an address are usually/preferably right-aligned (Each line's right edge is even with the other lines.)
However, that would seem more applicable to addresses in Arabic rather than in Roman letters (such as English, French, etc.)
Format Examples
Format Information
Pakistan
- From Pakistan's UPU documentation
-
Mr. Nasratullah Khan House No 17-B Street No 30 Sector F-7/1 ISLAMABAD-44000 PAKISTAN
- Post Codes
Format Examples
Find Postcodes / Postal Codes
Poland
- Adaptation of UPU Example Addresses
-
Mme Anna Kowalska recipient Ul. Bosmanska 1 street address 81-116 GDYNIA postal code + locality POLAND country name Poste Polonaise Direction générale Bureau du trafic international Pl. Malachowskiego 2 00-940 WARSZAWA POLAND
Format Examples
Portugal
- Addresses based upon UPU Example Addresses
-
Sr. Antonio Costa recipient Rua do Farol 2 street name, house/building number AZOIA 2740-029 COLARES postal code + 'territorial subdivision' PORTUGAL country name CTT - CORREIOS DE PORTUGAL, S.A. Rua Conde de Redondo 79 1167-921 LISBOA CODEX PORTUGAL
- Some notes on official formatting standards for Portugal addresses
- Portugal's postal service has made some changes:
- Postal codes changed from 4-digit to 7-digit, e.g. 1234-567
- Comma between street name and building number is no longer preferred format.
- For more information check UPU country PDF also.
SOME FORMAT CHANGES IN AN EXAMPLE ADDRESS: Sr. Antonio Costa Rua do Farol
,2 remove comma from between street name, house/building number AZOIA 2740 -029 COLARES postal code now has three added digits for a total of seven PORTUGAL
Format Examples
Format Information
Puerto Rico
- Addresses in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands are often in Spanish.
- Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands are presently covered by the United States Postal Service.
- USPS Zip Code Lookup Form
- Find the full zip code for any U.S. address.
Format Information
Find Postcodes / Postal Codes
Romania
- Use the Romania Page.
Russia (Russian Federation)
- In general, mail to a Russian address from foreign countries such as the United States may have the recipient address components written in the following order. (from Russian Post website, but edited for mailing from outside Russia)
-
- Name of addressee (for citizens-surname, name, patronymic )
- Name of the street, number of the house and flat
- Name of the settlement (town, village and other)
- Name of the district
- Name of the republic, territory, region, autonomous district(region)
- Postcode
- Name of the country (for international items)
- Russian Post: "How to write address correctly"
-
- Explains internal Russian mailing address formats.
- Russian postal address information document at the UPU website
-
- Warning: addresses are in format for mailing from inside Russia.
- Some useful terms and abbreviations.
Ulica(ul.) : street Pereulok.: lane Bulvar : boulevard Prospekt. : avenue Gorod (g.).: town / city Posclok (pos.).:small town Derevnya (der.).: village Dom (d.).: house Korpus (k.).: building Kvartira (kv.).: appartment Raion (r-n).: district Oblast (obl.).: province
- Art Lebedev comments on local variant formats in "Housekeeping tip".
- "Zelenograd, Moscow...has just building numbers, like bldg. 1001A, instead of full street addresses. The first two digits represent the district (number 10)."
- UPU Example Addresses edited and annotated by us for clarity & correctness when mailing from the United States:
- Example with addressee in a large town or city:
Ivanov Alexander Ivanovitch recipient (family name first) ul. Lesnaya d. 5, kv. 176 'ul.'(abbreviation for street) + street name + 'd.(doma=house) + house number, 'apt.' + apartment number g. MOSKVA town/city 123456 postal code RUSSIAN FEDERATION country name
Example with addressee in a more rural area:Petrov Ivan Sergeevich recipient (family name first) ul. Lesnaya d. 5 'ul.'(abbreviation for street) + street name + 'd.(doma=house) + house number pos. Lesnoe locality ALEKSCEVSKTY r-n district VORONEJSKAYA obl province (oblast) 247112 postal code RUSSIAN FEDERATION country name
Format Information
Format Examples
Singapore
- Example address from Singapore Post
-
Singapore Post Pte Ltd 10 Eunos Road 8 #05-33 Singapore Post Centre Singapore 408600 REPUBLIC OF SINGAPORE (Added for mailing from some foreign countries e.g. the United States) - UPU Examples
-
Mr. M. Rajendran Blk 35 Mandalay Road # 13-37 Mandalay Towers SINGAPORE 308215 REPUBLIC OF SINGAPORE Ms. Tan Bee Soo 16 Sandilands Road SINGAPORE 546080 REPUBLIC OF SINGAPORE
- Addresses of many Singapore post offices:
-
- You can search for post office addresses.
- Mailing and Packaging Tips
- For example:
- Write the return address on the back of the envelope.
- Don't put text or images within the designated 'clear zone' at the bottom of the front and back of the envelope.
- Use a white or cream-colored envelope. If your envelope is colored at all, the color should be extremely light (e.g. a light pastel).
- Cultural notes:
-
- Never write the address or return address in red.
- This page includes some information about how Singapore's postal codes work.
-
"The 6-digit postal code was introduced on 1 September 1995. It allows SingPost to assign a unique postal code to every house and building in Singapore so that the mail sorting system is able to sort mail directly into the sequence of delivery for each postman...."
- Singapore postal code lookup (requires Javascript).
Format Examples
Format Information
Find Postcodes / Postal Codes
South Africa
- Some contact addresses for departments or services of the South African Post Office
-
Customer Services 497 Jacob Mare Street Pretoria 0001 South Africa
A "Private Bag" is for large customers who receive very large volumes of mail.Philatelic Services Private Bag X505 Pretoria 0001 South Africa
- from the UPU:
-
Mr. J. Public 1234 Church Street Colloyn PRETORIA 0083 SOUTH AFRICA The Senior General Manager Postal Business SA Post Office P.O. Box 10 000 PRETORIA 0083 SOUTH AFRICA
- "Post Code Finder"
- Provided by the South African Post Office.
- South African Post Office website.
- "What is an Address in South Africa?" by Serena Coetzee and Antony K. Cooper
- Interesting article for people who want to know a lot about South African address types.
Not really focused on formatting for mailing, however.
Some key points:
- What are all the types of addresses found in South Africa? Which types are useful for which purposes?
- As of the article's date, South Africa has no official address register.
- Trying to cope with the ambiguities resulting from the above.
Format Examples
Find Postcodes / Postal Codes
Miscellaneous Information
South Korea
- from the UPU:
-
Ministry of Information and Communication 116 Shinmullo 1-ga Chongno-gu SEOUL 110-700 REP OF KOREA
For more information you can contact:International Postal Division Bureau of Posts Ministry of Information and Communication SEOUL 110-700 REP OF KOREA
- "Postal Addresses in Korea"
- Complains that finding an address on foot can be difficult.
- Explains some of the structure of South Korean addresses.
- Explains more words found in a South Korean address.
- "Korean Addresses" (an explanation for students of the Korean language), ARCHIVED AT ARCHIVE.ORG
- Explains the basic structure of urban and rural South Korean addresses for mailing within Korea
- Defines some terms that occur within postal addresses.
-
AN EXAMPLE ADDRESS FORMATTED FOR MAILING FROM THE UNITED STATES OR WESTERN EUROPE: Ms. Yi Hun Kyong [person's name] 467 ponji [house number] Yaum-dong [subdivision or precinct of the city] Ulsan-si [city name] Kyongsangnamdo [province] South Korea [country name: added for mailing from most foreign countries e.g. the United States]
- Why does my house have two different numbers?
- South Korea's postal service is changing building/house numbers to an easier sequential system. This can be confusing.
- South Korean Postal code / Zipcode Lookup (Requires Javascript)
-
- By Si/Gun/Gu Or By Dong
- Simple Form
Format Examples
Format Information
- For best understanding, look at all of the South Korean address format references given below.
Find Postcodes / Postal Codes
Spain
- from the UPU with our own annotations added:
-
Sr. D. Alvaro Blanco Ruiz Luna, 10 - 3o [street name, house/building number - floor number] (For more information see Spanish Language Addressing page.) 28300 ARANJUEZ (MADRID) SPAIN Organismo Autónomio Correos y Telégraphos Area de Asuntos Internacionales Calle Aduana, 29 [street name, house/building number] 28070 MADRID [postal code + city/town/locality] SPAIN
- Addresses in the Spanish Language
- Postal abbreviations, honorifics, and more about addressing mail in Spanish.
- White Pages (with postal code link)
-
To use English, click on the little British flag (probably near upper left corner of page.)
The "codigo postal" search link is near the lower right corner of the page.
- "Digital Mail" can be printed and delivered on paper in Spain by the Spanish postal service. (Spanish-language web page.)
Format Examples
Format Information
Find Postcodes / Postal Codes
Fun Fact
Sweden
- With piece-by-piece explanation [and light editing by BitBoost].
Jon "I can't stop reading email while on vacation" Wätte writes:
Ms. Hypothetical Name of person/company/whatever c/o Jon Wätte Extra name/info (optional) Hagagatan 1, vi Street, number, apartment floor SE-113 49 Stockholm Postal code [113 49] and city SWEDEN Country
For mail within Sweden, remove the "SE-" prefix (part of the ISO standard for country codes) and the country.
- Martin Rebas' world domination letter
- Hey, it's funny.
Martin Rebas [Human being's name] Gyllenkrooksgatan 1 [Street name + house number] 412 84 GÖTEBORG [Postal code + city/town] SWEDEN [Country name]
- "The Swedish Gazetteer - National Atlas of Sweden [search page]
- Helps you find information about possible city/town names in Sweden, to help you evaluate an address' plausibility.
Format Examples
- Chris Herborth's Example
Format Information
Switzerland
- Example post office address
-
Philatelie der Post Maria Reichenbach Fraumünsterpost Kappelergasse 1 [street name + building number] 8022 Zürich [postal code + city/town/village (If city/town/village name is not unique, place 2-letter abbreviation for the containing canton's name after the city/town/village.)] Switzerland [country name]
- If a letter has two döts over it, you may type an e after the letter instead of the dots.
-
8022 Zuerich
- Addresses with e.g. apartment/residence number, floor number, or apt/suite letter.
-
Herr [Mr.] Hans Katze [person's name] Tastentanzenstrasse 5/16 [street name + building-number/apartment-number] 1234 Zuerich [postal code + city (Zuerich = Zürich)] SWITZERLAND [country name]
Frau [Mrs.] Wilhemlina Waschbaer [first name + last name] Hochbaumstrasse 123 A [street name + house or building number + apt. or suite letter] 5678 Bern [postcode + city or town] SWITZERLAND [country name]
- Mail to a specific person within a larger organization
-
Komputerfutzen AG [business name] Herr Doktor X. Schmidt [specific person] Denkmaschinenstrasse 1024 [street name + building number] 4096 Zürich [postcode + city name] SWITZERLAND [country name]
- PO BOX address with street address as secondary information -- this mail will normally be delivered to the PO BOX.
-
Lachenwissenschaftsinstitut [organization/institution name] Herr Doktor A. Klaun [specific person] Zichzachweg 15 [street name + building number] Postfach 230 ["PO Box" + box number] 9876 Tihidorf [postal code + city name] SWITZERLAND [country name]
- Military Addresses
- Military addresses may include general pseudo-'locations' such as 'Kaserne', 'Militär', etc. See page 48 of "Briefe Schweiz".
- A postcode search form is within the right side of some pages on the Swiss Post website.
- Readability
-
- Please don't address mail in cursive, italic, or old-style "Gothic" print.
- Please don't address mail in light print on a dark background.
- Font size should be between 2mm and 9mm high.
- Successive lines of the address should be at least 1mm apart (including descenders.)
- NO underlining please!
- "Addressing Mail:" Some rather basic information.
- (Will probably auto-detect language from your browser; to pick language click on one of the two-letter language codes "DE | FR | IT | EN" near upper right corner of page.)
- Canton abbreviations (needed only if name of city/town/village is not unique)
-
AG Argau AR Appenzell AusserRhoden AI Appenzell Inner-Rhoden BL Basel-Landschaft BS Basel-Stadt BE Bern FR Fribourg GE Geneva GL Glarus GR Graubunden JU Jura LU Luzern NE Neuchâtel NW Nidwalden OW Obwalden SG Sankt Gallen SH Shaffhausen SZ Schwyz SO Solothurn TG Thurgau TI Ticino UR Uri VS Valais VD Vaun ZG Zug ZH Zürich
- Swiss Post provides various services helping you to maintain, update & correct your address lists
- (some services require a fee.)
Format Examples
Find Postcodes / Postal Codes
Format Information
Address Validation, Verification, and/or Correction
Taiwan (Republic of China)
- U.S. Asis Environmental Partnership in Taiwan
-
U.S. Asis Environmental Partnership in Taiwan (U.S.-AEP Taiwan), American Institute in Taiwan International Trade Tower 32/F, 333 Keelung Road, Section 1 Taipei, 10548 TAIWAN, R.O.C.
- An address for buying stamps by mail from the Directorate General of Posts (Taiwan)
-
The Philatelic Department [recipient] Directorate General of Posts [recipient] 55 Chin Shan South Road Sec. 2 [(house/building number) + street + section of street] Some roads are divided into multiple sections, for each of which sections the house numbering starts over again. Taipei, Taiwan 10603 [city, (island name) + numeric postal code] TAIWAN, R. O. C. [country]
- Post Office Locations
- Some format information from the English-language section of the website of Taiwan's Postal Service.
-
Excerpts:
Yu Chi Enterprises Co., Ltd. 5 Lane 80 Taiyuen Road Datong District, Taipei City 10349 Taiwan (R.O.C.)
Stamp: on the upper right corner
Writing order: first line - addressee or company's name
Second line - address number, alley, lane, road, and street
Third line - county, town, province, zip code
Fourth line - country
- A diagram shows an example of how addresses in Taiwan can sometimes include not only a road and the specific section of the road, but also a further branching out to a lane and an alley.
- "Here's the example of #4, Alley 14, Lane 104, 3rd Section, Xi-tun Road."
- Never write the address or return address in red -- use blue or black ink.
- Postal code ("zip code") finding form from the English-language section of the website of Taiwan's Postal Service.
Format Examples
Format Information
Find Postcodes / Postal Codes
Ukraine
- Example with addressee in a town or city:
-
Ivan Kottovich Kuluchovskiy recipient (given name first in this example, but family name can also be first) ul. Astronomicheskaya 22, kv. 33 'ul.'(=street) + house number, 'kv.'(=apt.) + apartment number Kharkov town/city/locality 12345 postal code UKRAINE country name
Some variations on this format are also used. For example,- Some abbreviations may sometimes be left out.
- We have seen the postal code either below the town/city, or on the same line before or after the town/city.
Ivan Kottovich Kuluchovskiy recipient (given name first in this example, but family name can also be first) ul. Astronomicheskaya 22, kv. 33 'ul.'(=street) + house number, 'kv.'(=apt.) + apartment number Kharkov 12345 town/city/locality + postal code UKRAINE country name
- Ukrpost (Ukraine Post)
- says an address should include [at least]:
- the full name
- street, house number, flat number
- name of the town/village
- postal code
- (for international correspondence, the name of the country)
- Many abbreviations are similar to those of Russia.
-
Crimea's Special Status and Resulting Impact on International Mailing
-
See the Crimea page for information on sending letters and packages to Crimea despite present international difficulties.
Format Examples
Format Information
United Kingdom (Great Britain, England, Scotland, Wales, Channel Islands, Isle of Man, U.K., Northern Ireland)
- Please see United Kingdom / Great Britain Page.
- WARNING: "GB" not "UK"?!
"UK" doesn't necessarily mean "United Kingdom" to the United States Postal Service! In many U.S. computerized postage/addressing systems, don't mark your mail "UK" or pick "UK" if you want to send mail to Great Britain. The United States Postal Service has computer systems that use UK as an abbreviation for "Ukraine".
United States
- For consumer-level summaries see the United States Postal Service's
- "Addressing Tips" and "Addressing Tips for Packages"
- If you're running a business or other organization that sends mail on a larger scale, the United States Postal Service has a more in-depth guide at
- "Business Mail 101".
- USPS Web Page for Official Abbreviations (use tabs inside page to see different kinds of abbreviations)
- Addresses in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands are often in Spanish.
- USPS Zip Code Lookup Form
- Find the full zip code for any U.S. address.
Format Examples
Many street addresses include a direction (e.g. E = EAST): CHRIS NISWANDEE SMALLSYS INC 795 E DRAGRAM TUCSON AZ 85705 USA | An example with the optional latter 4 digits of the zip code: JOHN "GULLIBLE" DOE CENTER FOR FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE TO DEPOSED NIGERIAN ROYALTY 421 E DRACHMAN TUCSON AZ 85705-7598 USA |
With an apartment/suite/etc. number (which many addresses don't have): MARY ROE MEGASYSTEMS INC 799 E DRAGRAM SUITE 5A TUCSON AZ 85705 USA | If you don't have room for the apartment/suite/etc. number on the street address line: MARY ROE MEGASYSTEMS INC SUITE 5A-1204 799 E DRAGRAM TUCSON AZ 85705 USA |
Many different terms for street type, or abbreviations for them, might follow the street name. JANE ROE 200 E MAIN ST PHOENIX AZ 85123 USA | "PO Box" and "POB" are two valid ways of saying "Post Office Box." BITBOOST PYTHON CODE OBFUSCATOR SALES PYTHON CODE AND INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY PROTECTION BITBOOST POB 65502 TUCSON AZ 85728 USA |
Some variants exist. In certain regions, some addresses have a direction after the street name. JOHN SMITH 300 BOYLSTON AVE E SEATTLE WA 98102 USA | If an address has two conflicting lines, such as a post office box line and a street address line, the lower line will normally be used if mail can be delivered to that address. Most often conflicting lines are not used. JOHN SMITH 100 MAIN ST PO BOX 1022 SEATTLE WA 98104 USA |
Format Information
Find Postcodes / Postal Codes
Uruguay
- A simple street address
-
FELIX GATO [recipient] AV DE LOS SUSTANTIVOS 22 [street + house/building number] 12345 MONTEVIDEO [postal code + city ('department'/province is omitted from this address)] URUGUAY
- More complicated street address (a UPU example)
-
JUAN CARL GONZALEZ [recipient] AGRACIADA 1165 apto 101 piso 1 [street name + house/building number + apartment + floor] 11600 PANDO CANELONES [postal code + locality (e.g. city/town) + department (province)] URUGUAY
- Address format based on information from Uruguay's postal service.
-
Recipient Street Address Format For International Mailing to Uruguay Address Line / Element Should All Addresses Include This? 1. Recipient (Name of Person, Name of Business/Organization, etc...) YES 2. Additional information used at delivery point (e.g. which department, mail stop, etc.) N 3. Additional information about the building or location (which neighborhood [aka 'barrio'], corner, etc.) N 4. Street Name + House/Building Number + Apartment/Suite/Office/etc.
YES (but apartment/suite/office/etc. is in only some addresses) 5. Postal Code (like a U.S. zip code) + Locality (city/town/village) + 'Department'[Province] YES (but department/province is sometimes not needed) 6. Country Name YES FOR MAILING FROM OUTSIDE URUGUAY - Addresses in the Spanish Language section (all information in English language.)
- Postal abbreviations, honorifics, and more about addressing mail in Spanish.
- In Spanish only: Correo Uruguayo (Uruguay Post)
-
- ¿Cómo escribir la dirección de los envíos? (Spanish-language only page about how to write the return address and recipient address)
- Postal Code Map/Lookup (Código Postales; Spanish-language only)
Format Examples
Format Information
Find Postcodes / Postal Codes
Venezuela
- Addresses in the Spanish Language section.
- Postal abbreviations, honorifics, and more about addressing mail in Spanish.
- Find Postcodes / CPs (Spanish-language)
- Provided by the Venezuelan postal service.
Format Information
Find Postcodes / Postal Codes
Wales
- Please see United Kingdom / Great Britain.
Mailing from the United States
- United States Postal Service International Rate Calculator
- This calculates the total postage to send mail from the United States to any of various countries.
- For letters, packages, flats, postcards.
- Please note that it does not include the indirect costs of sending someone to the post office to fill out and sign customs forms, etc. So it would be unwise for a business to base its postage & handling charges on only the rate calculator's figures.
- USPS Price List (International and Domestic)
-
- More explanations than the postage calculator.
- Country Price Groups
Mailing from many other countries
- Austrian Postage Calculator (in German language)
-
- Postal rates for sending different sorts of mail from Austria. (Features may require Javascript.)
- Note: "Tarifrechner" = postage calculator. "Brief" = letter. "Paket" = package. "Gebiet" = region. "Gewicht" = weight (weights are in grams or kilograms). "Inland" = within Austria. "Ausland" = outside of Austria. "Länge" = length. "Breite" = width. "Stärke" = thickness. Prices are in Austrian currency.
- Postal rates for sending different sorts of mail from Austria. (Features may require Javascript.)
- Australia Post's Postage Calculator
- In-country and overseas postage rates for sending different sorts of mail from Australia.
- Belgium
- Prices in Euros.
- Rate sheet as PDF document (German language)
- "Auslandstarife" is "international rates"
- "Europa" is the countries listed in the "Europa Zone".
- "Restliche Welt" is of course the rest of the world (neither Belgium nor Europa)
- "Maximaldicke: 5 mm" means "maximum thickness: 5 millimeters"
- "Standardisierte Sendungen" means standard (mailing that meets standard rates)
- "Nicht Standardisierte Sendungen" means NOT standard (for example, oversize rates)
- "Briefversand" refers to letter rates
- "Paketversand" refers to package rates
- French-language and Flemish-language small customer ("residential") postage rate calculator links.
- "Brief" = "letter" (Flemish-language)
- "pakketten" gives rates for packages (Flemish-language).
- Rate sheet as PDF document (German language)
- Bhutan
- Postage rates / calculator when mailing from Bhutan to anywhere. (Requires Javascript)
- Canadian Postal Rates (Canada Post)
- Mail from Canada to anywhere.
- Danish Postal Service Website (many features require Javascript)
-
- English-language Postal Calculator
- Website in English language
- Fiji
- Postage rates / calculator when mailing from Fiji to anywhere. (Requires Javascript)
- Finnish Postal Rates (Finland Post)
- Mail from Finland to anywhere.
- French Postage Calculator (La Poste)
- In English.
- German Postage Calculator, by Deutsche Post (German Language; requires Javascript)
-
- Mail from Germany to anywhere.
- Note: "Stück nach." = Piece (of mail) to. "Länge, Breite, Höhe, Gewicht" = Length, Width, Height, Weight. "berechnen" = calculate/reckon.
- Iceland Post website: English-language version.
-
- Letter Rates
- Parcel Rates
- All Rates — "Printer-Friendly Version"
- India Postage Calculators (for mailing from India)
- Domestic and international mail.
- Irish Postal Rates (An Post)
- Mail from Ireland to anywhere.
- Italian Postal Rates (in Italian language)
- You will have to understand enough Italian to click on the type(s) of mail that interests you; or an English language version of the website might be available.
- Japanese Postal Rates
- Japanpost website
- Malaysian Postal Rates
- Pos Malaysia website's postal rate links
- New Zealand Rate Finders
- Sending mail from New Zealand to anywhere. (Requires Javascript)
- New Zealand Postage Rates Finder. Includes estimated/target delivery times.
- Saudi Arabia (requires Javascript)
- Singapore (SingPost) Postal Calculator
- South Africa
- South African Postal Rates
- South African Postage / Postal Rates for International Letters and Small International Parcels
- South African Postage / Postal Rates for Large International Parcels
- Switzerland: "Sending Mail" (Swiss Postal Rates & Prices)
- Links to price lists and calculators for various types of mail.
- Taiwan (Republic of China) Postal Rates
- This link might work, or you might have to look for the English section of this website.
- United Kingdom: Royal Mail (price calculator requires Javascript).
Other Guides to International Postal Address Formats
- Sometimes scanty.
- Sometimes a few years out of date.
- Sometimes decent.
The skimpiest country listings provide only one example address that's an atypical government bureaucrat address or PO Box. Certain countries and special regions, such as Taiwan/R.O.C., are left out because they don't have the right relationship with the United Nations.
Although we give several example addresses labeled as being drawn from UPU documentation, in most such cases we have combined these with our own information such as [our right-side annotations in gray]. Also, we have updated some such information where we found it necessary.
Requires Adobe's PDF / Acrobat viewer, and Javascript to access much of the information. Chris Herborth recommends that if you can't get an appropriate Adobe Acrobat viewer for your system, you might try a Ghostscript viewer.
For links to information on address formats for some countries such as Cambodia, Croatia, Estonia, Lebanon, and Malaysia, scroll most of the way down near the bottom of his "Links to Other Address Issue Pages" to the "Country-by-country:" section.
I have compared Herborth's page against other documents including the UPU's example address information, and it generally looks OK. For United States address formats, Herborth shows a positioning for suite/apartment number that the US Postal Service says in its most technically voluminous documentation is not theoretically the ideal format; but even most Americans wouldn't know any better, and I'm sure the mail would be delivered and look respectable anyway.
Although these links and other information were compiled by BitBoost Systems personnel primarily for the use of such personnel: None of the information included or linked to is guaranteed by BitBoost Systems to be available or correct. Nor is it guaranteed by any personnel or organizations associated with BitBoost Systems. BitBoost Systems takes no reponsibility for the results of using such links or other information.
is undesirable garbage, as are the people who send it.
Copyrights, Trademarks, Service Marks
© Copyright 1999-2017 by BitBoost Systems. All Rights Reserved.
BitBoost and BitBoost Systems are trademarks and service marks of BitBoost Systems.
We have composed and provided our own annotations for most addresses, so even if a source is given or suggested for an address, copyright on our own annotations remains our own. This is true even in the eventuality that someone adopts the form(at) of our annotations and/or copies some or all of our annotations, whether they do so under fair use or not.
Post Office Sending Mail Back Because Its Not a Po Box
Source: http://www.bitboost.com/ref/international-address-formats.html
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