Frequently asked questions

Do office members need to sign a 1583 form to receive mail?

Yes. It does not matter if you have one mailbox for your tenants. The USPS is concerned about mail recipient identity and potential mail crime, so it wants a Form 1583 from each mail recipient.

Every member at your location who receives mail will be required to file a 1583.  The requirement to file a Form 1583 has to do with the client’s desire to receive mail, regardless of the contract type, contract length or how they receive their mail. If the client does not want to receive mail, whether MTM or an office member with a longer contract, no 1583 is required, and any mail received should be returned to the sender.

New CMRA rules require all office and virtual members to have completed 1583s including Virtual clients with 16 or more hours of meeting room time. Previous office and virtual members with 16 or more hours of meeting room time were exempt.

Should we return to sender any mail received without a 1583 form on file?

Yes. You are not able to accept mail if a Form 1583 with approved IDs is not on file. Packages from UPS, FedEx or Amazon may be accepted without a Form 1583 on file. Per the DMM, mark the mail as "Undeliverable, Commercial Mail Receiving Agency, No Authorization to Receive, Mail for this Addressee."

If the lease signer is not the occupant in the office, who fills out the Form 1583?

The person in whose name mail will be received must fill out the Form 1583. The mail addressee must match the mail applicant name in the 1583.

Most of our members have completed and signed the 1583 form. Do we need to physically type in that info to yet another 1583 form via USPS and then get it signed again?

You have to get a new Form 1583 for customers that used the old form, type the information into the online database, and upload the signed Form 1583 and IDs.

Do we have to collect an updated form of ID as their filed one expired? Especially when their driver’s license expires?

Yes. The photo ID with an expiration date must be updated when it expires. The secondary ID does not have to be updated.

Do you need to register all virtual box suite numbers with the post office? We’ve had customers say they can’t sign up for informed mail because their virtual mailbox does not come up as an option on the USPS website.

Yes. It doesn’t matter that their virtual box suite number does not register with Informed Delivery.  The USPS wants information on the identity of every mail recipient.

What is the timing for having to upload all existing customers?

The USPS will work with CMRAs, as long as they see significant activity in the CMRA database.

Can a CMRA that rents office space in a building engage a separate office business center in the same building as an independent contractor to do the actual mail receiving and forwarding without the virtual office operator also being required to obtain a PS form 1583 from the CMRA customers?

No, you could not use such an arrangement to get around the customer 1583 requirement. To use a contractor, the contractor’s mailing address would need to be used by your clients, and clients who retrieve mail would go to the contractor’s office. The independent contractor would file paperwork as the CMRA and be responsible for all CMRA rules compliance.

Are the 1583s really uploadable or do they all need to be manually entered?

The Form 1583 does need to be uploaded along with the two forms of ID, in three separate PDFs. This step is a simple upload process. However, to actually enter customer information into the BCG is a manual process and can easily take 20 minutes if viewing/copying/pasting information from a clean, printed Form 1583. Having two screens will save you time with copying and pasting. However, working from a hand-written form will be more time consuming and potentially more prone to errors if handwriting is unclear. iPostal1 offers a CMRA Support Program to upload on your behalf.

What are the regulations for members who don't have their 1583 form notarized? What are the rules when it comes to notarization?

The USPS requires notarization of the form 1583, unless the form is signed in the presence of the CMRA location staff. The USPS has expanded the definition of ‘in the presence of’ to include a live Zoom call where the staff views the IDs held up by the applicant and witnesses the applicant sign the form. The applicant signs in box 13A and the CMRA rep signs in box 14A. But if completed with a notary public instead of CMRA location staff, notarization is required.

Where can I find a 1583?

Check out our resources page.

How do we handle situations where the member doesn't want to provide their home address if it's their company who is paying for the space and the mail comes addressed to the company?

Providing information on the Form 1583, like the home address, is not optional. It is a USPS requirement and therefore the member must comply in order for you to continue to receive mail on their behalf. The purpose of collecting this information is to verify the identity of the mail recipient to fight mail fraud.

The applicant is the person who will be receiving mail and the person authorized is the person who can pick up mail?

Correct. The applicant is the person renting the mailbox and receiving mail. The authorized person can pick up the mail.

As per the USPS definition, an authorized individual is allowed to collect mail on behalf of the primary applicant. Any person you wish to add to your account, who expects to receive mail in addition to picking up mail, must fill out a separate Form 1583 and submit two acceptable forms of identification.

Will there be an automatic notarization process under the BCG?

The CMRA page within the BCG will serve to house the forms and identification of your customers. The USPS is not offering any type of notarization process through the BCG. Notarizations can be done in person or via online notary service providers.

Will iPostal1 1583 tool start populating section 6 to include that forwarding address field where you can list all of the recipients for the mail? What if there is a long list of people, how do we add all of those?

Our observations in the BCG indicate that only one address, email, and phone number can be entered at a time for any account. Consequently, numerous questions arise regarding the expectations of this field, considering the practical functioning of the service for customers. iPostal1 will persist in adhering to the existing regulations and guidelines established by USPS and will consider making any required changes once sufficient information is available.

Do clients have to sign a 1583 form for each DBA they operate under outside of their registered business name? What if a customer has multiple business names with the same customer info - do they need to do multiple 1583s?

USPS has not provided guidance on how to manage multiple businesses or DBAs under a single account. Until additional clarification is provided, the approach to address this issue appears to be a business decision. Some sources suggest completing a separate Form 1583 for each individual business name, even if owned by the same applicant.