# Post Office Box Fee Refund
**AGENCY:**
Postal Service <sub>TM</sub> .
**ACTION:**
Final rule.
**SUMMARY:**
The Postal Service is amending *Mailing Standards of the United States Postal Service,* Domestic Mail Manual (DMM®) to clarify the refund policy for customers who qualified for a Group “E” (free) Post Office Box <sub>TM</sub> . The Postal Service is also making an amendment for consistency with refund standards.
**DATES:**
Effective March 1, 2023.
**FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:**
Phong T. Quang at (202) 268-2857 or Garry Rodriguez at (202) 268-7281.
**SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:**
On December 13, 2022, the Postal Service published a notice of proposed rulemaking (87 FR 76170-76171) to clarify the refund policy for customers who qualified for a Group “E” (free) P.O. Box. The Postal Service did not receive any customer comments.
To ensure uniform treatment of customers who were not provided Group E P.O. Box service, the Postal Service is providing a refund policy if it has been determined that a customer paying for P.O. Box service is entitled to Group E P.O. Box service. A refund of prorated fees may be issued for each full consecutive month preceding the determination, up to a maximum of 24 months. Interest will not be paid on the amount refunded.
The Postal Service is also making a minor revision to the text in subsection 508.4.5.2c for clarity in the standard and in subsection 604.9.0 to establish a link to the P.O. Box fee refund standards in subsection 508.4.6.
We believe the proposed revisions will provide customers with a more efficient mailing experience.
The Postal Service adopts the following changes to *Mailing Standards of the United States Postal Service,* Domestic Mail Manual (DMM), incorporated by reference in the *Code of Federal Regulations.* See 39 CFR 111.1.
We will publish an appropriate amendment to 39 CFR part 111 to reflect these changes.
**List of Subjects in 39 CFR Part 111**
Administrative practice and procedure, Postal Service.
Accordingly, 39 CFR part 111 is amended as follows:
**PART 111—[AMENDED]**
**39 CFR Part 111**
1. The authority citation for 39 CFR part 111 continues to read as follows:
**Authority:**
5 U.S.C. 552(a); 13 U.S.C. 301-307; 18 U.S.C. 1692-1737; 39 U.S.C. 101, 401-404, 414, 416, 3001-3018, 3201-3220, 3401-3406, 3621, 3622, 3626, 3629, 3631-3633, 3641, 3681-3685, and 5001.
**39 CFR Part 111**
2. Revise the *Mailing Standards of the United States Postal Service,* Domestic Mail Manual (DMM) as follows:
**Mailing Standards of the United States Postal Service, Domestic Mail Manual (DMM)**
**500 Additional Services**
**508 Recipient Services**
**4.0 Post Office Box Service**
**4.5 Fee Group Assignments**
**4.5.2 Fee Group E—Free P.O. Box Service**
Customers may qualify for Group E (free) P.O. Box service at a Post Office if their physical address location meets all of the following criteria:
*[Revise the first sentence of item c to read as follows:]*
c. USPS does not provide carrier delivery to a mail receptacle at or near a physical address for reasons other than those in 4.5.3b. * * *
**4.6 Fee Refund**
*[Add new 4.6.3 to read as follows:]*
**4.6.3 Group E P.O. Box Service Fee Refund**
If a postmaster determines that a customer paying for P.O. Box service was entitled to Group E (free) P.O. Box service under 4.5.2, a refund of prorated fees may be issued for each full consecutive month preceding the determination, up to a maximum of 24 months. Interest is not paid on the amount refunded.
**600 Basic Standards for All Mailing Services**
**604 Postage Payment Methods and Refunds**
**9.0 Exchanges and Refunds**
*[Add new 9.6 to read as follows:]*
**9.6 Post Office Box Fee Refunds**
Fee refunds for P.O. Box service are provided under 508.4.6.
Tram T. Pham,
Attorney, Ethics and Legal Compliance.