To authorize someone to pick up your mail, sign the back of the PS Form 3849 delivery notice your carrier left for a single pickup, or file PS Form 3801, a Standing Delivery Order, at your local post office for ongoing access. Which route you take depends on whether you need help once or repeatedly, and whether the mail is going to your home address or a private mailbox at a store like a UPS Store. Either way, the person you send must appear in person with valid photo identification, and the name on that ID must match the name you put on the form.
One-Time Pickup Using the Delivery Notice
When a carrier can’t complete a delivery that requires a signature or is too large for your box, they leave a PS Form 3849, sometimes called the peach slip. The back of that form has a section where you can authorize another person to collect the item on your behalf.
Sign the form, print the name of the person going in your place, and have them bring the slip along with their own valid photo ID to the post office listed on the notice. The name on the ID must match the name you wrote.1USPS. Authorizing Someone to Accept Your Redelivery
Lost the slip? A short handwritten note works instead. Something like “I authorize [agent’s name] to pick up mail for [your name],” dated and signed, is enough to give to your agent to bring to the post office.2USPS. Picking Up Mail That Is Being Held at Your Post Office
One point that catches people off guard: sharing a last name and address does not automatically grant pickup rights. A spouse or adult child at the same address still needs written authorization or a standing order on file to collect accountable mail for you.2USPS. Picking Up Mail That Is Being Held at Your Post Office
Standing Authorization for Ongoing Pickup
When someone needs to handle your mail regularly, during an extended trip, a hospital stay, or a long-term work assignment away from home, PS Form 3801 is the right tool. It names one or more agents who can collect mail for you on an ongoing basis.3United States Postal Service. PS Form 3801 – Standing Delivery Order
Fill out the form and present it in person at your post office. Each authorized agent listed must show a valid government-issued or employer-issued photo ID before USPS releases any mail. Once on file, the order stays active with no automatic expiration; it ends only when you cancel it in writing.3United States Postal Service. PS Form 3801 – Standing Delivery Order
Read the fine print before you sign. By signing PS Form 3801, you accept all responsibility for loss, theft, or damage to your mail after it has been handed to your agent. USPS treats delivery as complete at that moment, so pick someone you actually trust.
Filing for an Incapacitated Person
If you hold a valid power of attorney for someone who can no longer manage their own affairs, you can file PS Form 3801 on their behalf. Bring the power of attorney document with your own photo ID when you submit the form at the post office.3United States Postal Service. PS Form 3801 – Standing Delivery Order
What ID Your Agent Needs at the Counter
USPS accepts only physical identification documents. IDs displayed on a phone screen do not count, and Social Security cards, birth certificates, and credit cards do not qualify.4USPS. Acceptable Forms of Identification
For a routine pickup, one current, unexpired photo ID is enough. A state driver’s license or nondriver ID card, U.S. passport or passport card, military ID, permanent resident card, tribal identification card, U.S. university ID, NEXUS card, or a U.S. Access/PIV card all work.4USPS. Acceptable Forms of Identification
Accountable and Restricted Mail
Certain categories of mail require a signature before USPS will release them. These accountable items include certified mail, registered mail, insured packages above a certain value, and collect-on-delivery shipments. An agent can sign for accountable mail, but only if authorization is already in place: either a PS Form 3801 on file, or a signed PS Form 3849 from you for that specific item.5USPS. USPS Mail Requiring a Signature – Accountable Mail
Restricted delivery is stricter still. When a sender pays for restricted delivery, the item can go only to the addressee by name, or to a person the addressee has authorized in writing as their agent. A household member does not qualify by default; they need written authorization tied to that piece of mail or a standing order already filed.
Authorizing Pickup at a Private Mailbox
If you use a private mailbox at a Commercial Mail Receiving Agency, such as a UPS Store or similar business, the paperwork is different. PS Form 1583, “Application for Delivery of Mail Through Agent,” is required for anyone receiving mail through a CMRA and names the individual authorized to collect mail at that location.6United States Postal Service. Application for Delivery of Mail Through Agent
You and any authorized individual must each provide two forms of identification. One must be a government-issued photo ID (passport, state driver’s license, military ID, or permanent resident card, for example). The second must verify your current address through a document such as a lease, mortgage, vehicle registration, or home insurance policy. A driver’s license can count toward either the photo requirement or the address requirement, but not both at once.6United States Postal Service. Application for Delivery of Mail Through Agent
Signing PS Form 1583 Remotely
You don’t have to walk into the CMRA to sign. PS Form 1583 can be signed or acknowledged in the real-time audio and video presence of the CMRA owner or an authorized employee. You can also sign the form and have your signature acknowledged before a notary public, either in person or through a remote online notarization session. The notary must be commissioned in a U.S. state, territory, or the District of Columbia.6United States Postal Service. Application for Delivery of Mail Through Agent Notary fees vary by state, though most cap the charge at $25 or less per signature.
Adding a Minor Child
A parent or guardian who needs mail delivered to a CMRA for a minor child can list the child’s name on their own PS Form 1583. When the parent or guardian is receiving mail for the minor this way, the child does not need to provide separate identification.6United States Postal Service. Application for Delivery of Mail Through Agent
Handling Mail for Someone Who Has Died
If you are the executor or administrator of an estate, you can redirect the deceased person’s mail to your own address by submitting a change-of-address request in person at a post office. You’ll need documented proof of your appointment. A death certificate on its own is not enough. Bring court-issued letters testamentary or letters of administration along with your own photo ID.7USPS. How to Stop or Forward Mail for the Deceased
Canceling or Changing an Authorization
A Standing Delivery Order stays in effect until you cancel it in writing. A short letter to the postmaster at your local post office stating that you’re revoking the order, with an effective date, is enough.3United States Postal Service. PS Form 3801 – Standing Delivery Order
Switching agents means starting over. The existing authorization does not transfer to a new person; your new agent has to complete the same paperwork and go through the identification check from scratch.
For a PS Form 1583 at a CMRA, notify the mailbox provider directly. They’ll record the termination date and update the USPS CMRA Customer Registration Database. To name a replacement, file an updated Form 1583 with the CMRA.
Federal Penalties for Skipping Authorization
Picking up someone else’s mail without proper authorization is a federal crime, and the charges get filed more often than people expect.
Under 18 U.S.C. § 1702, anyone who takes a letter, postcard, or package from a post office, mailbox, or carrier before it reaches the intended recipient, with the intent to interfere with delivery or pry into another person’s business, faces a fine and up to five years in federal prison.8Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 1702 – Obstruction of Correspondence
A separate statute, 18 U.S.C. § 1708, covers outright mail theft. Stealing mail from a mailbox, post office, or carrier, or knowingly receiving stolen mail, also carries up to five years in prison and a fine.9Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 1708 – Theft or Receipt of Stolen Mail Matter Generally The Postal Inspection Service investigates these cases, and prosecutors do not need to prove the mail contained anything valuable. Taking the mail itself is the crime, which is why the few minutes it takes to sign the back of a PS Form 3849 or file a PS Form 3801 are worth the trip.