USPS PS Form 3849 is the peach-colored slip your mail carrier leaves when they tried to deliver something and couldn’t hand it off. You’ll usually see one when a package needed a signature, when there was no safe place to leave it, or when customs fees are owed on an international shipment. The slip tells you what was attempted, why it wasn’t left, and how to get the item before it goes back to the sender.
Reading the Slip
The front identifies your mailpiece with a barcode and a barcode number that works like a tracking number on USPS.com. The carrier notes the date and time of the attempt and checks a box for the mail class, such as Certified Mail, Registered Mail, or Priority Mail Express. Another checked box explains why the item wasn’t left, most often “Signature Required” or “No Secure Location.”
Look closely at the boxes near the bottom. One may say the carrier will try again the next business day. Another may say the item is being held at your local Post Office for pickup. On newer forms, a third option may point you to a USPS Smart Package Locker near your address.
How Long USPS Holds the Package
The Post Office does not hold undelivered items indefinitely, and the window depends on the mail class. Most items with extra services like Certified Mail and Registered Mail are held for 15 calendar days after the first delivery attempt. Miss that window and the package goes back to the sender at close of business on the return date.
Shorter and longer holds apply to a few classes:
- Priority Mail Express: 5 days
- Collect on Delivery (COD): 10 days, unless the mailer specified fewer
- Inbound international Registered Mail: 30 days
If a second slip arrives with the “Final Notice” box checked, that is the last reminder before the item ships back. There is no third notice.
Scheduling a Redelivery
The fastest option is scanning the QR code on the slip, which takes you to the USPS redelivery page. You can also go to tools.usps.com/redelivery.htm and enter the barcode number from the back of the form. For same-day redelivery, submit the request before 2:00 a.m. Central time, Monday through Saturday; requests after that are scheduled for the next delivery day.
To request redelivery by phone, call the automated line at 1-800-275-8777 and follow the prompts with your barcode number. You can also sign the back of the form, print your name, add any special instructions in the comments (for example, “leave at side door”), and place the slip in your mailbox or tape it to the door where the carrier can see it.
The Accountable Mail Catch
This is where most people slip up. If your package is accountable mail, signing the back of the form and leaving it out does not work. For Certified Mail, Registered Mail, COD, or anything insured for more than $500, you or your authorized agent must be physically present to sign when the carrier arrives. A signed slip in the mailbox will not satisfy the signature requirement, no matter how carefully you fill it out. If you can’t be home, pick the item up in person or send an authorized agent to the Post Office.
Picking It Up at the Post Office
You can retrieve the item yourself at the Post Office listed on the slip. Bring a valid photo ID. USPS accepts a state-issued driver’s license or ID card, a U.S. passport, a foreign passport, a Matricula Consular card from Mexico, a NEXUS card from Canada, or a U.S. corporate ID.
Sending Someone Else
If you can’t get to the Post Office, you can authorize someone to pick up the item for you. On the back of the form, print that person’s full name in the authorized agent section and sign where indicated. Your agent then brings the signed form and their own valid photo ID to the counter. The clerk checks the agent’s ID against the name you wrote, so the name has to match exactly. Without your signature authorizing them on the form, the clerk will turn them away.
Restricted Delivery and Adult Signature Items
Some mailpieces carry stricter rules than standard signature-required packages. Items marked “Restricted Delivery” can only go to the addressee or an authorized agent, and the carrier may ask for photo ID at the door. For a one-time pickup, you can authorize an agent by completing the agent section on the slip. If you want someone to regularly accept your Restricted Delivery mail, file PS Form 3801 (a standing delivery order) at your local Post Office or send a letter to your Postmaster.
A few situations change the standard rule:
- Mail addressed to “A or B”: either person can sign
- Mail addressed to “A and B”: both must sign, or both must authorize agents
- Minors or people under guardianship: a parent or guardian can sign
- Government officials and military: designated agents or mail clerks can accept
- “Care of” addresses: either the named recipient or the person at the address can sign
Packages marked “Adult Signature Required” or “Adult Signature Restricted Delivery” add an age gate. The signer must be at least 21 and show government-issued photo ID confirming age. For “Adult Signature Restricted Delivery,” only the addressee or their authorized agent can sign, and only with government photo ID showing both identity and age.
International Packages With Customs Fees
A Form 3849 left for an international package sometimes means customs duties or taxes are owed before the package can be released. You’ll see this when the package has an orange Treasury Department envelope attached containing CBP Form 3419ALT, which lists the tariff item number, duty rate, and total amount owed.
On top of the customs duty, USPS charges a $9.35 customs clearance and delivery fee for each dutiable item. That fee covers processing the package through customs and collecting the duty at delivery, and it is non-refundable even if U.S. Customs later refunds the duty. It doesn’t apply to packages from overseas U.S. military post offices or to items that customs examines and passes duty-free.
If You Lost the Slip
Losing the physical slip doesn’t mean losing the package, but it makes things harder. USPS customer service agents and local Post Office staff cannot look up lost tracking numbers for you, so you’ll need to track the information down another way:
- Ask the sender, who has the tracking number from their shipping receipt or online label history
- Check Informed Delivery, which shows the tracking number on your dashboard if you have an account
- Read the barcode number off the slip if that part is still legible, and enter it on USPS.com like a tracking number
Once you have a tracking number, USPS Tracking shows which Post Office is holding your item and its address and hours. You can also use the PO Locator tool on USPS.com: filter by “Pickup Services,” select “Pickup Notice Left Mail,” and enter your delivery address. If none of that works, call 1-800-275-8777 for a representative, Monday through Friday from 8:00 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. Eastern and Saturday from 8:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. Eastern. Even without the physical slip, you can pick the package up at the counter with a valid photo ID and the tracking number.
Avoiding the Slip Next Time
If you’re tired of finding peach slips on your door, USPS offers Electronic Signature Online (eSOL) for eligible packages: Priority Mail Express, Signature Confirmation items, and packages insured for more than $500. Once set up, USPS delivers the package without requiring you to be home and without leaving a Form 3849.
To use eSOL, register for an Informed Delivery account on the USPS website and complete the knowledge-based identity verification. When an eligible package is on the way, Informed Delivery gives you the option to apply your stored electronic signature. One limit: if the shipper specifically required a signature to be collected in person at delivery, the electronic option won’t be available for that item.