Canadian Forces Postal Service

1

What Is the Canadian Forces Postal Service?

The Canadian Forces Postal Service (CFPS) is considered an extension of Canada Post and operates Canada Post post offices in support of the Canadian Forces deployments and ships located worldwide. CFPS personnel have, for all intent and purposes the same responsibilities as Canada Post employees to enforce Canada Post standards and regulations while providing postal services and support to the Department of National Defence and the Canadian Armed Forces.

For Canadian Armed Forces land-based deployments, a central mail address is established at the Canada Post Operations Plant located in Belleville, Ontario. All mail is gathered at the Belleville Plant and then retrieved by the Canadian Forces Postal Unit located at Canadian Forces Base Trenton. The Canadian Forces Postal Unit then sorts and prepares it for shipment to the Canadian Armed Forces deployments located worldwide.

For mail to Her Majesty’s Canadian Ships (HMCS), the mail is gathered either at the Fleet Mail Office in Halifax or Victoria. Each Fleet Mail Office is then responsible to sort and prepare the mail for shipment to the deployed ship.

Canadian Armed Forces Mail is mail sent to or by Canadian Armed Forces personnel, their family members and the civilians attached to the Canadian Forces served through a Canadian Forces Post Office or a Fleet Mail Office.

Canadian Armed Forces Mail can be:

• letters or documents
• parcels.

A Canadian Forces Post Office (CFPO) is a military post office operated by the Canadian Forces Postal Service either domestically or overseas to provide postal services to personnel authorized to receive or mail Canadian Armed Forces Mail.

A Fleet Mail Office (FMO) is a military post office operated by the Canadian Forces Postal Service to provide postal services to Her Majesty’s Canadian Ships (HMCS).

2

Armed Forces Air Letters

Armed Forces Air Letters (form 43-074-078) with domestic Lettermail™ postage affixed may be used by:

• Canadian Armed Forces personnel outside of Canada, served through a Canadian Forces Post Office or Fleet Mail Office when writing to persons in Canada
• anyone in Canada writing to Canadian Armed Forces personnel outside of Canada, served through a Canadian Forces Post Office or Fleet Mail Office
• members of the following foreign military forces serving in Canada when writing to someone in their own country:

1. The following words shall be printed on a Forces Air Letter:

1. on the face thereof, “Forces Air Letter/Lettre-avion pour militaire”
2. on the back thereof, “No enclosures permitted/Ne rien insérer” and “Authorized by the Canada Post Corporation for mailing in Canada/Autorisé par la Société canadienne des postes pour mise à la poste au Canada”; and

3. on the face or back thereof, the folding and opening instructions in English and in French.

2. A Forces Air Letter shall not exceed 22 cm in length and 11 cm in width, and be not less than 14 cm in length and 9 cm in width after it is folded in accordance with the folding instructions printed thereon.
3. The minimum basis weight of a Forces Air Letter shall be 60 g/m².
4. Every Forces Air Letter shall be rectangular in shape.
5. No Forces Air Letter shall contain an enclosure.

2.1	Foreign Military Forces

When sending Armed Forces Air Letters out of Canada, foreign military forces serving in Canada must use form number 43-074-078 with domestic Lettermail postage affixed. The following particulars must be indicated in the upper left hand corner, under Sender’s Name and Address:

2.2	Sending items using the Canadian Forces Postal Service

2.2.1

Letters

Letters destined to Canadian Forces Bases and Operations overseas or Her Majesty’s Canadian Ship, and sent through the Belleville ON or Ship’s Halifax NS or Victoria BC address, may be sent at the prices and conditions of domestic services. Pricing will apply depending on the domestic service and mailing options chosen by the mailer. For Lettermail™, Xpresspost™ or Priority™, please refer to the applicable postal service.

2.2.2

Parcels

Parcels destined to Canadian Forces Bases and Operations overseas or Her Majesty’s Canadian Ship may be sent at the prices and conditions of domestic services. Parcels over 20 kg or which exceed 2 m Length + Girth are not acceptable as Canadian Armed Forces Mail. Pricing will apply depending on the domestic service and options chosen by the mailer. For Regular Parcel™, Xpresspost™ or Priority™, the price will be calculated on the basis of shipping the item from its origin to the Belleville ON address or to the Ship’s Halifax NS or Victoria BC address, as applicable. Please refer to the applicable postal service.

2.3	Addressing

All items must bear a legible address including the correct Postal Code^OM, as well as the shipper’s address. See Addressing Guidelines for more information.

Generally, items addressed to a Canadian Forces Post Office or a Fleet Mail Office should include, as applicable, the following information:

• on the 1st line – Rank, initials and name
• on the 2nd line – Section or Mess number
• on the 3rd line – HMCS (name of ship), Unit or Operation
• on the 4th line – PO box number STN FORCES
• on the 5th line – Name of the city, province, Postal Code or equivalent.

2.3.1

Examples of proper addressing

FINANCE SECTION CFSU (E) DET SHAPE
Unacceptable Items

Any Canadian Armed Forces Mail item is considered unacceptable if:

• it does not meet the size and weight specifications for this service (the item must not contravene the additional limitations stipulated by Canadian Armed Forces)
• it contains any dangerous substance or article prohibited by law or defined as a dangerous good (for more information Non-mailable Matter, or refer to the Non-mailable Matter Regulations and to the Transportation of Dangerous Goods Act)
• it may soil, taint or damage mail or mail equipment, expose a person to danger or emit offensive odours
• it contains food perishables or live animals that do not meet applicable shipping requirements
• it is improperly or insecurely packed or wrapped
• it is in contravention of applicable Universal Postal Union prohibitions and Customs Regulations of the destination country, as well as U.S.A.’s Department of Transportation Regulations.

3

Size and Weight

Each Canadian Armed Forces Mail item must meet the size and weight specifications of the service used.

4

Delivery Standards at a Glance

Delivery standards are the same as for the domestic service used, from the point of origin to the Belleville address, or to the Victoria or Halifax FMO.

5

Features and Options

The features and options of the service used are applicable.

6

Customs Requirements

The customs documentation that is required for an item shipped from Canada depends on the International service used, the content of the item and the destination. All items addressed to a deployed ship or a Canadian Armed Forces unit with the Belleville address must have the proper customs documentation.

7

Delivery of Canadian Armed Forces Mail

Items will be delivered to the applicable Canadian Forces Post Office or Fleet Mail Office for forwarding to the addressee.

8

Pricing Information

Domestic postal services and prices apply to mail items sent to or by Canadian Armed Forces personnel overseas, provided the mail item is sent through the Belleville ON address or a Ship’s address in Halifax NS or Victoria BC.

8.1	GST exemption

Prices and fees for items mailed to foreign destinations or Canadian Forces Post Offices are not subject to sales taxes if the total price per transaction is $5 or more.