All You Need to Do when Changing Your Address

Are you heading to a new apartment? If so, we know moving from apartment to apartment can be stressful. There’s so much to think about: renting trucks to rent, moving boxes to wrap, or even donating unwanted furniture. There are so many little things that can be overlooked when considering a move.

One of those things is to change your mailing address. Specifically, when you try to change your address with the USPSsometimes it is difficult to know which form you are supposed to fill out. But there’s no need to get excited about it. We’re here to help so you can get back to more important things with your move. Let’s take an in-depth look at how to change your mailing address and what forms to use.

What you need to know about USPS forms

First of all: manage your change of address at least two weeks before your move to ensure prompt delivery of mail to your new address.

There are 3 different forms that you can fill out when you want to change your address with the mail. They are for individual, family or professional use. If you’re not sure which one you should fill in, here’s a breakdown:

Individual USPS Change of Address Form

If you are renting on your own and just need to transfer your mail for yourself, the individual USPS form is the one you should be looking for and filling out with all of your details.

If you live in a household with multiple people, all of whom have different last names, you would be classified as a roommate. If you want to change your email address as well as their email address, you will all need to fill out separate forms.

Even if you have the same last name (since you are in a family household), you must complete individual forms IF you are moving to separate households.

USPS Family Membership Change of Address Form

If you and your family are moving to the same location together and you all share the same last name, you will only need to complete the USPS form for one family member, rather than all of them filling out your own USPS forms. individual as mentioned previously.

USPS Business Change of Address Form

Complete a business change of address form if you are the one who should control mail forwarding for the business. This is only applicable if the entire company changes address even if several different people receive mail.

Forms you must get in person

While most forms can be received, completed, and returned to USPS online, some of the forms mentioned above require you to collect them in person depending on specific circumstances, outlined in the bulleted list below:

• You and / or your family are moving out of the country.
• You are change your post office box addresswhether you are an individual, a family or a business.
• Your old or new address is a CMRA (Commercial Mail Receiving Agency).
• You are moving from a business to a residence or from a residence to a business.
• You are moving or leaving a business.

We suggest that you check with your local post office if you fall into any of these categories so that there are no unexpected last minute delays.

USPS confirmation: what to expect

When you fill out the form (s) and send them to the post office (or pick them up yourself), you should wait for their response before assuming that your address is now up to date.

Although you receive a move validation letter confirming that they received your request approximately 5 days before your new mailing address was made official, USPS will send you a client notification letter to confirm it. With it will be a confirmation code for your new address.

If you’ve changed your address online, you should expect these items to appear in your online mailbox within the same amount of time. It will be sent to the email address you used when filling out the form. Remember to check for junk / spam folders just in case.

We recommend that you save a copy of this email somewhere, whether it’s saving a file on your desktop, printing it, or writing down all the important details of the email on a piece of paper to keep in a safe place.

You will also need to confirm your identity

When you change your address, you will also need to confirm your identity so that the postal service knows they are dealing with the right person. It’s not as complicated as people think.

To do this, the Postal Service simply needs to pay $ 1 with your credit or debit card, as they will use those details to confirm who you really are.

What if you just need a temporary change of address?

If you are traveling for business or just want to work elsewhere in the world, you may want your address to change temporarily until you return to your permanent location. In this case, the USPS can keep your mail for you at the post office for up to 30 days, so it will be ready for you when you return home.

If you need your mail held for more than 30 days, the USPS offers a premium service where they can receive your mail each week at a temporary address for up to a maximum of a whole year.

How to reverse the USPS address change

It is possible that your plans will change and your move to the new location will fail for one reason or another. If you’ve already changed your address to the new location, your mail will be sent across the country, which is not ideal.

Don’t panic, you can easily cancel your request online. All you need to do is enter your confirmation code and the new zip code on the USPS website and you can make those changes the same day.

Who should I inform about my move?

Now that you’ve made your change of address with the USPS, who do you need to let know you’re moving? There are people to let know you are moving in addition to family and friends. Additionally, there are many companies and other vital organizations that you do business with that you need to educate about.

One of the most essential, of course, is the IRS. To put notify the IRS of a change of address at the top of your to-do list because you don’t want to miss notifications from them. Here’s a helpful checklist of all the people you need to notify about your address change:

• Your employer.
• Your landlord.
• Credit card companies.
• Insurers.
• Your doctor, dentist and lawyer.
• Social security administration.
• All your financial institutions.
• The Department of Motor Vehicles.
• Any magazine subscriptions you have.
• Utility providers.
• Gym or sports club.
• Miscellaneous – try to think of other people and institutions you do business with.

One of the most crucial moving tasks when moving from apartment to apartment is to get your change of address changed immediately. Not dealing with it in a timely manner will only put unnecessary additional stress in your life. Hopefully this guide to changing your address with the postal service is helpful in facilitating your move.