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Get Your Care Packages There On Time: Holiday Shipping Dates 2023

Updated on December 5th, 2023

Julie Provost

Holiday Shipping Dates for Military Posts and Those Stationed Overseas

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The holiday season is coming up fast! Many in our military community have just moved or are moving overseas, which can further complicate holiday shipping times when it comes to sending gifts and care packages. The best guidance available is from the United States Postal Service (USPS), who have just published their military holiday shipping dates with recommended “send-by” dates to best ensure deliveries before December 25, 2023.

2023 Holiday Shipping Dates for Overseas Military Mail: APO, FPO, DPO

The following information outlines the USPS guidance for shipping to APO/FPO/DPO AE ZIP codes. The dates listed are the “send by” dates.

AE ZIPs 090-092: APO, FPO, DPO Recommended Holiday Shipping Dates

APO/FPO/DPO AE ZIPs 090-092

Express Military Service*	16-Dec
First-Class Mail Service	9-Dec
Priority Mail Service	9-Dec
Retail Ground Service	6-Nov

AE ZIP 093: APO, FPO, DPO Recommended Holiday Shipping Dates

APO/FPO/DPO AE ZIP 093

Express Military Service*	15-Dec
First-Class Mail Service	NA
Priority Mail Service	9-Dec
Retail Ground Service	6-Nov

AE ZIPs 094-099: APO, FPO, DPO Recommended Holiday Shipping Dates

APO/FPO/DPO AE ZIPs 094-099

Express Military Service*	15-Dec
First-Class Mail Service	9-Dec
Priority Mail Service	9-Dec
Retail Ground Service	6-Nov

AA ZIP 340: APO, FPO, DPO Recommended Holiday Shipping Dates

APO/FPO/DPO AA ZIP 340

Express Military Service*	15-Dec
First-Class Mail Service	9-Dec
Priority Mail Service	9-Dec
Retail Ground Service	6-Nov

APO, FPO, DPO Recommended Holiday Shipping Dates AP ZIPs 962-966

APO/FPO/DPO AP ZIPs 962-966

Express Military Service*	15-Dec
First-Class Mail Service	9-Dec
Priority Mail Service	9-Dec
Retail Ground Service	6-Nov

2023 Holiday Shipping Dates for the Lower 48 States

The following chart outlines the recommended send-by dates for expected delivery before December 25, 2023:

USPS Retail Ground Service	Dec 16
First-Class Mail Service	Dec 16
Priority Mail Service	Dec 18
Priority Mail Express Service	Dec 20

2023 Holiday Shipping Dates for Alaska & Hawaii

Alaska

To/From Continental US

USPS Retail Ground Service	Dec 16
First-Class Mail & Priority Mail Service	Dec 16 and Dec 18
Priority Mail Express Service	Dec 20

Hawaii

To/From the mainland

USPS Retail Ground Service	Dec 16
First-Class Mail & Priority Mail Service	Dec 16
Priority Mail Express Service	Dec 20

Military Care Kits

Did you know that the USPS offers a Military Care Kit?

The military care kits come with:

2 APO/FPO flat-rate boxes
4 medium flat-rate boxes
Tape
Address labels
Customs envelopes (you will need these to ship boxes to our Heroes overseas)

The best part is that these kits are free of charge. To order this awesome kit, call 800-610-8743. These are not seasonal products, so you can order these throughout the year. Also, to order the flat-rate boxes featuring the “America Supports You” logo, go to usps.com/freeboxes.

Addressing Military & Diplomatic Mail

The USPS also published guidance for shipping to an APO/FPO/DPO:

Always include:
- the recipient’s name, rank, and unit
- the APO/FPO/DPO address with the 9-digit ZIP code
- a return address
Must be addressed to a specific person – “Any Service Member” no longer authorized
Do not include city or country names in APO/FPO/DPO addresses. Doing so could cause your package to enter into foreign mail networks.

Examples of proper addresses (Do NOT ship to these addresses!)

Army/Air Post Office (APO)

PFC JOHN DOE

PSC 3 BOX 4120

APO AE 09021-4120

Fleet Post Office (FPO)

SEAMAN JOSEPH SMITH

UNIT 100100 BOX 4120

FPO AP 96691-4120

Diplomatic Post Office (DPO)

JOHN ADAMS

UNIT 8400 BOX 0000

DPO AE 09498-0048

It’s always a good idea to learn about Domestic & International Shipping Restrictions.

Postage & Other Shipping Supplies

In addition to those fantastic Military Care Kits, you can order an assortment of packages, envelopes, and labels all from USPS.com. These package items are free and will also be shipped to you within 2-8 business days. This is an especially important benefit since COVID has most of us locked down.

While the packages and envelopes may be free, shipping them will still cost money. If you do not want to wait in long, socially-distant lines at your local post office, you should utilize the USPS Click-N-Ship, which allows you to:

Print shipping labels
Request a package pickup
Buy stamps and ship
Manage P.O. Boxes
Print customs forms online
File domestic claims.

In order to take advantage of this increasingly prevalent option for shipping, you will need to create a USPS Account. You can create either a personal or a business account. It is worth mentioning that you will need to supply your own printer in order to print labels. That’s not one of the free items!

USPS Holiday Newsroom

Don’t forget, the USPS is updating the Holiday Newsroom this month in preparation for the holiday season.

This is where you can participate in USPS Operation Santa, which connects needy kids with generous donors who can get the kids things from their wish lists.

There is also the Greetings from the North Pole program which is a program that allows kids around the country to receive letters in the mail postmarked from the North Pole. My kids love this program!

Finally, USPS has a blog (who doesn’t, right?), where they offer updated information relating to seasonal shipping concerns holidays or even information concerning shipping complications caused by the pandemic.

I hope all of you have an amazing holiday season. Be sure to share all of this information with your friends and family!

(photo courtesy of USPS)