Letter Post Items (Domestic) - PO Regulations 2024

A. LETTER POST ITEMS

 

87. Letters.- (1) Letter is a communication in the nature of current and personal correspondence addressed to a person transmitted by post with pre-payment of postage.  

2. Every letter shall be posted in securely closed condition.
3. The weight of the letter shall not exceed 500 grams.
4. Every letter for transmission by post shall conform to the following maximum and minimum dimensions, namely:-  

 

(i) Maximum dimensions:-

In roll form –

        Single dimension                                                       800 mm  

        Sum of length and twice diameter                                     1000 mm

In other than roll form –  

        Single dimension                                                       600 mm  

        Sum of length and breadth and thickness combined          900 mm

(ii) Minimum dimensions:-

In roll form –  

        Single dimension                                                       100 mm  

        Sum of length and twice diameter                                     170 mm  

In other than roll form –  

140 mm x 90 mm with tolerance of +- 2mm.

88. Letters in other than roll form.- (1) Letter in other than roll form shall be in envelopes of the following sizes;

1. minimum 140 x 90 mm; and                      
2. maximum 458 x 324 mm;          with tolerance of +-2 mm  

2. Every envelope shall have the flap either at the top on back of the longer side or at right or left.
3. Every envelope shall be made of paper having thickness from 0.15 mm to 0.5 mm.
4. Surface of the envelope shall be levelled with uniform surface structure.
5. Every envelope shall be continuously closed on all sides taking care to avoid a residue of gum on the envelope itself and metal clips or staples shall not be used for closing the envelope.
6. Every envelope shall be made of minimum 70 Grams per Square Meter.
7. Every envelope shall be flexible enough to bend into “U shape”.
8. Every envelope with window shall have sizes of window between 35-50 mm (breadth) and 80-125 mm (length) and the contents shall be placed in such manner that only address block which includes bar code shall be visible through window.
9. Glassine paper of 35 Grams per Square Meter, Cellophane paper of 40 Grams per Square Meter and Polyvinyl Chloride or Biaxially Oriented Polypropylene of 15micron thickness shall be used as window material.
10. Distance of left edge of window from left edge of envelope shall be minimum 15 mm, distance of top edge of window shall be minimum 40 mm, and distance of bottom edge of window from bottom edge of envelope shall be minimum 15 mm.
11. Logo and name of the sender’s company may be written on top left corner and stamps or frank impression on top right corner having gap of minimum 10 mm from address block of recipient.  
12. 15 mm shall be left for bar code printing at the bottom of envelope and 5 mm quiet space around 2D barcode or Quick Response Code shall be provided and the sender’s logo size shall not exceed 25x50 mm in size and the 2D barcode or Quick Response Code shall have minimum size 18x18 mm.
13. The size of printed bar code or digital code along with quiet zone shall be kept minimum 60 mm in length and 10 mm in breadth in a window of envelope and shall be clearly visible.
14. In case of infringement of the conditions mentioned in regulation 87 and subregulation (1) to (13) of regulation 88, the letter shall be charged with double the postage and any postage paid on it shall be taken into account in assessing the charges.
15. The discount and value additions to the customers for letters may be specified by administrative instructions in accordance with the norms determined by the Director General from time to time;
16. The rates of postage chargeable on letters shall be as mentioned in Table I of Schedule I.

89. Letter cards.- Letter cards may be transmitted by post, if it conforms to the following specifications, namely:- (a) the postage shall be prepaid in full;  

2. the weight of the letter card shall not exceed five grams;
3. the dimensions of the letter card including its flaps when unfolded or folded shall respectively be as follows: -  

Unfolded

Maximum        - 300 mm by 210 mm.

Minimum         - 282 mm by 182 mm;

Flaps- Letter Card shall have three flaps, one each on the left and right side not exceeding 15 mm by 100 mm and another on the top side not exceeding 15 mm by 210 mm and the flaps may not be required if the letter card can be closed by any other effective process.

Folded

Maximum	-	210 mm by 100 mm
Minimum	-	152 mm by 90 mm;

4. nothing shall be attached to or enclosed in a letter card;
5. there shall be printed on the outside at the top left-hand corner on the address side of every folded letter intended for domestic transmission the words “Letter Card”; and
6. letter card shall be made of paper of minimum 70 Grams per Square Meter.  

Explanation 1.- For the purposes of this regulation, “Letter card” means a sheet of paper of the kind ordinarily used for letter writing suitably folded and gummed.

Explanation 2.- Letter cards of private manufacture shall be suitably folded and fully closed on three sides by continuous gumming, glue or any other adhesive provided the dimensions and other conditions mentioned in this regulation are complied with.

90. Conditions where infringed.- (1) In case of infringement of the conditions specified in regulation 89, the letter card shall be treated as a letter and charged on delivery with double the deficiency between the postage already paid for such letter card and the postage payable for a letter.  

(2) The rates of postage chargeable on letter cards shall be as mentioned in Table I of Schedule I. 

91. Postcards.- (1) Postcards may be transmitted by post, if it shall conform to the following conditions, namely: - (a) the postage shall be prepaid in full;

2. the weight of the post card shall not exceed five grams;
3. their dimensions shall be 140 mm x 90 mm and they shall have the legend, “Post Card” written in Hindi or English or printed on the address side;
4. as regards substance, they shall be neither thinner nor more flexible than the post cards issued by the Post Office;  
5. no post card shall be folded, enclosed in any cover, cut or otherwise altered except that the impressed postage stamp (if any) may be perforated with initials‘;
6. the right-hand of the address-side of a postcard is in all cases reserved for the address of the recipient, for the postage stamp or impression of stamping machine necessary for prepayment, which may, so far as possible, be affixed in the upper righthand corner, and for the postal directions but the left hand half of the address-side, as well as the back, may be used by the sender for the purpose of a communication or single colour or multi colour printed advertisement and address of the sender may be written on top left-hand corner of back, or may be otherwise disposed of, subject to the restriction mentioned in sub-regulation (g):  

 Provided that a small space marked off by lines or minute dots to indicate the place where the postage stamp is to be affixed, shall be allowed on the upper right- hand corner of the address-side of postcards;  

7. nothing shall be attached to a post card except-

1. stamps in payment of postage or other postal fees which shall be affixed only to the address side of the post card;  
2. a gummed label completely adherent to the card, and bearing the name and address of the person to whom the card is sent;  
3. a similar label not exceeding 50 mm in length and 20 mm in width bearing the name and address of the sender of the card; and  
4. engravings, illustrations, drawings and photographs on very thin paper and completely adherent to the card.  

 Provided that the items specified in sub-clauses (ii) and (iii) shall be affixed either to the back or the left-hand half of the address side.  

Explanation.- For the purposes of this regulation, “Post card” means an open communication on a rectangular card of prescribed size, having a stamp of the prescribed value impressed on it.  

2. In case of infringement of any of the conditions specified in sub-regulation (1), the postcard shall be treated as a letter and charged on delivery with double the deficiency between the postage already paid for such postcard and the postage payable for a letter subject to a minimum of one rupee, and where such amount is a part of a rupee containing paise, the amount shall be increased to one rupee.  
3. The rates of postage chargeable on postcard shall be as mentioned in Table I of Schedule I. 

92. Book post.- (1) Item containing book, cards, magazines, journals, publications of all kinds, paper, sheets, bills, invoices, reports, or any document of commercial, legal or personal nature in single or multiple copies, may be transmitted by post as “book post”, subject to the following conditions, namely: - (a) a book post shall not exceed 5 kilograms in weight;

(b) the dimensions of a book post shall be subject to the following maximum and minimum limits: -  (i) Maximum.  In roll form –

        length                                                        800 mm  

Sum of length and twice diameter                1000 mm  

        In other than roll form                                600x300x300 mm

(ii) Minimum  

In roll form –

        Single dimension                                     100 mm  

Sum of length and twice diameter       170 mm  

        In other than roll form                            140mm x 90mm  

                 with tolerance of +- 2 mm;

3. book post when sent open in card form, whether folded or not shall be neither thinner nor more flexible than postcard;
4. book post shall be consigned in an unfastened envelope of the following sizes, provided its dimensions are not less than 140x 90 mm and not more than 353 x 250 mm; with tolerance of +- 2 mm;
5. the item shall have the inscription “Book Post” on the address side of the item;
6. a book post shall be posted without a cover, or in an unfastened envelope, or in a cover under “Book Post”, which can be easily removed for the purpose of examination without breaking any seal or tearing any paper or separating any adhering surfaces and a packet posted without a cover may not be fastened or otherwise treated so as to prevent easy examination;
7. a book post shall not contain “paper money”, which for the purposes of this regulation includes unobliterated postage or other stamps, hundies, cheques, bank post bills, bills of exchange, and all orders or authorities for the payment of money:  

 Provided that a book post may contain one stamped and addressed envelope, post card or wrapper bearing the name and address of the sender of the packet, or some other person named thereon;

8. any document contained in the book post item shall not be addressed to an addressee nor stem from a sender other than those of the item:

 Provided that all items posted as book post shall be treated as letter post if the weight is upto 500 gms, or as parcel post if the weight is more than 500 gms.

2. In case of infringement of any of the conditions mentioned in sub-regulation (1), the book post shall be treated as a letter and on delivery, be charged with double the postage payable on letter or India post parcel according to whichever entails lower charge (subject to the conditions prescribed for such class of items being satisfied) and any postage paid on it shall be taken into account in assessing the charges.
3. The rates of postage chargeable on book post shall be as mentioned in Table I of Schedule I.  

93. Literature for blind.- (1) Papers of any kind, periodicals, and books impressed in “Braille” or other special type for the use of the blind, shall be transmitted by post as “Literature for the Blind” items, provided that they are posted in accordance with the following conditions, namely: -

1. such items shall consist only of materials specially impressed as described above for the use of the blind, and shall not contain any communication either in writing or printed in ordinary type, except the title and table of contents of the book or periodicals, and any key to, or instructions, for the use of the special type, or any enclosure except a label for the return of the packet;
2. such items shall bear on the outside the inscription “Literature for the Blind” and written or printed name and address of the sender;
3. such items shall be posted either without a cover, or in a cover open at both ends, which can easily be removed for the purpose of examination;
4. the weight of a “Literature for the Blind” item shall not exceed 7 kilograms; and
5. the dimensions of such item shall conform to the following maximum and minimum limits: -

1. Maximum

        In roll form - Length                           800 mm

        Sum of length and twice diameter         1000 mm

        In other than roll form                           600 x 300 x 300 mm

2. Minimum

        In roll form - Length                           100 mm

        Sum of length and twice diameter         170 mm

        In other than roll form                           100 x 70 mm

Explanation.- Plates bearing the characters of writing sound records for the use of the blind and discs, films, tapes and wires, on which spoken messages for the blind have been recorded when sent by, or addressed to, an officially recognised institution for the blind shall be treated as “Literature for the Blind”.

2. No postage shall be chargeable on the literature for the blind, but air mail fee shall be chargeable for transmission by air.  
3. In case of infringement of any of the conditions mentioned in sub-regulation (1), the “Literature for the Blind” item shall be charged with double the postage as payable on relevant postal item, as applicable.  

94. Periodical Post.- (1) Any publication may be transmitted by post as periodical post, if it is-  

1. covered under the definition of the term “periodical” under the Press and

Registration of Periodicals Act, 2023 (51 of 2023);  

2. brought out, printed, or published in India only;  
3. registered with the Press Registrar General of India under the Press and Registration of Periodicals Act, 2023 (51 of 2023) and possesses the certificate of registration allotted by the Press Registrar of General; and  
4. comply with the provisions of the Press and Registration of Periodicals Act, 2023 (51 of 2023).

 Provided that a book, or a journal including a book or journal of scientific, technical and academic nature shall not be transmitted by post as periodicals.

2. No separate postal registration shall be required for transmission of periodicals by post.  

 Provided that for the periodicals which are covered under the definition of newspaper and wish to avail concessional rate of postage for transmission by post, a separate postal registration or license is required to be taken by the owner or publisher (under the authority of owner).  

3. The periodical shall bear in print on any convenient place either on the first or last page thereof, the superscription “Press Registrar of General of India under

No……………”.

4. In case of infringement of any of the conditions specified in sub-regulation (1) and (3), the item shall be treated and charged as a book post item and any postage paid on it shall be taken into account in assessing the charges.
5. The rates of postage chargeable on periodical post shall be as mentioned in Table I of Schedule I. 

95. Registered newspapers.- (1) A newspaper shall be eligible for postal registration for transmission by post as registered newspaper, if it is- 

1. covered under the definition of the term “newspaper” under the Press and

Registration of Periodicals Act, 2023 (51 of 2023);  

2. brought out, printed, or published in India only;  
3. registered with the Press Registrar General of India under the Press and Registration of Periodicals Act, 2023 (51 of 2023) and possesses the certificate of registration allotted by the Press Registrar of General; and  
4. comply with the provisions of the Press and Registration of Periodicals Act, 2023 (51 of 2023).

2. The administrative and operative guidelines related to registered newspaper shall be as specified by administrative instructions from time to time.  

 

3. The rates of postage on registered newspaper are mentioned in Table I of Schedule

I.