Help CenterA USPS Proof of Acceptance (Electronic) is posted to your account soon after your Certified Mail letter receives its first Acceptance Scan from the USPS outbound sort facility, meaning it is an official notice of Acceptance. In contrast, the common USPS 3800 form, which many mailers assume provides official USPS Proof of Acceptance, is a receipt from the USPS but does not qualify as official USPS Proof of Acceptance.
It makes sense then that the Proof of Acceptance (Electronic) is deemed by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) to satisfy TITLE 26, Subtitle F, CHAPTER 77, Sec. 7502 of the US Treasury Code with “Timely mailing treated as timely filing and paying.”
Wherher you are mailing one Certified Mail letter or many, the USPS Proof of Acceptance (Electronic) replaces the need for manual options, including the USPS PS 3800 Forms, Scan Forms, Manifests, Firm Books and time-consuming trips to the Post Office. The Proof of Acceptance (Electronic) can be printed anytime, or emailed in its PDF format.
Once your Certified Mail is delivered, a Proof of Delivery or USPS Return Receipt (Electronic) PDF for each piece is posted to your account within 24 hours. You can also have these PDFs emailed to you by choosing “Send Email Notification of Delivery” on the “Create Cover Sheets and Labels” screen as you prepare your Certified Mail. The Return Receipt Electronic, also known as the RRE, contains the same information as the PS3811 Green Card, but in an electronic (PDF) format. The RRE was developed by the USPS to speed up the process of receiving Proof of Delivery with signature, and to eliminate problems such as cards getting damaged or torn off as they make their way back to the mailer through the mail stream; offices having to find space to file the Green Cards; and Green Cards getting lost.
From a mailer's perspective, the Return Receipt Electronic has many obvious benefits. For example, by receiving the Return Receipt Electronic within 24 hours of the mail piece being delivered, an attorney can submit this certificate of service to the court clerk much faster than before as there is no waiting for Green Cards. And this means the court will set the court date much sooner. A second obvious benefit is that the law firm can save the Return Receipt Electronic to their client files and easily recall it at any time. No more hunting through file cabinets trying the find the PS3811 Green Card.
The United States Postal Service Domestic Mail Manual states that the Return Receipt (Electronic) is the legal equivalent of the PS3811 (Green Card). The IRS, State Tax Authorities and Courts have welcomed the Return Receipt (Electronic) as the PDF file can be stored and emailed in PDF form, whereas the Green Card must always be submitted in its original form.
You can learn more about Return Receipt (Electronic) by visiting www.usps.com