Amelia,

APO is city.  AE is state.

Anna,

Military Post Offices (APO/FPO) are United States of America.  I'm told that listing the host country risks the packages being handled by the international mail system instead of the military mail system.  That's from a Military Mail brochure just put out in June 2009 (that wasn't available at my post office until August). Link mentioning it for A-stan is here: http://hqdainet.army.mil/mpsa/afgan_mail.htm

General link for MPSA is here: http://hqdainet.army.mil/mpsa/

Thank you jocee!  When I dropped off my packages at the po today, I told the clerk I prefer the old forms and she said "US TOO!".  I used my last two "old" forms with those packages.  If the online form will let you enter more than one item per line, I may give that a try.

Amelia

 Well, the other shoe has officially dropped...I took a box to the post office at lunch today, and Mike (my favorite clerk) said they've been told not to accept any more of the old forms, to throw out all the old ones they have left and start using the new ones. He's just as thrilled at the idea as we all are, which is to say not at all. If you put more than 4 items in the box, you have to use additional forms to list them on - ggggrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr!!  He said "It's not the Postal Service, it's the people at Customs who have insisted on this change. They don't care how it affects us or how much it slows things down." He's right....Oh, well, we'll get used to it, and before you know it, it'll seem like these new ones are all we've ever done.

Well, hopefully, (since Arkansas seems to always be behind the rest of the country in everything else), we will be using the old forms for a while.  They didn't say anything about using just the new forms yesterday when we mailed a pkg.

Okay, now, this is really bugging me.  If the new forms were invented to use with electronic equipment that they don't even use, then why are they forcing us to use them?  Are they too ashamed to admit that they fouled up?  We were told to ignore the way the first page is set up and to fill them out the way we always had.  I actually mark through where it says "first" name and "last" name, and just write it the way I always did, with first name, then last name.  Maybe I am just being cranky and contrary.

 Gran, My post office just got the equipment needed to use the forms as they were designed by the Customs folk. Once it's installed (and theirs is ready to use), they have to use it. Both the local post offices have the new equipment, so I reckon I'm stuck with the new forms. I still think it's ridiculous that it's not either implemented everywhere at once, or not implemented at all. What about all the post offices that don't have the equipment? Is Customs going to refuse packages without the new forms on them?

I'm with you.  What a mess!    When this first started I wrote to everyone I could think up to the White House.  Then it all died down.  Sure hope it doesn't come to pass now.  What state (location, not emotional) are you in?  

I had my husband pick up some forms yesterday, simply because I was out, and they gave him the new ones.  He took packages though, with the old ones, and they accepted them without issue.

Another one of those cases of "it depends on the particular office" maybe?  I went to the other TINY little office I use most of the time, and got all the old forms they had.  The clerk there wasn't even aware there had been a change until I told her, so they obviously have not been told not to take the old ones (yet!)

I do NOT like the new forms and am trying to figure out a way to get everything on 4 lines...

If it LATHERS, regardless of whether it's shampoo, body wash or whatever, it will now be referred to as "liquid soap"  Line one complete! 

peachycor:

What state (location, not emotional) are you in?  

Tennessee.

We have had the new forms for a while. THey don't say anything about lumping things together, and I never write the weight on it. The address is all screwed up, I just write it like I get it from here, not paying attention to the spacing on the form. Haven't had anyone tell me to redo it. But, maybe they will stat getting more touchy about it. who knows.

 Southern California.  Just north of LA.

Phillis -

Phillis:

If it LATHERS, regardless of whether it's shampoo, body wash or whatever, it will now be referred to as "liquid soap"  Line one complete! 

  LOLOLOLOLOLOL  Thanks!

Ann   Also pls check your inbox - sent you a PM - long live BlueGrass

Please say where you are located.  This will be a nightmare if instituted.  With the FRB we can put such a variety of items and so much, that it would take many forms, much time, and energy to do it accurately.  What can we do??

We had heard at the beginning of the new form publication that there would be X (unknown to most) number of post offices that would be involved in a trial run at the start of the use of the new machinery.  I am wildly guessing that they will try out those post offices first until they work out a few of the bugs in the system.  I am assuming that they are trying to make it faster to read the information on the forms.  It may be quite a while before we out here in Podunk Hollow get the mandatory order to use the new ones.  When Mr. Gran went to one of the post offices on the outskirts of Little Rock this week where he had gotten old forms before, they told him that they had not even seen nor heard of the new forms, and he got us a stack of the old ones.

Latest package I mailed was last week - old customs form, the big ole white thing with the blank box for items, never can remember which number it is.  But it was definitely the old one.  Went thru no problem.  No one batted an eye.  Matter of fact, th PO I used just got finished training a whole bunch of new PO clerks on  the new forms, since that's what they are using.  Reason I remember is the week before that, they all seemed to start on the same day and there was a line out the door as they all learned how to do all the ordinary stuff.  I waited for one of the older (meaning eexperienced clerks) since I had 4 boxes to mail that day.  Last week the more experienced clerk passed me off to the 'new guy' so he could get experience on the customs form.  Went thru smooth as silk.  The old form.  I'm in northern Jersey.

Anyone know what 'the equipment' for the new forms is?  Is it equipment  at the counters? Just new software? 

EDIT: Oops, typo correction - 4 boxes should read 2 boxes - must have hit the wrong numeric key. Sorry.