A post office is a facility (in most countries, a government one) where the public can purchase postage stamps for mailing correspondence or merchandise, and also drop off or pick up packages or other special-delivery items.

Post offices also rent post-office boxes to people and businesses who prefer not to have mail delivered to their home or office.

In many countries, post offices include other functions, such as a place to pick up various government forms, to apply for passports, to send money to others, etc. In some countries, the post office functions as a financial bank and/or a central place to use public telephones.

The back rooms of a post office are where mail is processed for delivery. Mail may also be processed in other post offices that are not open to the general public.

The Post Office is a retail company in the United Kingdom; formerly part of the postal service Royal Mail, it became a separate entity in 1981.

See also

General postal concepts

• Freepost (also known as business reply mail)
• mail
• Military mail
• Post Office box
• postal code, ZIP Code
• "going postal"
• Poste restante (also known as general delivery)
• Drop letter

Examples of operators of post offices from around the world

• An Post (Ireland)
• Post Office Ltd (UK)
• United States Postal Service
• Canada Post
• Deutsche Post
• Universal Postal Union
• Australia Post
• New Zealand Post

Miscellaneous

• Post offices abroad
• London Post Office Railway
• Post Office Rifles
• Pony Express
• Cabinet noir

External links

• United States Postal Service Guide
• United Kingdom Post Office site
• GRC Database Information: worldwide post office website links
• Photos of post offices around the world

See Timeline of postal history

Road transport | Postal system | Buildings and structures | Monopoly (economics)

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