There are a lot of rules about what you can and cannot mail.
For example, you can’t mail ammo, explosives and marijuana, and there are also restrictions around mailing batteries, alcohol, animals and cigarettes.
But what about cash?
Mailing cash for legitimate purposes is legal, though mailings containing more than $500 cash must be sent by Registered Mail, according to the website of the U.S. Postal Service. The postal service also recommends a few other options for sending money to make sure the money arrives safely.
Here’s what you need to know before you slip money into a card for a family member’s birthday or pay a bill through the mail in Arizona.
When does the Postal Service say it’s OK to mail cash?
Mailing cash is risky because the letter might become lost, stolen or damaged, says the U.S. Postal Inspection Service.
“Customers should never send cash in the mail,” that agency said in a news release it put out late last year publicizing its “Don’t Get Snowed By Holiday Scams” campaign aimed at helping customers avoid becoming crime victims.
Letter carriers can become targets for criminals looking to steal packages and mail, that release said.
Sometimes the thief is a postal service employee.
That was the case when a former USPS supervisor in Connecticut pleaded guilty last October to obstruction of mails linked to her having taken envelopes from the mail stream, removed cash and gift cards, resealed the envelopes and returned them to the mail stream at another place.
Postal inspectors ask anyone who thinks they’ve been a victim of mail theft to report it online.
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What alternative does USPS recommend?
USPS recommends customers use money orders instead of cash or check when sending money by mail.
USPS money orders never expire and can be bought at any Post Office location, the USPS website said.
“Your money order receipt will help you track your payment and show proof of value in case the money order gets lost, stolen or damaged,” it said.
How much insurance can be acquired for cash sent by registered mail?
Cash sent by registered mail can be insured in amounts up to $50,000, the USPS website says, adding “for amounts over $50,000, the full value must be declared but the maximum insured value is $50,000.”
For all other mail classes and services that aren’t registered mail, the maximum indemnity is $15 for currency, bullion or negotiable items, the postal service website says.
It adds that negotiable items are defined as “instruments that can be converted to cash without resort to forgery.”
