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There are a lot of basic questions on Mail Art that are often asked and answered. This group might be the first place to look for answers. I will do my best to answer, but hope that other members can help out as well.
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How to check foreign postal mail address?

by Mott Given

Dec 28, 2024

I tried to mail a response mail art from the U.S. to a person in Spain.

My mail was promptly returned to me today instead before it ever had a chance

to leave the U.S.  I am not sure if the U.S. postal clerk made a mistake, of if

the person in Spain made a mistake and gave me an incomplete postal address.

Is there a website where I can type in a foreign postal address, to see if it is a

valid address with all the info that it needs to be sent out of the U.S. to the foreign

destination?  Or, is there an FAQ list somewhere that shows what fields are needed

to specify a complete postal address for a given country?

I have not included the actual addressee info as I am relatively new here and

do not know if that would be a violation of the person's privacy in some way

or frowned upon according to the forum rules.

Mott Given

  • up

    Eva (Mail Adventures)

    If it never left the USA, it is not likely due to an incorrect address. Maybe the postal machines didn't read it well. My advise is to try again.

    I don't think you can check if an address is valid, for privacy reasons. Complete Spanish addresses have this form:

    Name Surname (Surname)

    C./Av./Pl.... Name of the Street, Number (Floor, Door)

    5 digits postal code, City, Province

    SPAIN

    1

    Dec 29, 2024

    • up

      Predrag Petrovic

      One of the reason could be the difference between European 7 and American 7 (way of writing  numbers) also NB differences for number 1 ( umbrella type and stick type) Actually the way the number 7 is used in Europe is known in US as French 7

        Apart from these, there is another catch with grouping the address in lines

       1st line   name and surname

      2nd line   street and number

      3rd line   postal code and city-town-village etc

      4th line  (if given= additional specific location, region-)

      5th line   country-state   

      Try not to intermingle those given lines as it will just slow down the travel of your letter-card-parcel.

            It will be good if you write address in tidy manner. that will help a lot Postal clerks and sorting crew.

        Dont be too artistic when the address needs to be clear and easy to read, it will surely add up to the speed and appropriateness of your traveling piece.

          Unfortunately, some people thinks that Postal clerks will enjoy their way of decorations and funny addressing of the letter and cards. Wrong. Postal clerks prefers tidiness and easiness.

      1

      Dec 29, 2024