POST OFFICE REGULATIONS – 2024 -1

 139. PA Exam Materials – PO Guide part I -5
Smt P.Kiruthika Paramasivam

Foreign Post Offices (FPOs) are post offices or sorting offices designated by Customs for the clearance of imported or exported goods. An FPO is an OE where Customs Duty assessment (including opening articles for this purpose) on foreign mails is also carried out. Customs duty assessment is only performed for articles to be delivered by post offices within that FPO's jurisdiction. Articles destined for delivery through post offices near other OEs are diverted to those OEs for examination and duty assessment. FPOs also maintain all accounts related to customs duty.

Examples of FPOs and their mail handling types:
• Foreign Post Office, New Delhi (Delhi Circle): All types of mail.
• Foreign Post Office, Mumbai (Maharashtra Circle): Parcel.
• Air Port Sorting Office, Mumbai (Maharashtra Circle): Letter Mail (LCAO), EMS, ITPS.
• Foreign Post Office (Air), Chennai (Tamil Nadu Circle): All (Air route).
• Foreign Post Office (Sea), Chennai (Tamil Nadu Circle): All surface route articles.
• Foreign Post office, Kolkata (West Bengal Circle): All.
• Foreign Post office, Ahmedabad (Gujarat Circle): All.
• Foreign Post Office, Bengaluru (Karnataka Circle): All.
• Foreign Post Office, Hyderabad (Telangana Circle): All.
• Foreign Post Office, Kochi (Kerala Circle): All.

A Sub Foreign Post Office (SFPO) receives and dispatches international mail to and from mapped offices within the country (inbound or outbound or both). SFPOs do not exchange mail directly with other countries. They conduct customs examination of inbound/outbound international mail as assigned and perform assessment and accounting of customs duty.

Examples of SFPOs and their status:
• Foreign Post Office, Vijayawada (Andhra Pradesh): Functional
• Foreign Post Office, Guwahati (Assam): Functional
• Foreign Post Office, Srinagar (Jammu & Kashmir): Functional
• Foreign Post Office, Leh (Jammu & Kashmir): In process
• Foreign Post Office, Ludhiana (Punjab): In process
• Foreign Post Office, Jaipur (Rajasthan): Functional
• Foreign Post Office, Chandigarh (Punjab): In process
• Foreign Post Office, Kanpur (Uttar Pradesh): Functional
• Foreign Post Office, Agra (Uttar Pradesh): Functional
• Foreign Post Office, Varanasi (Uttar Pradesh): Functional
• Foreign Post Office, Patna (Bihar): In process
• Foreign Post Office, Raipur (Chhattisgarh): In process
• Foreign Post Office, Panaji (Maharashtra (Goa)): Functional
• Foreign Post Office, Ranchi (Jharkhand): In process
• Foreign Post Office, Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh): In process
• Foreign Post Office, Shillong (North East (Meghalaya)): In process
• Foreign Post Office, Bhubaneshwar (Odisha): Functional
• Foreign Post Office, Puducherry (Tamil Nadu (Puducherry)): In process

An International Business Center (IBC) is a post office or sorting office that provides booking, processing, customs documentation assistance, and pickup services for bulk international mail customers. These are similar to Business Post Centers (BPCs). IBCs may make direct dispatches to respective SFPOs/FPOs and can provide nodal delivery of inward mail if volumes justify and there is a clear delivery advantage.

Established IBC locations include:
• Guwahati (Assam): Guwahati GPO
• Raipur (Chhattisgarh): Raipur GPO
• Delhi: Foreign Post Office, Delhi
• Ahmedabad (Gujarat): Foreign Post Office, Speed Post Bhavan
• Shimla (HP): Shimla GPO
• Bengaluru (Karnataka): Foreign Post Office, Bengaluru
• Kochi (Kerala): Ernakulam HO Complex, Kochi
• Mumbai (Maharashtra): APSO Complex Building, Mumbai
• Surat (Gujarat): Surat Head Post Office
• Vijayawada (AP): Venkateswarapuram Sub Post Office, Vijayawada
• Ludhiana (Punjab): Ludhiana HO
• Shillong (NE): Shillong GPO
• Bhubaneswar (Odisha): Postal printing press complex, Bhubaneshwar
• Chandigarh (Punjab): Chandigarh GPO
• Jaipur (Rajasthan): Jaipur GPO
• Chennai (Tamil Nadu): St. Thomas Mount HPO Building, Chennai
• Hyderabad (Telangana): Humayun Nagar Post Office, Hyderabad
• Lucknow (UP): Lucknow GPO
• Noida (UP): Sector-16 PO, Noida
• Varanasi (UP): Varanasi Cantt HO

Dak Ghar Niryat Kendras (DNK) focus on booking international mail to promote exports. They provide guidance in generating Import-Export Code (IEC) for customers and automated Postal Bill of Export (PBE), offer pick-up facility for bulk customers, provide packing material, deploy well-trained staff in customs and postal security rules, and facilitate marketing and export processes.