This is a question that appears on everyone’s mind when sending either some letter or any package across the country. And of course, it’s a practical one.
You may have old stamps from your parents’ time, and you may be wondering whether you can utilize those stamps sitting in the corner of your drawer. Well, the answer is yes, you certainly can!
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Do Stamps Expire?
Stamps do not ever expire as long as they are correctly kept. This means they shouldn’t be stained in any way or torn at all.
Even the print on the stamp must not have faded if they are old and you want to use them. The denomination on the stamps and the image or the print must be intact.
Other than that, you can rest at ease knowing that stamps do not have any expiry date. And now that we have answered the most awaited question of this article, why don’t we explore some more questions you may have about stamps.
Can I Reuse Stamps?
The answer is no! Stamps are not meant to be reused once you have used them already for either a letter or a package! You cannot just remove the stamp and paste it into your other package. They lose their value once they have used it.
Are the Stamps That are Torn Valid and Can be Used?
As we mentioned already, once the stamps are not in proper and unused condition, they lose their value. Once defaced, the stamps, be it any kind, are considered invalid.
The mail service tends to reject the defaced stamps if they are unrecognizable since they can no longer be identified as a legitimate postage stamp. Although we would like to inform you that if a stamp has minor torn ends, that isn’t much likely to cause any problem.
These stamps can even be exchanged if you take them to your local post office. But before doing that, you must ensure that the denomination on the stamp is not faded and the stamp has not been defaced. Apart from that, we do not think you will face any problem.
Different Types of Stamps are Available
If you are crazy about collecting stamps, you would most definitely know all the different types of stamps.
But if you’re way too far from any knowledge about stamps, relax and sit back as we go through all different types of stamps one by one.
There are stamps like the denominated and the non-denominated ones. You may ask what denomination is! Well, it is nothing but the value of the stamp. Although there are way more types of stamps than we can count, we would like to mention some of the most common types of stamps.
1. Forever Stamps
These stamps were first introduced in 2007, and they bear the word ‘Forever’ instead of any certain denomination. Forever stamps fall under the category of non-denomination ones.
These stamps are sold at the rate which is ongoing currently, which indicates that, even if the rates of these go high, you would still be able to utilize these stamps without needing any extra postage stamps.
Like all other stamps, the Forever stamps do not expire, and the best part is that their value never changes, even if the prices of the postage stamps may increase.
2. Semi-postal Stamps
These stamps were first introduced in the year 1997, and the aim for introducing them was to raise awareness and collect funds for Breast Cancer Research. That is why they are sold at a tad bit higher rate to gather funds. They are even called Breast Cancer Semi-Postal.
Another semi-postal stamp was introduced in 2002, which was called the ‘Heroes of 9/11 Semi-postal’. These were brought out to gather funds for the injured families of the attack in New York on September 11.
3. Definitive Stamps
These stamps were introduced for the ordinary and daily mail and were brought out in 1847. The definitive stamps are the first-ever United States postage stamps with rates that fluctuate quite a lot.
They can go at a minimum of 1¢ and even rise to 25.50 dollars. These stamps were specifically designed to serve the needs of regular postage stamps daily.
4. Airmail Stamps
1918 was the year when the Airmail stamps were first introduced. As the name suggests, these stamps were for airmail purposes, indicating that they are not as common as the other stamps these days.
Airmail stamps are popular not only for national but also for international mail. But they are not mandatory, which suggests that you can also use ordinary stamps in the place of Airmail ones.
5. Commemorative Stamps
Just as the name suggests, the commemorative stamps are the ones that are issued on a certain occasion for commemorating or to pay honor to a place, person, or thing. One can most definitely use Commemorative stamps alongside ordinary stamps.
Occasions may be of anniversaries and so on to issue such stamps. The subject of these stamps is spelled in print and is mostly sold for a shorter period or until the supplies run out.
To sum up our discussion on stamps and their expiration, we did our best to explore all different questions apart from “do stamps expire?” that you may have about them. As we mentioned earlier, you may already know much of the information given above if you are a stamp lover, but this article is all for you if you are new to this world.
Last but not least we would like to end our article on the note that you found it helpful. Please do not forget to share it with your friends and acquaintances who may find it useful.
