Wisconsinites should know about these changes coming to the US Postal Service in 2026

Whether you’re mailing your rent check, your ballot, or your property tax bill, you may want to receive it in your mailbox earlier than usual.

The United States Postal Service changed its postmark processes in late December, meaning there could be potential delays in postmarking urgent documents or bills.

Here’s what to know about the new USPS changes in Wisconsin:

What are the new USPS postmark rules?

Postmarks are an official mark that indicates where and when mail was accepted by USPS. It indicated the date the mail was placed in a mailbox or dropped off at a post office.

Under the new rules, postmarks will now indicate the date an envelope is first processed by an automated sorting machine, instead of the actual date of deposit. The processing date could be several days after the mail is deposited.

So, you may want to consider potential delays if you’re sending urgent documents.

When will the USPS postmark changes take effect?

Changes to how the Postal Service conceals mail took effect December 24.

More: Has your 2025 property tax bill increased in Milwaukee? Here’s why.

When do USPS postal shipping rates increase and how much more will it cost?

Postmark changes aren’t the only thing you need to be aware of this year. Shipping rates for some services are expected to increase in the coming weeks.

As part of its 10-year plan to alleviate financial hardship, the USPS will increase prices for several shipping services starting January 18, 2026.

Here are the approximate price changes for each affected service:

• 6% increase for Parcel Select

• Increase of 6.6% for the Priority Mail service

• 5.1% increase for Priority Mail Express service

• 7.8% increase for USPS Ground Advantage

You can find more information about the new prices online at https://pe.usps.com/.

Will the price of the eternal stamp increase in January 2026?

Although shipping prices are increasing, the price of the first-class postage stamp, or “forever” stamp, will not change in early 2026, according to the USPS.

The stamp currently costs 78 cents, following a 5 cent increase earlier in 2025.

The USPS calls it the “forever” stamp because consumers can use it in perpetuity, regardless of future price increases. When it was launched in 2007, the stamp cost 41 cents, almost half its current price.

More: Wisconsin residents can expect to pay more for U.S. Postal Service shipping in 2026

This article originally appeared in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: U.S. Postal Service changes postmark process, shipping prices in 2026.