The USPS Form 1583 requirements are simple to list. Before a mailbox store or virtual mailbox service (a Commercial Mail Receiving Agency, or CMRA) can accept your mail, you complete PS Form 1583, show two current IDs, and sign it in front of a witness. USPS rules allow two kinds of witness: the CMRA owner, manager or an authorized employee, or a notary public. Either can be in person or on a live audio and video call. A notary is needed only when the service does not witness your signature itself.
Last checked: September 27, 2026. This page covers USPS rules in the United States only. It is general information, not legal advice.
What PS Form 1583 is
PS Form 1583 is the Application for Delivery of Mail Through Agent. It is the paperwork that lets a private business receive US Mail on your behalf.
Section 508 of the USPS Domestic Mail Manual, which we read on September 27, 2026, defines a CMRA as “a business that, in whole or in part, accepts the delivery of U.S. Mail on behalf of another person or entity as a business service.” It then says: “Mail delivery to a CMRA requires that CMRA owners or managers complete and sign PS Form 1583, Application for Delivery of Mail Through Agent.”
In everyday terms, a CMRA is a mailbox store in a shopping center or an online service that gives you an address, receives your mail and scans or forwards it. Both are the same thing in USPS eyes.
A regular Post Office box is different. It is rented from USPS itself on PS Form 1093, not Form 1583. If you are not sure which one you have, our comparison of PMB vs PO box explains the difference.
The USPS Form 1583 requirements, one by one
Here is what the Domestic Mail Manual asks for, in the order it matters to you.
1. One form for each addressee
The manual requires a separate PS Form 1583 for each addressee. If two adults, or a person and their business, will get mail at the same box, expect more than one form. A parent or guardian can list minors on their own form (the manual points to block 11) so the children’s mail can be received too.
2. Two current forms of ID
Applicants must present “acceptable primary and secondary forms of identification,” and the documents must be current, not expired, and traceable to the person holding them.
The ID lists are in section 608 of the Domestic Mail Manual. The primary ID must carry a clear photo, such as a state driver’s license or non-driver ID card, a US passport or passport card, a foreign passport, or a US permanent resident card. The secondary ID can be another acceptable photo ID, or a current non-photo document traceable to you: a lease, mortgage or deed of trust, a voter or vehicle registration card, a home or vehicle insurance policy, or Form I-94. Section 608 says secondary identification is there to verify the address. It also states that Social Security cards, birth certificates and credit cards are not accepted.
3. Your real home or business address
This surprises people who want a mailbox for privacy. The manual says the CMRA owner or manager “must verify the documentation to confirm that the addressee resides or conducts business at the permanent address shown on PS Form 1583.” The mailbox gives you a mailing address. It does not replace the need to tell the service where you actually live or work.
4. A witnessed signature
This is the notary question, covered in detail below.
5. The right address format afterwards
Once approved, mail must be addressed with “PMB” (private mailbox) or the “#” sign before your box number. The manual says USPS may return mail without it, endorsed “Undeliverable as Addressed, Missing PMB or # Sign.”
Why does renting a mailbox need a notary?
Strictly, it does not always. This is the point most pages written by mailbox services skip.
The Domestic Mail Manual says the applicant “must sign or confirm his or her signature in the physical or virtual (in real-time audio and video) presence of the CMRA owner or manager, or authorized employee, or acknowledge his or her signature in the physical or virtual (in real-time audio and video) presence of a notary public commissioned in a United States state, territory, possession, or the District of Columbia.”
So USPS accepts four routes:
| Who witnesses your signature | In person | On a live video call |
|---|---|---|
| CMRA owner, manager or authorized employee | Yes | Yes |
| US notary public | Yes | Yes |
At a walk-in mailbox store, staff usually witness the signature at the counter, so no notary is involved. The notary step shows up mostly with online mailbox services. You are signing up from home, nobody from the service is in the room, and the service can either run its own live video check or ask you to use a notary. Many choose the notary route. That is a choice of the service, within the rule, not a separate USPS demand.
If a service tells you a notary is required, it is fair to ask whether they offer a live video witness instead. They do not have to. But knowing that the rule allows it helps you judge what you are being asked for.
Online notaries
The rule allows a notary to witness you “in real-time audio and video,” so remote online notarization fits within the USPS wording. Whether a remote notarization is valid also depends on the notary’s own state law, so use a notary commissioned in a US state, territory, possession or the District of Columbia, as the manual says.
What the mailbox service does with your form
Your form does not sit in a drawer. The Domestic Mail Manual sets out what the CMRA has to do:
- Upload it to USPS. The CMRA must “enter the information provided on each PS Form 1583 and upload a clear and legible copy of each identification document into the USPS CMRA Customer Registration Database.”
- Keep a copy. It must keep a digital copy of your completed form at its business location, available for examination.
- Confirm it every quarter. The CMRA must certify each quarter, on January 15, April 15, July 15 and October 15, that every Form 1583 it submitted is current.
That is why a service may ask you to update the form when your name, address or ID changes. A stale form is the service’s problem with USPS as much as yours.
What happens if the information is wrong
The manual is direct: “Furnishing false information on the application or refusing to provide required information is reason for denying the application.” Use your real name, your real address and IDs that match them.
Separately, the manual says the Chief Postal Inspector or a designee may issue an emergency order to withhold mail to any PMB holder suspected of unlawful activity. That is one reason the identity check exists at all. The Postal Inspection Service is the law enforcement arm of USPS, and our explainer on what the Postal Inspection Service investigates covers its role.
What happens when you close the mailbox
Ending the arrangement does not make mail stop instantly. Under the Domestic Mail Manual, when the relationship ends, the CMRA “must remail mail intended for the addressee (customer) for at least 6 months after the termination date.” After that, undelivered mail goes back to the sender marked “Undeliverable, Commercial Mail Receiving Agency, No Authorization to Receive Mail for this Addressee.”
So update your address with banks, agencies and anyone else who writes to you before you close the box, not after.
Why this matters when you receive mail from a PMB
This site is mostly about the other end of the envelope: working out who sent you something. Form 1583 is useful there too. A return address with “PMB” or “#” belongs to a mailbox at a CMRA. The sender had to file this form, show ID and give a real address to get it, and that record sits with USPS, not in a public directory.
That does not tell you who the sender is. It tells you the address is a private mailbox rather than an office. Our guide on how to read a business return address walks through the other clues on the envelope.
What this page cannot tell you
We describe the national USPS rule as published in the Domestic Mail Manual. Individual mailbox services add their own steps on top, such as extra ID checks, their own upload portals or a fee for notarization. Those are their policies, not USPS requirements, and they vary. The form itself is revised from time to time, so download the current version from USPS or from your provider rather than reusing an old copy. If a provider’s instructions and this page differ, ask the provider which part is their rule and which part is USPS.
Frequently asked questions
Does USPS Form 1583 have to be notarized?
Not always. The Domestic Mail Manual lets the CMRA owner, manager or an authorized employee witness your signature in person or by live video. A US notary is the alternative when the service does not witness it.
What two IDs do I need for Form 1583?
A current photo ID, such as a driver’s license or passport, plus a second ID that verifies your address. That can be another photo ID or a current lease, mortgage, voter or vehicle registration card, or home or vehicle insurance policy.
Can I use an online notary for Form 1583?
The manual allows notarization in real-time audio and video presence of a notary commissioned in a US state, territory, possession or the District of Columbia. The notary’s own state law also has to allow remote notarization.
Do I need Form 1583 for a regular PO box?
No. A Post Office box is rented from USPS on PS Form 1093. Form 1583 is for mailboxes at private businesses.
What happens to my mail after I cancel a virtual mailbox?
The manual says the CMRA must remail your mail for at least 6 months after the termination date. After that, it is returned to the sender.
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