An international reply coupon (IRC) is a coupon that can be exchanged for one or more postage stamps A postage stamp is adhesive paper evidence of a fee paid for postal services. Usually a small rectangle attached to an envelope, the stamp signifies the person sending it has fully or partly paid for delivery. Postage stamps are the most popular way of paying for retail mail; alternatives include postal stationery such as prepaid-postage envelopes, representing the minimum postage for an unregistered priority airmail letter of up to twenty grams sent to another Universal Postal Union The Universal Postal Union is an international organization that coordinates postal policies among member nations, and hence the worldwide postal system. Each member country agrees to the same set of terms for conducting international postal duties. The Universal Postal Union's headquarters are located in Berne, Switzerland (UPU) member country. IRCs are accepted by all UPU member countries.
UPU member postal services are obliged to exchange an IRC for postage, but are not obliged to sell them.
The purpose of the IRC is to be able to send someone in another country a letter, along with the cost of postage for them to reply. If the addressee is within the same country, there is no need for an IRC because a self-addressed stamped envelope (SASE) will suffice; but if the addressee is in another country an IRC removes the necessity of acquiring foreign postage Mail, or post, is a method for transmitting information and tangible objects, wherein written documents, typically enclosed in envelopes and also small packages are delivered to destinations around the world. Anything sent through the postal system is called mail or post or sending appropriate currency In economics, the term currency can refer to a particular currency, for example Pound Sterling, or to the coins and banknotes of a particular currency, which comprise the physical aspects of a nation's money supply. The other part of a nation's money supply consists of money deposited in banks , ownership of which can be transferred by means of.
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History
The IRC was introduced in 1906 at a Universal Postal Union congress in Rome Rome (English pronunciation: /ˈroʊm/; Italian: Roma listen , pronounced [ˈroːma]; Latin: Rōma) is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated municipality (central area), with over 2.7 million residents in 1,285.3 km2 (496.3 sq mi). While the population of the urban area was estimated by Eurostat to have been 3.46. At the time an IRC could be exchanged for a single-rate, ordinary postage stamp for surface delivery to a foreign country, as this was before the introduction of airmail Airmail is mail that is transported by aircraft. It typically arrives more quickly than surface mail, and usually costs more to send. Airmail may be the only option for sending mail to some destinations, such as overseas, if the mail cannot wait the time it would take to arrive by ship, sometimes weeks services. As of 2006 an IRC is exchangeable in a UPU member country for the minimum postage of a priority or unregistered airmail letter to a foreign country.
As of February 2007, the current IRC is called "Beijing Model No. 2" and is available from post offices in more than 70 countries. They have an expiry date of 31 December 2009. IRCs are ordered from the UPU headquarters in Berne The city of Bern or Berne (German: Bern, pronounced [ˈbɛɐn] ; French: Berne [bɛʁn]; Italian: Berna [ˈbɛrna]; Romansh: Berna [ˈbɛrnə]; Bernese German: Bärn [b̥æːrn]) is the Bundesstadt (federal city, de facto capital) of Switzerland, and, with (as of December 2008) a population of 122,925, the fourth most populous city in Switzerland, Switzerland Switzerland , officially the Swiss Confederation (Confœderatio Helvetica in Latin, hence its ISO country codes CH and CHE), is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe[note 4] where it is bordered by Germany to the north, France to the west, Italy to, by postal authorities Postal Administration is an umbrella term used to collectively characterize all the functional entities within a country that participate in the regulation and operation of domestic and international postal services. The term is widely used in diplomatic documents and international conventions and treaties that establish relationships between. They are generally available at large post offices A post office is a facility authorised by a postal system for the posting, receipt, sorting, handling, transmission or delivery of mail. Post offices offer mail-related services such as post office boxes, postage and packaging supplies. In addition, some post offices offer non-postal services such as passport applications and other government; in the U.S., they are requisitioned along with regular domestic stamps by any post office that has sufficient demand for them.
A British 1 Shilling IRC issued in 1959.Prices for IRCs vary by country. In the United States ^ b. English is the de facto language of American government and the sole language spoken at home by 80% of Americans age five and older. Spanish is the second most commonly spoken language in late 2008, the purchase price was $2.10[1]USD The United States dollar is the official currency of the United States, Zimbabwe, Palau, Marshall Islands, El Salvador, British Virgin Islands, Ecuador, and Federated States of Micronesia. The U.S. dollar is normally abbreviated as the dollar sign, $, or as USD or US$ to distinguish it from other dollar-denominated currencies and from others that. IRCs purchased in foreign countries could be used in United States toward the purchase of postage stamps and embossed stamped envelopes at the rate of $0.94 USD per coupon.[2]
IRCs are often used by amateur radio operators sending QSL cards to each other; it has traditionally been considered good practice and common courtesy to include an IRC when writing to a foreign operator and expecting a reply by mail.[3]
As stated above, previous editions of the IRC, the "Beijing" model and all subsequent versions bear an expiration date, consequently a new IRC will be issue every three years. The current IRC will become obsolete on 31 December 2009. Current stockpiles in the hands of users should be expended by then, or exchanged for the new "Nairobi" issue. The current issue (Beijing 2) IRC may be exchanged until 31 December 2009 (date printed on coupon). In principle, Beijing 2 coupons will no longer be sold after 31 August 2009. The new international reply coupon (Nairobi model) is due to go on sale starting 1 July 2009, and will be valid for exchange until 31 December 2013.[4]
The Ponzi scheme
The profit that could be made by taking advantage of the differing postal rates in different countries to buy IRCs cheaply in one country and exchange them for stamps to a larger value in another country was the intended profit generator for a scheme operated by Charles Ponzi Charles Ponzi was an Italian swindler, who is considered one of the greatest swindlers in American history. His aliases include Charles Ponei, Charles P. Bianchi, Carl and Carlo. The term "Ponzi scheme" is a widely known description of any scam that pays early investors returns from the investments of later investors. He promised clients, which became the fraudulent Ponzi scheme A Ponzi scheme is a fraudulent investment operation that pays returns to separate investors from their own money or money paid by subsequent investors, rather than from any actual profit earned. The Ponzi scheme usually entices new investors by offering returns other investments cannot guarantee, in the form of short-term returns that are either; in practice the overhead on buying and selling large amounts of the very low-value IRCs precluded profitability.
The selling price and exchange value in stamps in each country were since adjusted to some extent to remove some of the potential for profit, but ongoing fluctuations in cost of living and exchange rates make it impossible to achieve this completely.
Notes
- ^ "International reply coupon cost listed on USPS Extra Service Price List". United States Postal Service The United States Postal Service is an independent agency of the United States government responsible for providing postal service in the United States. It is one of the few government agencies explicitly authorized by the United States Constitution. Within the United States, it is commonly referred to as the "Post Office", "Postal. http://www.usps.com/prices/extra-services-prices.htm. Retrieved 2008-10-17.
- ^ "International Reply Coupons". Mailing Standards of the United States Postal Service - International Mail Manual (United States Postal Service The United States Postal Service is an independent agency of the United States government responsible for providing postal service in the United States. It is one of the few government agencies explicitly authorized by the United States Constitution. Within the United States, it is commonly referred to as the "Post Office", "Postal) (35). 12 May 2008. http://pe.usps.com/text/imm/immc3_025.htm. Retrieved 2008-12-04.
- ^ "International reply coupons". Amateur Radio Station N6HB. 2007-07-28. http://www.n6hb.org/s-a/irc.htm. Retrieved 2007-08-07.
- ^ http://www.upu.int/news_centre/2008/en/2008-08-08_irc.shtml
External links
- UPU IRC main webpage
- IRC info
- Amateur Radio Hams IRC info
- Some IRC illustrations and exchange guidelines
Categories: Universal Postal Union | Postal stationery | Philatelic terminology | Cinderella stamps
