The USPS has announced they will decertify all Information Based Indicia (IBI) postage meters on June 30, 2024, and they must be removed from service by December 31, 2024. After that date, the USPS will no longer allow vendors to distribute IBI systems. Postage indicia printed by decertified IBI meters will no longer be valid for use or refunds after June 30, 2025.

What does the phase out of IBI meters mean?

This means all meters will need to be IMI complaint and IBI meters will no longer be accepted by the USPS. If you are currently using a IBI meter you will need to upgrade to IBI. The issue is the number of IMI complaint meter vendors is limited so the costs to meter mail will increase. The costs mail houses charge for metering will also increase as the options are limited and mail houses meter costs are increasing

What can be done?

Instead of applying postage using a meter you can use a permit indicia. This will save money and there are also different designs that can be used to make the indicia look similar to a meter. Adding an indicia often does not add any costs to mailings as it can be printed when an envelope is being printed or in line with the address.

We are recommending our clients switch from metering their mail to using a permit imprint indicia to save costs and avoid any price increases as the cost to meter mail will increase.