Does a Wax Seal Need Extra Postage?
Yes. A wax seal on the outside of a letter makes its thickness uneven, so it is nonmachinable and pays $0.49 extra. A 1 oz invitation with a seal costs $1.31.
Your answer
Nonmachinable letter
+$0.49 surchargeLetter postage plus the nonmachinable surcharge, because it has to be sorted by hand.
- Postage per piece
- $1.31
- 100 invitations
- $131.00
Stamps for each one
1 × Three-Ounce
That pays $0.09 more than needed. For exact postage, ask the post office counter to make up $1.31.
Why
- Anything that makes the envelope lumpy or uneven in thickness, such as a wax seal, charm or knot, is nonmachinable. USPS rule
Rates last verified on
100 invitations: $131.00 in postage ($1.31 each, nonmachinable letter)
The rule behind it
USPS does not mention wax seals by name. The rule that catches them is about anything that causes "the thickness of the mailpiece to be uneven". A raised seal is a hard bump on an otherwise flat envelope. The rollers in a sorting machine squeeze letters flat, and a bump either jams, cracks, or tears the paper around it.
So the envelope is pulled out and sorted by hand, and hand sorting is what the $0.49 nonmachinable surcharge pays for. The rule is in DMM 101.1.2.
What it adds up to
The surcharge is the same at every weight: $1.31 at 1 oz, $1.60 at 2 oz, $1.89 at 3 oz. For 100 invitations the seal costs $49.00 in postage, before the cost of the seals.
It is charged once per envelope. If the envelope is already square or tied with ribbon, the seal adds nothing further.
Three ways to keep the seal
- Put it inside. A seal on a vellum wrap or belly band inside the envelope is hidden from the machine's view, but it still makes a bump. If you can feel a distinct lump through the sealed envelope, it is still uneven and still nonmachinable. Thin, flat adhesive seals are the ones that get away with it.
- Use an outer envelope. Seal the inner envelope with wax and mail it inside a plain outer one. This protects the wax too. The lump rule still applies to the outer envelope, so this works best with low-profile seals.
- Pay the surcharge and ask for hand-cancelling. Many couples decide the seal is worth $0.49. Buy the right postage, hand the stack over at the counter and ask that it be hand-cancelled. Whether a given office will do it varies.
Do not skip the postage
A sealed invitation with a single Forever stamp is short paid. USPS returns short-paid nonmachinable letters to the sender for more postage, so the invitations come back to you and you lose the time it takes to mail them again.
Compare the options
| Option | Mail class | Each | For 100 |
|---|---|---|---|
| A7, 1 oz, no seal | Standard letter | $0.82 | $82.00 |
| A7, 1 oz, wax seal | Nonmachinable letter | $1.31 | $131.00 |
| A7, 2 oz, wax seal | Nonmachinable letter | $1.60 | $160.00 |
| Square 5.5 in, 2 oz, wax seal | Nonmachinable letter | $1.60 | $160.00 |
Questions and answers
Does a wax seal need extra postage?
Yes. A raised wax seal makes the envelope nonmachinable, which adds $0.49 to the postage for each piece.
How much postage for an invitation with a wax seal?
$1.31 at 1 oz, $1.60 at 2 oz and $1.89 at 3 oz.
Does a wax seal inside the envelope need extra postage?
If it makes a lump you can feel through the envelope, yes. The rule is about uneven thickness, wherever the seal sits.
Do wax seals survive the mail?
They can crack or scuff. Paying the surcharge keeps the envelope out of the sorting machines, and a flexible sealing wax or an outer envelope protects the seal further.