Mail to U.S. service members and diplomats overseas uses special ZIP codes that route through the U.S. postal system rather than a foreign postal service. The address looks unusual, with no city or country, but it follows a fixed pattern that USPS and the military postal service rely on.
APO, FPO and DPO
- APO (Army Post Office) serves Army and Air Force units.
- FPO (Fleet Post Office) serves Navy, Marine Corps and Coast Guard units and ships.
- DPO (Diplomatic Post Office) serves U.S. embassies and consulates.
AA, AE and AP
In place of a state, military addresses use one of three designations: AA for Armed Forces Americas (ZIP codes beginning 340), AE for Armed Forces Europe, the Middle East, Africa and Canada (ZIP codes beginning 090 to 098) and AP for Armed Forces Pacific (ZIP codes beginning 962 to 966). The military postal records directory lists the codes in our dataset.
Address format
SGT JANE DOE
PSC 1234 BOX 12345
APO AE 09204Use the unit, PSC, CMR or ship name exactly as the recipient gave it. Do not add a city or country: including “Germany” or “Japan” can send the item into that country's postal system and delay it. The full guidance is on the USPS military mail page.
Customs and restrictions
Most packages to APO, FPO and DPO addresses need a customs form even though domestic postage applies, and each ZIP code can have its own restrictions on size, weight and contents. Check the current restrictions for the specific ZIP before shipping.
A note on coordinates
Reference datasets assign approximate coordinates to military ZIP codes for routing purposes. They should never be used to infer where a unit or person is located.