Courtesy reply mail
Encyclopedia
Courtesy reply mail, or CRM, is a type of mail in which a business sends pre-printed, self-addressed envelope
Envelope
An envelope is a common packaging item, usually made of thin flat material. It is designed to contain a flat object, such as a letter or card....

s or postcard
Postcard
A postcard or post card is a rectangular piece of thick paper or thin cardboard intended for writing and mailing without an envelope....

s to customers, who then affix postage stamp
Postage stamp
A postage stamp is a small piece of paper that is purchased and displayed on an item of mail as evidence of payment of postage. Typically, stamps are made from special paper, with a national designation and denomination on the face, and a gum adhesive on the reverse side...

s to the envelopes or postcards and mail them back to the business. Alternatively, the business can disseminate the envelopes or postcards with stamps already affixed, similarly to metered reply mail
Metered reply mail
Metered reply mail, or MRM, is a type of mail in which a business sends pre-printed, self-addressed envelopes or postcards to customers, with postage prepaid on the envelopes or postcards with a postage meter...

.

Courtesy reply mail differs from business reply mail
Freepost
Freepost is a postal service provided by various postal administrations, whereby a person sends mail without affixing postage, and the recipient pays the postage when collecting the mail...

 in the manner of payment of postage, namely, by stamp when the mail is sent, rather than by the permit holder when the mail is received. Courtesy reply mail is typically used when a response is practically guaranteed, e.g., bill payments.

In the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

, the United States Postal Service
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...

 specifies that the envelopes or postcards for courtesy reply mail should be printed with a FIM
Facing Identification Mark
The Facing Identification Mark, or FIM, is a bar code designed by the United States Postal Service to assist in the automated processing of mail. The FIM is a set of vertical bars printed on the envelope or postcard near the upper edge, just to the left of the postage area...

 A code. The POSTNET
POSTNET
POSTNET is a barcode symbology that was used by the United States Postal Service to assist in directing mail. The ZIP Code or ZIP+4 code is encoded in half- and full-height bars...

bar code can be printed on the envelope or postcard; alternatively, it can be printed on a payment coupon so that the bar code is visible through the window of a window envelope when the payment coupon is inserted.
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