A Commercial Mail Receiving Agency (CMRA) is a private business that accepts mail from the Postal Service™ for recipients, keeps it for collection (usually a private mailbox, "PMB"), or re-mails it to another location with newly paid postage. Customers are responsible for the expenses associated with the services provided by the CMRA stores such as Mail Boxes etc., PostNet, Postal Annex, and Pak Mail.
A CMRA is sometimes referred to as an OBC (Office Business Center) or a CEC (Corporate Executive Center). A Corporate Executive Center offers customers a small suite or a private office space, as well as shared office services such as mail receipt and re-mailing.
General Guidelines
- The United States Postal Service delivers all of a CMRA customer’s mail to the CMRA but is not responsible for putting the mail in the individual CMRA mailboxes.
- If you have a problem with a CMRA (including an OBC or CEC), you need to contact the CMRA (not the Postal Service™) to resolve it.
- You must go to the local Post Office site to accept Registered Mail items. A CMRA / OBC / CECs may accept other Accountable Mail items.
- To receive Restricted Delivery items in your CMRA location, make sure to authorize the Postal Service by signing in box #5 on PS Form 1583.
- Mail can be shipped to a CMRA, but not from a CMRA.
- It is a long-standing Postal policy that only addressees can refuse mail. Form 1583 on file at both the CMRA and the Post Office, obligates the CMRA to accept its customer's mail.