So I have a postcrossing postcard going to Belarus , I have read some things about people not being able to send mail there, it’s been a while and I am getting scared about that it may not have even gotten in to Belarus because of postal restrictions? Although I am gonna give it another week or two, I am wondering if the following would work to bypass mail restrictions?
1: find a country that will mail postcards to the country destination
2: buy postage from that country and affix it to the postcard, write the address and message,
3: put postcard in bubble mailer and mail it to a willing person in that country
4: person puts the postcard in their mailbox and it goes to its destination
Theoretically this would work, I just want your guys opinion or other ideas just in case the postcard dosent get to Belarus!
According to the Postal Monitor & the USPS website as of May 13th, 2022, folks in the US can send mail to Belarus now. I’m sure there are delays given the invasion of the Ukraine etc, but you can send it.
And yes, if you want to send a card via another country if you can find someone to do it for you, then that’s an option too, but I wouldn’t do it for an official card, just a forum swap.
I find cards to Belarus take quite a while and remember mail does get lost enroute too.
US sends mail to Belarus, no restrictions. It never stopped to, even when the Postal Monitor said so, there was no suspension, only for some registered express mail. My first-class mail, letters and postcards being delivered with no problem. It may take quite a while though. Even when there was no war, some mail to Belarus travelled for a very-very long time there, and some was lost, but most of it gets there.
I would not do as you suggest with an official Postcrossing card, because it means sharing the recipient’s address with the person who forwards it, without their consent. It would work for exchanging cards through the forum, because you have the opportunity to ask if it’s okay.
Also a simpler option than trying to buy the postage of another country yourself, might be to ask the person forwarding it to do so in exchange for a little something - for example put two cards in an envelope, one for them and one to forward. Or send them some stickers, or used stamps, or something else they enjoy getting.
And by the way in the case of your card to Belarus, I think it’s way too soon to worry! Even if it “expires” in 60 days, it can still be registered as long as it arrives within a year. I see you only joined Postcrossing April 29, so it hasn’t even been traveling a month yet? That’s well within the realm of normal You will learn after awhile that some countries just take longer than others. Hope this helps!
Why a “bubble mailer”? On the second leg of the journey, the card will get some rough treatment anyway!
Why not avoid the plastic waste and make it a normal paper envelope?
(And if you add an extra piece of cardboard to avoid bending, I think that would actually provide more protection than the bubble foil!)
You can also go to few Belarussian postcrosser profiles and see if there’s cards received from your country. I did, and looks like the mail travels, it had taken 40-60 days from USA to Belarus (in the profiles I looked at).
I’ll add the method that has been used by few Indonesian postcrossers
Adding “via (country name that can send mail to destination)” on the bottom of the address line . No stamps from this “via Country” needed.
It’s not recommended, but many have bypassed the mail restrictions this way (faster travel time).
I think as some have stated above, the US still send to Belarus. But maybe many post office & their officers don’t know the update or the status of the mail traffic to certain country (so your cards might be returned). And if it’s for official cards I don’t recommend asking someone in other country to send the cards to their destinations
, I have read some things about people not being able to send mail there, it’s been a while and I am getting scared about that it may not have even gotten in to Belarus because of postal restrictions? Although I am gonna give it another week or two, I am wondering if the following would work to bypass mail restrictions?
You will learn after awhile that some countries just take longer than others. Hope this helps!