If you live abroad and need a US address for mail, you have four options: a family member's address, a USPS PO Box, a commercial mailbox, or a registered agent for a company. Each one receives different mail, and only some can be set up from outside the US.
The post compares those four options on two questions. First, what mail can each one receive for you? Second, which steps have to happen inside the US? We read the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) PS Form 1093, Domestic Mail Manual (DMM) sections 508 and 608.10, and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Instructions for Form 1040 and Form 8822, on October 30, 2026.
How USPS forwards mail to a foreign address, and the change-of-address steps to take before you leave, are already covered in can I forward my US mail overseas. We don't repeat them here. We sell virtual mailboxes, and the section before the FAQ gives our own view.
Which option fits which kind of mail
Each option receives a different range of mail, and each one has a different step that must happen inside the US. The table shows what we found in the texts.
| Option | What mail it receives | What has to happen inside the US | How mail reaches you abroad |
|---|---|---|---|
| A family member's or friend's address | Mail delivered as addressed, which "a competent member of the addressee's family" may receive (DMM 508.1.4.1) | Nothing to set up. Mail marked "Restricted Delivery" goes only to you or an agent authorized in writing (508.1.1.8) | Your relative reads it to you, scans it, or remails it with new postage |
| USPS PO Box | "any mail properly addressed to the box number" (DMM 508.4.3.1) | Two IDs are shown and the keys are handed over "at the Post Office where your box is located" (PS Form 1093) | Someone empties the box. Premium Forwarding Service Residential, the option for a personal box, runs between domestic addresses only (508.7.2.5) |
| Commercial mailbox (CMRA) | "U.S. Mail is inclusive of all classes of mail" (DMM 508.1.8.1) | PS Form 1583, which you can sign over live audio and video or before a notary commissioned in a US jurisdiction | The agency scans on request or "remails it to the addressee, prepaid with new postage" (508.1.8.2) |
| Registered agent, for a US company only | Legal papers and state notices only. Ordinary mail is a separate service | Hiring a commercial agent. In Delaware and California, an individual agent must be a resident of that state | The agent forwards legal papers to you. Ordinary mail is not part of the job |
How a family member's address works under USPS rules
USPS delivers to the address on the envelope. DMM 508.1.1.1 says: "Addressees may control delivery of their mail. Without a contrary order, the mail is delivered as addressed." If your bank mails a card in your name to your sister's house, the carrier delivers it there.
Who may take the mail from the carrier is set in DMM 508.1.4.1:
"Unless otherwise directed, an addressee's mail may be delivered to an employee, to a competent member of the addressee's family, or to any person authorized to represent the addressee. A person or several persons may designate another to receive their mail."
A friend counts under the last sentence, because you may designate another person to receive your mail. A relative who takes your mail for free is also not a commercial mail receiving agency. DMM 508.1.8.1 defines that agency as a business that accepts mail "as a business service."
We also searched DMM 508 sections 1.1, 1.4 and 1.8 for a rule against receiving mail at another person's address, and found none. The word "friend" appears 0 times, "relative" appears 0 times, and "family" appears once, in the sentence quoted above.
Three limits come with this option.
Mail that needs a signature. Certified Mail, Priority Mail Express and other signature services follow DMM 508.1.1.7. Item (b) says a piece "may not be opened or given to the recipient before the recipient signs and legibly prints his or her name on the applicable form or label" and returns it. Item (c) says a primary ID "may be required of the recipient before delivery of the mailpiece." Under 1.4.1, your relative may receive your mail unless you or the sender directed otherwise, and whoever takes a signature piece signs for it.
Restricted Delivery. DMM 508.1.1.8 says postal employees must deliver mail marked "Restricted Delivery" "only to the addressee or person authorized in writing as the addressee's agent" and under listed conditions. Without written authorization, your relative cannot collect that piece.
Pieces nobody collects. Under 508.1.1.7(f), USPS leaves a notice for a piece it cannot deliver. The rule continues: "If the piece is not called for or redelivery is not requested, the piece is returned to the sender after 15 days (5 days for Priority Mail Express, 10 days for COD), unless the sender specifies fewer days on the piece."
One more rule helps if your relative lives in an apartment building. Under 508.1.1.7(d), when the sender did not restrict delivery, mail addressed to a person at a hotel or apartment house "may be delivered to any person in a position to whom mail for that location is usually delivered."
Getting the mail from your relative to you is not a USPS service. Your relative reads it to you, scans it, or remails it with new postage and a customs form where one is needed. What USPS itself will forward to a foreign address, and which customs form goes on an envelope, are in can I forward my US mail overseas.
How a USPS PO Box works when you are outside the country
DMM 508.4.1.1 describes Post Office Box (PO Box) service as a premium service offered for a fee "to any customer" and to some customers for no fee. We read all of section 4.0, and the section sets no residence or nationality condition. The words "nonresident," "outside," "foreign," "international" and "abroad" appear 0 times each in that section. What the section sets is a procedure, and the procedure ends at a Post Office counter.
PS Form 1093 gives two ways to apply. You can apply online on the USPS PO Boxes page and make your first payment with a credit or debit card. Or you can fill in pages 3 and 4 of the form and take it to a Post Office. Either way, the ID step is the same. The form says:
"Whether you apply online or at a Post Office, two valid forms of identification (one photo and one non-photo) are required when you obtain your keys or combination at the Post Office where your box is located. You must present the IDs at a Post Office."
The DMM says the same for an online application. Under 508.4.2.1, "The applicant must present an unsigned printout of the online Form 1093 in person to the Post Office and, upon approval, receive the box number and keys or lock combination." So a PO Box can be started from abroad, but the keys are handed over in the US. In the form and in section 4.0, we found no sentence that bars a person living abroad from holding a PO Box. The texts put the ID and key step at the counter.
The ID list accepts a foreign passport. The photo ID options on PS Form 1093 include "Passport, passport card, alien registration card, or certificate of naturalization." DMM 608.10.3 defines the first word: "Passport: This includes a U.S. passport, U.S. passport card, or foreign passport." The non-photo options on the form are "Current lease, mortgage, or deed of trust," "Voter or vehicle registration card," and "Home or vehicle insurance policy." DMM 608.10.4 explains their purpose, which is "to verify the validity of the address the customer provided" on the application. The same section adds: "Customers may provide as an acceptable secondary form of identification an additional acceptable primary form of identification." The form notes that Social Security cards, credit cards and birth certificates are not accepted.
We counted "passport" 4 times in PS Form 1093, and "foreign" once, in the Privacy Act notice on page 4. Item 4 of the application has lines for number and street, city, state and ZIP+4, and no line for a country. The missing country line is a layout observation. The form does not say the address must be in the US.
Once the box is open, DMM 508.4.3.1 says the customer "may receive through the box any mail properly addressed to the box number." The hard part is emptying it. DMM 508.4.3.3 says: "A box customer must remove mail promptly from the box. If mail will not be removed from the box for more than 30 days and an overflow condition is probable, the customer must make prior arrangements with the postmaster."
The form offers two answers for an unattended box. One is Hold Mail, and the form says "Hold Mail orders are good for only 30 days." The other is Premium Forwarding Service, which ships the box contents by Priority Mail once a week for a fee. We counted the words in DMM 508 section 7.0, the Premium Forwarding rules. The words "international," "foreign," "overseas" and "abroad" appear 0 times each, and "domestic" appears once. The one sentence with "domestic" is quoted in our post on forwarding US mail overseas. Under 508.7.2.4, the request itself is made on Form 8176 "at the Post Office serving the primary delivery address," with the same two forms of ID.
So a PO Box held from abroad needs a person in the US who can empty it. Under item 11a of the form, each adult listed on the application presents two forms of ID at the Post Office, so, in our reading, a relative listed on the application can be that person. USPS also does not allow the box to be used mainly for free forwarding. DMM 508.4.3.5 says: "A PO box may not be used when the primary purpose is to have the USPS forward or transfer mail to another address free of charge." USPS General Delivery holds each piece at a Post Office for no more than 30 days (DMM 508.6.4).
How a commercial mailbox works from abroad
A virtual mailbox is a private mailbox at a commercial mail receiving agency (CMRA). DMM 508.1.8.1 defines the term:
"A Commercial Mail Receiving Agency (CMRA) is defined as a business that, in whole or in part, accepts the delivery of U.S. Mail on behalf of another person or entity as a business service. U.S. Mail is inclusive of all classes of mail."
The last sentence answers the mail question, because a CMRA receives every class of mail. What the agency does with it is in 508.1.8.2: "The CMRA accepts delivery of the mail and holds it for pickup or remails it to the addressee, prepaid with new postage."
The DMM also plans for scanning. Under 508.1.8.4, the customer "must provide the remail address (or email if correspondence is scanned for digital delivery) on PS Form 1583." The same section says "Mail that is remailed by the CMRA requires new postage." So the agency can email you a scan, or put new postage on the original and send it on.
The setup step is PS Form 1583. DMM 508.1.8.3 says "A separate PS Form 1583 must be completed for each addressee of a Private Mail Box (PMB) for residential or personal use." DMM 608 Exhibit 10.2 marks both the PO Box and the CMRA as products that need a primary and a secondary ID, so the document list is the same as for a PO Box. The difference is where you present it. For a PO Box, you present it at the counter. For a CMRA, the form lets you sign in front of the agent over live audio and video, or before a notary commissioned in a US state, territory, possession, or the District of Columbia. Both routes, and what a foreign passport and a foreign home address do on the form, are in why PS Form 1583 gets rejected.
Providers are compared by reader type, including expats, in best virtual mailbox services. We don't rank them here.
What a registered agent receives if you run a US company
A registered agent is the person or company that accepts legal papers for your business. Our registered agent guide explains that a founder living outside the US almost always has to hire one. In Delaware and California, an individual agent must be a resident of that state, so a person abroad hires a company instead.
The agent's job is narrow. In Delaware, the agent must forward service of process and the annual tax notice to you, under § 18-104(e)(1). Ordinary business mail is not part of that job, and most agents leave it out. The agent's address exists to receive legal papers. The address is not your principal place of business, and banks set their own address rules.
So a registered agent keeps your company reachable for lawsuits and state notices. If your limited liability company (LLC) or corporation also needs ordinary mail while you are abroad, that is a separate mailing address, which is what a Virtual Business Address is for.
What you can update to a foreign address, and what you should ask about
Keeping a US address is one path, and giving a foreign address to the people who write to you is the other. For the IRS, the forms allow it.
The Instructions for Form 1040 (2025) have a section headed "Foreign Address." The text says: "If you have a foreign address, enter the city name on the appropriate line. Don't enter any other information on that line, but do complete the spaces below that line (Foreign country name, Foreign province/state/county, and Foreign postal code)." The next sentence says "Don't abbreviate the country name." The same instructions say: "If you plan to move after filing your return, use Form 8822 to notify the IRS of your new address."
Form 8822 has the same spaces. Line 7 reads: "New address (no., street, apt. no., city or town, state, and ZIP code). If a P.O. box, see instructions. If foreign address, also complete spaces below, see instructions." The instruction for a foreign address says: "Follow the country's practice for entering the postal code. Please do not abbreviate the country." The form says: "Generally, it takes 4 to 6 weeks to process a change of address." If your old home mailing address was in a foreign country, look at the Where To File table. For an income tax change, where the box on line 2 is not checked, the table sends the form to the IRS in Austin, TX 73301-0023. Line 2 covers gift, estate or generation-skipping transfer tax returns.
A common claim says the IRS refuses a box number. The 1040 instructions attach a condition to a box number: "Enter your box number only if your post office doesn't deliver mail to your home." The Form 8822 rule on a box, the "C/O" option for mail through a third party, and the warning about missing a notice of deficiency are quoted in can I use a virtual mailbox for personal mail.
Banks are different. We can't answer "which US banks allow a foreign address" from a rule, because the federal customer identification rule leaves the checking method to each bank. The rule is quoted in the same post. Each bank's own policy decides whether a foreign address, or a mailbox address, fits its account record, so ask your bank before you move. We don't keep a list of bank policies.
State residency, driver's licenses, voter registration and tax residency are outside this post. Whether you are still a resident of a state or of the US is a tax and legal question, and the USPS and IRS texts we read don't answer it.
A mailing address is not the same as where you live
Every option in this post is a mailing address, and a mailing address answers where your letters go. Many forms ask a different question, which is where you live, and each form phrases it in its own words. A mailbox form, a bank's account form and a driver's license application each ask for where you live, with their own checks. The text of each field, and whether it mentions private mailboxes, is in can I use a virtual mailbox for personal mail. None of the four options is a residence, and none of them answers where you are a resident for state or tax purposes.
How Auteur handles a US address for someone living abroad
We sell virtual mailboxes, so this is the seller's view. Auteur is in pre-launch, and your exact street address is assigned the day your city opens. Our mailbox page says: "Founders outside the US are who we built this for. That is why Henry speaks your language, and why our onboarding is being built so USPS Form 1583 works from anywhere." Our fair use policy says: "Forwarding costs the actual carrier postage and nothing else." No destination country list appears in the policy, so check with us about where you live before you rely on paper forwarding.
The Virtual Business Address receives mail in a business or trade name. Choose it if your mail comes to an LLC, a corporation or a DBA (doing business as) name. The Virtual Mailing Address is for personal mail, in individual names only.
Both plans photograph the envelope of every piece, and we open and scan only when you ask, for one flat fee per piece. Henry, our AI assistant, explains each letter you ask us to open. USPS Form 1583 is required before any provider can receive mail for you. Pricing comes by email with the next steps, and our fees and limits are in our fair use policy.
If you live abroad and need a US address for personal mail, get your Virtual Mailing Address. If you run a US company from abroad, the Virtual Business Address is the plan to choose. Ordering is free, there's no card, and nothing is charged today.
FAQ
Can I keep a US address while living abroad?
Yes. A family member's address, a USPS PO Box, a commercial mailbox and a registered agent each give you a US address, and each receives a different range of mail. The PO Box needs you at a Post Office counter for ID and keys. Item 11a of PS Form 1093 says each adult listed on the application also presents two forms of ID. A commercial mailbox needs a signed PS Form 1583, which has routes that work from abroad. A registered agent covers legal papers only, for a company.
Can I open a USPS PO Box from outside the United States?
You can start online. PS Form 1093 says two IDs are required "when you obtain your keys or combination at the Post Office where your box is located," and DMM 508.4.2.1 says the applicant presents a printout "in person to the Post Office" before getting the keys. The texts we read set no residence condition, but the key step cannot be completed from abroad.
Can I give the IRS a foreign address?
The Instructions for Form 1040 have a "Foreign Address" section that tells you how to enter the city, country, province and postal code, and says "Don't abbreviate the country name." Form 8822 line 7 has the same spaces for a new address. The form says a change generally takes 4 to 6 weeks to process, and an income tax change from a foreign old address goes to the IRS in Austin, TX, when the line 2 box is not checked.
Can my family member sign for my Certified Mail?
DMM 508.1.4.1 says that unless otherwise directed, mail "may be delivered to an employee, to a competent member of the addressee's family, or to any person authorized to represent the addressee." For a signature piece, 508.1.1.7(b) says it may not be given to the recipient before the recipient signs. If the sender chose Restricted Delivery, 508.1.1.8 limits delivery "only to the addressee or person authorized in writing as the addressee's agent." Ask the sender which service they used.
Is a virtual mailbox address proof that I live in the US?
No. A virtual mailbox is a mailing address at a commercial mail receiving agency. Forms that ask where you live use their own words and their own checks, and those fields are covered in can I use a virtual mailbox for personal mail. State residency and tax residency are outside this post.
This post explains USPS mailing standards, IRS form instructions and our own published policy. The post isn't legal or tax advice.
Bottom line
If you live abroad, four options keep a US address for you. A relative's address works for ordinary mail, because USPS delivers as addressed and DMM 508.1.4.1 lets a family member receive it. A USPS PO Box receives any mail addressed to the box, but PS Form 1093 puts the ID and key step at a Post Office counter. A commercial mailbox receives all classes of mail and can scan or remail it, with a PS Form 1583 that has signing routes from abroad. A registered agent covers legal papers for a company only. For the IRS, the Form 1040 instructions and Form 8822 both have spaces for a foreign address, and each bank sets its own rule.
