If they filed a change of address, USPS forwards their First-Class Mail for 12 months. Ads are different: USPS doesn’t forward most ad mail, so it can keep coming.
The quick answer
- Return personal mail marked “Not at this address.” Don’t erase the address.
- Letters still arriving in their name may mean they never filed a change of address, or their forwarding has ended.
- For catalogs and offers in that name, ask each company to remove the name from your address. Here’s how.
- Keep a short list of names you’ve asked about, so repeats are easy to spot.
Why the ads outlast the bills
- USPS says standard mail forwarding lasts 12 months, and the mover can pay to extend it. First-Class Mail is forwarded for free.
- USPS Marketing Mail isn’t forwarded unless the sender paid for forwarding. Ad mail in their name can keep arriving at your address until the mailer updates or drops it from its list.
- Returned ad mail with no endorsement is disposed of by USPS, so marking it alone may not reach the sender.
- There’s no set end date for ad mail. The company request is what changes it.
Good to know
- USPS forwards magazines and other periodicals free for 60 days if the sender prepaid it.
- Mail for someone who never lived with you works the same way: here’s what to do.
- Don’t throw it away: why returning it beats the trash.
Sources
- USPS, Standard Forward Mail: forwarding lasts 12 months; paid extensions of 6, 12 or 18 months; First-Class free; Periodicals 60 days if prepaid; Marketing Mail not forwarded unless the sender paid forwarding postage.
- USPS, Domestic Mail Manual 507, Exhibit 1.5.3 (no endorsement: disposed of by USPS); USPS, How is undeliverable and misdelivered mail handled?. Last checked November 5, 2026.
Making it stop for good: How to stop mail for previous residents →
Or let us do it: Move-in Reset
Forward us your free USPS Informed Delivery preview, or snap a photo of the mail. We spot former residents’ names, ask each mailer to drop them, and follow up to check that it stopped. Mail from companies you use is never touched without your yes.
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