Move Update

Your Guide to Understanding Move Update

Move Update refers to a program that the Postal Service initiated in November of 2008.  In essence, it requires that all mailing lists used for discounted postage rates on mailings in the Presorted First Class, Standard, and Nonprofit classifications must be as up-to-date and deliverable as possible.  For an overview of this program, please click here.

One of the main methods of complying with the requirements of Move Update is running files against the National Change of Address (NCOA) database that is maintained by the Postal Service.  It contains the last four years of change-of-address filings by residents and businesses.  Before we can run a file through NCOA, the Post Office requires that a Processing Acknowledgement Form (PAF) be completed by the list owner or its authorized representative.  This form gives the Post Office the authorization it needs under the Privacy Act of 1974 to make the necessary address changes to your file.  To download a copy of this form, click here. It can be emailed back to us at sales@coloradodatamail.com or faxed to us at 303-592-1554.

The PAF has a blank asking for the NAICS, which is a number that represents the type of work that you do.  We can look up that number for you, or you can go to www.naics.com/search to obtain the number yourself.

If we do not do the NCOA processing here, we ask that you to complete and return a Certificate of Compliance to us.  When we fill out and submit a Postal Form 3602 or related document for your mailing, we have to sign the form, thereby certifying that the list is in compliance with Move Update.  If we have not done the NCOA work on the file, it is hard for us to “certify” that the list is in compliance.  Therefore, we ask that a Certificate of Compliance be filled out and returned to us via email at sales@coloradodatamail.com or fax at 303-592-1554.  To download a copy of this certificate, click here.

If we do the NCOA processing at CDM, we will return a copy of the updated list to you, along with another file containing the address records that the Post Office says may be undeliverable for one of a number of reasons.  This list will contain return codes, which are numbers that give the reasons why an address may be undeliverable.  To download a document that explains these files and the return codes, click here.