Return receipt
A return receipt is a type of delivery in the Austrian postal system.
RSa letter
An RSa letter (return receipt letter a; synonym: blue letter ) is an official document in Austria . It is not a registered mail , but a non-certified shipment with a special order or the official delivery of a document, which, in contrast to the RSb letter , may only be delivered to the recipient himself (authorship). As an alternative to the recipient, a person with a postal power of attorney can also accept certain RSa letters. The use of the RSa letter must be expressly stipulated in the relevant material law, otherwise delivery via RSb letter is sufficient.
If the recipient is not present at the time of delivery, the document will be deposited at the nearest post office and a "notification of the deposit of an official document" will be left in the mailbox. This tells where and when you can pick up the letter. With the start of this period stated on the communication, the document is deemed to have been served ( delivery fiction ), which means that in the case of deadlines for appeal, a deadline can be missed by not remedying it in good time. When picking up, you must bring the notification about the deposit and an official photo ID (passport, identity card, driver's license, identity card) for identification.
Previously, a second delivery attempt was planned if the first failed. This provision proved to be inadequate, since the majority of the recipients who were not to be found on the first attempt at delivery could not be served with the document on the second attempt. Since January 1, 2008, only one delivery attempt is planned.
Examples of RSa letters are judicial letter (request for jury service, judgments in criminal matters, charges) and errands in administrative (criminal) matters (decisions, administrative fines , driver identification , penal, penal ...) and privacy information from authorities. The draft orders of the Austrian Armed Forces are also sent in RSa letters. It is also possible to activate the Austrian citizen card via RSa letter.
There are two types of RSa letters: firstly, there are “normal” RSa letters, which can also be delivered to authorized postal agents, and secondly those with the addition “Not to authorized postal agents”. These are then to be taken over or picked up by the recipient himself; in the case of legal entities , delivery is only permitted to the managing director, board of directors or authorized signatory, who must also be entered in the company register as an authorized representative.
A special feature concerns “professional party representatives” (lawyers, notaries, public accountants). Their employees are also allowed to accept RSa letters without a postal authorization. Another special feature applies to government employees. If the authority employee is authorized to use a round seal , he does not need a postal power of attorney either and must affix the seal when signing.
RSb letter
In Austria, RSb letter (return receipt letter b) means the delivery of an official or judicial document (such as a notification or judgment) in accordance with the provisions of the Delivery Act (white envelope). New passports are also sent via RSb letters. This procedure, although the delivery of a passport does not trigger any deadlines, leads to delivery problems in the outskirts of the Post , as no official mail is delivered in these districts.
In contrast to "delivery to your own hands" ( RSa letter ), which is only possible to the recipient himself, the RSb letter can also be sent to a so-called substitute recipient (household member, employee or employer of the recipient). A deposit at the responsible post office or the authority is possible - as with the RSa letter (envelope color blue) - if the recipient is only temporarily absent. Since July 1, 2009, the shipments previously sent with RSa letters, orders for payment to defendants, execution permits to third-party debtors and decisions that are to be served according to the provisions on the service of lawsuits (Section 106 ZPO) are no longer delivered personally.
Return receipt
All RS letters have a return receipt affixed to the envelope, which contains the sender, the recipient, postmark and the recipient's signature or a deposit note. This is then separated from the letter and sent back to the sending office or authority.
Since the return receipt letters are not returned items, no posting slip is required and the sender does not receive any proof of posting. Of course, an RS letter can also be sent as a recruited letter. Return receipt letters may not be sent as insured letters. The sender only has the necessary evidence when the return receipt section is returned. If a return receipt is lost, the consignment will either be re-delivered (sent) or a so-called “duplicate return receipt” will be handed over to Swiss Post with the request, if the first delivery was possible, to certify this retrospectively.
Acknowledgment of receipt letters are public documents. In principle, an arrival stamp must be affixed to the back of the return receipt.
The delivery law applies to RSa and RSb mail. Offices, authorities and courts are only entitled to send acknowledgment letters if this is done “in compliance with the law”, i.e. through sovereign, unilateral action. However, if these are active in the private sector administration, they must also send like any other private person without applying the delivery law.
In principle, documents from authorities must be delivered by Swiss Post organs . A return receipt envelope must be used without exception. If documents are delivered directly by messengers of the respective authority or organs of the community, they must be handed over unlocked and certified by means of a delivery note.
Ordinary return receipts
As a special one-off - and in contrast to RSa and RSb mailings largely unknown - there are also “Ordinary return receipt letters” (GRS). These have no official character and do not fall under the delivery law. They are therefore only deemed to have been delivered when they are actually taken over or through delivery fiction. Anyone can also send a normal return receipt (RSa and RSb mailings are reserved for the offices and authorities). The GRS is also not a registered letter. Of course, it is also possible to send this by registered mail for a higher transport fee (also applies to RSa and RSb). While an RSa or RSb is being deposited, the recipient is notified via a GRS.
The great advantage of the GRS is that you can find out if and when the letter actually arrived and by whom it was received. With RSa and RSb, the sender only finds out who has taken him over if he has not been deposited but has been taken over directly by the deliverer. If the letter has been deposited, the return receipt will still be returned to the sender, but without confirmation of acceptance. The confirmation of acceptance upon deposit is given on the deposit notification.
With GRS, however, the return receipt section remains on the envelope until the letter has been accepted.
These return receipt letters were previously sent by A1 Telekom Austria as a reordered item when the telephone bill had to be dunned, by the Catholic church fee office for defaulting church fee payers as well as by compulsory schools and the personnel and legal departments of the Post.
Difference between notification and deposit
The fundamental difference between notification and deposit is the type of shipment. Official letters, i.e. letters of return receipt, are deposited while the recipient of "normal" items (i.e. certified, non-certified and non-certified items with a special order), i.e. registered mail, cash on delivery, additional charges (assessed), insured letters, money deliveries, postal orders and so on is notified. The only thing they have in common is that they are kept ready for collection at the nearest post office (exception: money items; these can be picked up at any post office throughout Austria, but not at Post.Partner or Post service points).
Procedure for the deposit
The return receipt will be deposited (abbreviation "hin") if the recipient was not found. However, the period begins with the deposit, i. H. the objection, appeal or appeal period. Even if you read the letter z. B. collects only one week after the deposit, the period already began to run, and the recipient thus only has an appeal period shortened by this week.
In the case of particularly important content, letters of return receipt are sometimes sent to the post as re-ordered items. Then of course the delivery law applies and the letter is deposited accordingly. However, the recipient must then provide two signatures for a shipment, one on the (electronic) delivery card of the deliverer and another on the return receipt. When making a deposit, a signature must be made on the post office's reco list and on the deposit notification.
How to proceed with the notification
In the case of letters of which the addressee is notified (abbreviation “ben”), there is usually no time limit. In principle, this letter must actually have been received. However, some regulations, collective agreements or general terms and conditions stipulate that the letter, even if it has not actually been received, is deemed to have been received three days after posting. However, this approach is not undisputed.
However, authorities are also entitled not to post a shipment as a return receipt. Social welfare offices in particular make use of this by normally posting social cards (social passports) as reclaimed items, as there is no time limit for delivery and the task is better documented, so that in the event of loss, compensation can be claimed from the post office and the location of the loss can be determined more easily is.
Hybrid return receipt
A barcode is affixed to the delivery item, which then serves as a unique identification of the shipment. At the same time, Swiss Post is notified electronically in advance with a so-called notification data record (address information, etc.) for each delivery. The letter is then taken to a central Post distribution point, where the barcode is recorded in the system. The deliverer then prints out a so-called delivery card on which the recipient confirms receipt of the shipment. This card is then sent to a central Swiss Post scanning service, where it is scanned and then picked up by the sender in electronic form (PDF). At the same time, the successful delivery is noted in the Post system and also transmitted to the sender as electronic proof of delivery.
Absence from location
In order to avoid disadvantages caused by delivery when you are absent from the location (e.g. vacation, hospital stay, cure, etc.), a declaration of absence should be submitted to the post office and when you have registered with the electronic delivery service.
Individual evidence
- ↑ Federal Law Gazette I No. 5/2008
- ↑ Ombudsman Board : If the postman rings “not once”
- ↑ Budget Accompanying Act 2009 ( Federal Law Gazette I No. 52/2009 )
- ^ Österreichische Post Aktiengesellschaft, GZ 107634-MB / 01 of March 27, 2001
- ↑ Post office form for absence from location