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One of the most common mistakes we see at the Division of Mail Management Services involves incorrect use of the USPS-designated, two-letter state abbreviations.  Using the wrong state abbreviation can cause major delay in the delivery of your important correspondence, which can then result in missed deadlines and lost research opportunities.

States with a similar spelling are often incorrectly abbreviated. People often confuse:

• Alaska – AK            with       Alabama – AL
• Arkansas – AR       with       Alaska – AK
• Arizona – AZ          with       Arkansas – AR                
• Montana - MT      with       Missouri – MO
• Minnesota – MN,  Missouri – MO,  Mississippi – MS, and   Marshall Islands – MH    with    Michigan – MI