GLOSSARY
Business Reply Mail
By Justin Winter · Updated August 28, 2026
A prepaid reply format: the recipient mails something back without a stamp, and the permit holder pays postage only on the pieces actually returned.
Business Reply Mail (BRM) is the envelope or card that says "No postage necessary if mailed in the United States". The permit holder is billed per returned piece, so unreturned ones cost nothing in postage.
It is used for response devices — donation slips, order forms, surveys — where removing the stamp measurably raises the reply rate.
See also
- Permit imprint — Printed postage indicia used instead of stamps or a meter, drawn against a prepaid account held under a USPS mailing permit.
- USPS Marketing Mail — The bulk advertising class, formerly Standard Mail: cheaper per piece, but it requires a permit, a minimum volume, presorting, and it travels slower.
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