Compliance with UPU Standards

For more than 20 years, the UPU has been developing technical and messaging standards in order to support interoperability between designated operators, customs authorities and carriers, particularly through the exchange of electronic messages throughout the mail processing stream. With the continuous development of technology and security requirements, UPU standards are now essential for the postal sector.

As the postal community and its supply chain partners (carriers, customs authorities, handling agents, etc.) come to rely increasingly on digital data exchanges, it is becoming essential that all parties comply with UPU standards (as well as those of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), the International Air Transport Association (IATA), the World Customs Organization (WCO), etc.). This is the first step in ensuring data quality.

Project launch

The project to measure compliance with UPU standards was launched at the end of 2017 within the framework of the then Quality of Service Group, under the Postal Operations Council (POC). Implementation of this project is supported by POC Committee 1 (Supply Chain) and Committee 2 (Physical Services).

Scope

The project is cross-cutting and covers all mail products, regardless of the electronic data interchange (EDI) network used for message exchanges and the mode of international mail transport. Compliance checks cover all EDI messages and the most widely used technical standards, including those governing international mail processing centres (IMPCs) and identifiers.

Output

The UPU conducts all compliance measurements centrally, based on EDI messages. Data privacy is ensured for each participating party.

Each participant receives detailed reports on a monthly basis. Designated operators also receive a dashboard providing an overview of the various compliance indicators and the evolution thereof.

Participation

Participation in the project is free of charge. The list of project participants is provided below. Designated operators and carriers that wish to participate should contact the International Bureau by e-mail at compliance.standards@upu.int.