The Postal Service will not block a specific sender for you, so blocking someone from sending you mail is really a question of what you do with the mail after it arrives and how far you’re willing to escalate. Your practical options are to refuse and return each piece unopened, send a documented cease-and-desist demand, obtain a protective order that makes further contact illegal, or report threatening mail to police and postal inspectors. Which one fits depends on whether the mail is unwanted, harassing, or genuinely dangerous.
Why USPS Won’t Stop Delivery From One Person
There is no service that lets you name a person and tell the post office to stop delivering their letters to you. USPS is built to deliver everything that carries valid postage and a valid address, and it does not screen incoming mail by sender name. The delivery-restriction services that do exist, like Certified Mail Restricted Delivery, give the sender control over who signs for a piece at the destination. They give the recipient nothing.1FAQ | USPS. How Can I Restrict Mail Delivery
That means the tools that actually work sit outside the postal system. USPS will help you send mail back, but it will not stop the mail from coming.
Refuse and Return Each Piece Unopened
The first and simplest step is refusal. If you catch the carrier at the door, decline the piece on the spot. If it’s already in your mailbox but you haven’t opened it, write “Refused” on the outside and put it back in the box or hand it to your carrier. USPS returns it to the sender at no cost to you.2USPS. DMM 508 Recipient Services
One rule matters here: the piece must be unopened. Once you open the envelope or any attachment on it, you lose the right to refuse and return it postage-free. To send it back at that point you’d need a new envelope and fresh postage.3Postal Explorer – USPS. Customer Support Ruling – Mailpieces Opened After Delivery Registered Mail, insured packages, Certified Mail, and collect-on-delivery items also can’t be refused and returned postage-free after delivery.2USPS. DMM 508 Recipient Services
Refusal doesn’t legally compel the sender to stop. What it does is send a consistent signal and build a paper trail. If you later go to court, a pattern of refused mail helps show the contact was unwanted.
Send a Cease-and-Desist Letter
Before involving police or a judge, many people send a cease-and-desist: a written demand telling the sender to stop contacting you. On its own, it carries no legal force. The sender isn’t required to comply. Its value is evidentiary. It creates a dated record proving the sender was told, in writing, that their contact was unwanted, and that record is what carries weight later if you need to show a court that harassment continued after clear notice.
Send it by Certified Mail with Return Receipt Requested so you have proof it was delivered. As of January 2026, that runs $5.30 for Certified Mail plus $4.40 for the physical return receipt, totaling $9.70 on top of regular postage.4United States Postal Service. Domestic – Extra Services and Fees The signed receipt is your proof of exactly when the sender received your demand. After that, don’t respond to anything they mail you. Any reply, even an angry one, can undermine a later harassment claim.
Get a Protective Order
A court-issued protective order (called a restraining order in some states) is the most direct legal tool for stopping mail contact. These orders typically bar both direct and indirect contact, which covers physical mail, electronic messages, and communication through third parties. Once one is in place, every piece of mail the person sends you is a criminal violation the police can act on.
The process varies by state, but the general path looks like this:
- File a petition with your local court explaining the harassment or threat. Many states waive filing fees in domestic violence and stalking cases.
- A judge may issue a temporary order almost immediately, based on your petition alone, before the other person has a chance to respond.
- Both sides appear at a hearing within a few weeks. If the judge finds sufficient grounds, a longer-term order is issued, often lasting up to five years depending on the jurisdiction.
- The other person must be formally served with the order, either by law enforcement or a private process server.
Keep every piece of mail the person sends after the order takes effect. Each one is a separate violation and strengthens the case for enforcement.
Report Threats to Police and Postal Inspectors
When mail contains threats or feels dangerous, two agencies need to hear from you. Local police handle the immediate safety issue. The U.S. Postal Inspection Service investigates crimes involving the mail system itself and can be reached at 1-877-876-2455.5United States Postal Inspection Service. Threatening Letters and Cyberbullying
Federal law treats threatening mail seriously. Mailing a communication that threatens to kidnap or injure someone is a federal crime under 18 U.S.C. § 876, and a pattern of unwanted mail intended to harass or intimidate can qualify as federal stalking under 18 U.S.C. § 2261A when it causes reasonable fear of harm or substantial emotional distress.6Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 876 – Mailing Threatening Communications7Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 2261A – Stalking A single unpleasant letter rarely triggers these statutes; stalking requires a course of conduct, and a threat charge requires an actual threat rather than hostile language. When mail does cross those lines, though, the consequences for the sender are severe.
Keep the originals as evidence. Don’t throw them away, even if you want them out of the house. Handle them as little as possible and store them in plastic bags to preserve any forensic evidence. If a package feels unusually heavy, has no return address, or shows powder or staining, don’t open it. Call 911.
Documenting the Pattern
Whatever route you take, treat every piece as evidence from the first one. Keep a log with the date each item arrived, the sender’s name and return address if any, and a short description of the contents. Photograph or scan the envelope and letter before storing the originals. When you later ask a court or a prosecutor to act, this record is what turns your account into a case.
The One USPS Order, and Why It Probably Doesn’t Fit
USPS does have one order that comes close to a sender block, and it’s worth knowing about mainly so you don’t waste time on it. Under 39 U.S.C. § 3008, you can file PS Form 1500 to request a prohibitory order against a mailer whose advertisement you find erotically arousing or sexually provocative. The order directs that sender to stop mailing you and to remove your name from their mailing lists.8Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 39 USC 3008 – Prohibition of Pandering Advertisements
The form’s own instructions describe it as a tool against “a specific mailer advertising a product or service.”9United States Postal Service. PS Form 1500 Application for Listing and/or Prohibitory Order It was built for commercial advertising, not personal letters from someone you know. If your problem is an individual sender, the protective order and criminal-report paths above are the ones that fit.
If the Mail Isn’t Really for You, Don’t Trash It
One warning for a related situation. If mail keeps arriving at your address for someone else, such as an ex-partner who moved out, a former tenant, or a previous homeowner, do not throw it away. Federal law makes it a crime to take or destroy mail before it’s been delivered to the person it was addressed to, punishable by up to five years in prison.10Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 1702 – Obstruction of Correspondence Write “Return to Sender — Person No Longer at This Address” on the envelope and put it back in the mailbox.