This list shows an overview of postal code notation schemes for all countries that have postal/ZIP code systems:
Key
- 9: Digits.
- A: Letters.
- *: Postal code placed to the right of the region, city, suburb or town.
A-B
- Afghanistan : No postal code used.
- Åland: (AX-)99999 Note: Country code: AX even though part of the Finnish postal code system.
- Albania: (AL-)9999. Introduced in 2006, gradually implemented throughout 2007.
- Algeria: 99999
- American Samoa: 99999* or 99999-9999*. US territory - part of the US zip-code system.
- Andorra: AD999 each parish now has its own post code. See Postal services in Andorra.
- Angola: No postal code used.
- Anguilla: AI-2640. Single code used for all addresses.
- Antigua and Barbuda: No postal code used.
- Argentina: A9999AAA. The first letter (A) indicates the province, the four numbers (9999) are the old postal codes, the three last letters (AAA) indicate a side of the block. Previously 9999 which remains the minimum requirement as of 2006. See also Argentine postal code.
- Armenia: 9999 since April 1, 2006. Previously used 999999 system inherited from former Soviet Union. See Armenian postal codes.
- Aruba: No postal codes used.
- Ascension Island: ASCN 1ZZ. Single code used for all addresses.
- Australia: known as the "postcode": 9999*. In general, the first digit identifies the state or territory. See List of postal codes in Australia
- Australian Antarctic Territory: 9999*. Part of the Australian postcode system.
- Austria: (A- or AT-)9999 (the first digit denotes one of the nine provinces -- called Bundesländer --, the last the nearest post office in the area)
- Azerbaijan: AZ9999 Previously used 999999 system inherited from former Soviet Union.
- Bahamas: No postal code used.
- Bahrain: 999 or 9999. Valid postcodes are 199 to 1299, corresponding with the 12 administrative subdivisions of the kingdom.
- Bangladesh: 9999*
- Barbados: BB99999 --, See also List of postal codes in Barbados
- Belarus: (BY-)999999 Retained system inherited from former Soviet Union.
- Belgium: (B- or BE-)9999 (in general, the first digit gives the province) List of postal codes in Belgium
- Belize: No postal code used.
- Benin: No postal code used.
- Bermuda: AA 99* for street addresses, AA AA* for PO Box addresses. The second half of the postcode identifies the street delivery walk (eg: Hamilton HM 12) or the PO Box number range (eg: Hamilton HM BX).
- Bhutan: No postal code used.
- Bolivia: 9999
- Bosnia and Herzegovina: (BA-)99999
- Botswana: not used
- Brazil: 99999-999 (previously 99999, from 1972 to 1992) -000 to -899 are used for Streets, Roads, Avenues, Boulevards, -900 to -959 are used for places with a high postal use, -960 to -969 are for promotional use, -970 to -989 are public owned post offices and -990 is used in franchised post offices.
- British Antarctic Territory: BIQQ 1ZZ Single code used for all addresses.
- British Indian Ocean Territory: BBND 1ZZ Single code used for all addresses.
- British Virgin Islands: VG9999
- Brunei: AA9999*
- Bulgaria: (BG-)9999
- Burkina Faso: No postal code used.
- Burundi: No postal code used.
C
- Cambodia: 99999
- Cameroon: No postal code used.
- Canada: A9A 9A9* Usually prefixed by a two-letter abbreviation for the province or territory. See Canadian postal code. The letters D, F, I, O, Q, and U are not used to avoid confusion with other letters or numbers.
- Cape Verde: 9999 - the first digit indicates which island.
- Cayman Islands: KY9-9999*
- Central African Republic: No postal code used.
- Chile: 9999999 May only be required for bulk mail.
- Chad: 99999
- China, People's Republic of (Mainland): 999999*. A postal code or youbian (邮编) in a subordinate division will have the same first two digits as its governing one (see Political divisions of China and Postal Code).
- Christmas Island: 9999* Part of the Australian postal code system
- Cocos (Keeling) Island: 9999* Part of the Australian postal code system
- Colombia: No postal code used.
- Comoros: No postal code used.
- Congo (Brazzaville): No postal code used.
- Congo, Democratic Republic: No postal code used.
- Cook Islands: No postal code used.
- Costa Rica: 99999 Was 9999 until 2007. Each postal code represents a district. Not heavily used as it was introduced in 2005 by Correos de Costa Rica (Costa Rica Mail Services). It is segmented as 9[Province],99[Province], Canton, 99[District].
- Côte d'Ivoire: No postal code used.
- Croatia: (HR-)99999
- Cuba: 99999* - may only be required for bulk mail. The letters CP are frquently used before the postal code. This is not a country code, but an abbreviation for "codigo postal" or postal code.
- Cyprus: (CY-)9999 Post code system covers whole island, but not used in Northern Cyprus where 'Mersin 10, Turkey' is used instead. See Cyprus Postal Services.
- Czech Republic: (CZ-)999 99 Retained system from former Czechoslovakia.
D-F
- Denmark: (DK-)9999 also used by Greenland, eg: DK-3900 Nuuk
- Djibouti: No postal code used.
- Dominica: No postal code used.
- Dominican Republic: 99999Postal Code Web Site
- East Timor: No postal code system in use since Indonesian withdrawal in 1999.
- Ecuador: EC999999 Introduced in December 2007.
- Egypt 99999*
- El Salvador: 9999 The letters CP are frquently used before the postal code. This is not a country code, but an abbreviation for "codigo postal" or postal code.
- Equatorial Guinea: No postal code used.
- Eritrea: No postal code used.
- Estonia: (EE-)99999
- Ethiopia: 9999 The code is only used on a trial basis for Addis Abeba addresses.
- Falkland Islands: FIQQ 1ZZ Single code used for all addresses.
- Faroe Islands: (FO-)999
- Federated States of Micronesia: 99999* or 99999-9999*. Former US territory - part of the US zip-code system.
- Fiji: No postal code used.
- Finland: (FI-)99999. A lower first digit indicates a place in south (for example 00100 Helsinki, a higher indicates a place further to north (99800 in Ivalo). The last digit is always 0, except for postal codes for PO Box number ranges, in which case it is 1. Country code for Finland: "FI". In the Åland Islands, the postal code is prefixed with "AX", not "FI". Some postal codes for rural settlements may end with 5, and there are some unique postal codes for large companies and institutions, e.g. 00014 HELSINGIN YLIOPISTO (university), 00102 EDUSKUNTA (parliament), 00020 NORDEA (a major Scandinavian bank).
- France: (F- or FR-)99999, the first two digits give the département number, while in Paris, Lyon and Marseille, the last two digits of the postal code indicates the arrondissement. Also used by French overseas departments and territories, except by French Southern and Antarctic Territories and Clipperton Island. Monaco is also part of the French postal code system, and the country code MC- is used for Monegasque addresses. See List of postal codes in France.
- French Guiana: Overseas Department of France. French codes used.
- French Polynesia: Overseas Territory of France. French codes used.
- French Southern and Antarctic Territories No postal code used.
G-K
- Gabon: 99 [city name] 99 Two digit postal zone goes after city name.
- Gambia: No postal code used.
- Georgia: (GE-)9999
- Germany: (D- or DE-)99999 since 1993 (previously separate 9999 systems in both East and West Germany). See List of postal codes in Germany
- Gibraltar: No postal code system
- Greece: (GR-)99999 See also List of postal codes in Greece
- Greenland: (DK-)9999 Part of the Danish postal code system.
- Grenada: No postal code used.
- Guadeloupe: Overseas Department of France. French codes used.
- Guam: 99999* or 99999-9999*. US territory - part of the US zip-code system.
- Guatemala: 99 [department] 9[route] 99 [office]
- Guernsey: GY9 9AA*, GY9 9AA*, GY99 9AA but other variants are also possible. Part of the UK postcode system.
- Guinea: No postal code used.
- Guinea Bissau: 9999
- Guyana: No postal code used.
- Haiti: (HT-)9999
- Heard and McDonald Islands: 9999*. Part of the Australian postcode system.
- Honduras: 99999
- Hong Kong: No postal code system
- Hungary: (H- or HU-)9999 Introduced in 1973. In all except the six largest towns, there is only one postal code per settlement.
- Iceland: (IS-)999
- India: 999 999* Known as a "PIN" (Postal Index Number)
- Indonesia: 99999* Included East Timor (ranges 88xxx and 89xxx) until 1999, no longer used.
- Iran: 99999 99999
- Iraq: Work started on system post 2003. See List of postal codes in Iraq
- Ireland: No postal codes; however, Dublin is divided into postal districts on syntax Dublin 9.
- Isle of Man: IM9 9AA*, IM9 9AA*, IM99 9AA but other variants are also possible. Part of the UK postcode system.
- Israel: 99999 (Postcode is always written BEFORE the city/place name, i.e. to the Right in Hebrew or Arabic script - to the Left in Latin script.
- Italy: 99999 (also used by San Marino and Vatican City) First two digits identify province with some exceptions, because there are more than 100 provinces.
- Ivory Coast: See Côte d'Ivoir.
- Jamaica: JMAAA99 The code consists of five letters and two digits. The first two letters are always 'JM' (for Jamaica) while the third is for one of the four zones (A-D) into which the island is divided. The last two letters are for the parish, while the two digits are for the local post office.[1]
- Japan: 999-9999*, was 999 and 999-99 from 1968 through February 1998. See also Japanese addressing system.
- Jersey: JE9 9AA*, JE9 9AA*, JE99 9AA but other variants are also possible. Part of the UK postcode system.
- Jordan: 99999*. Deliveries to PO Boxes only
- Kazakhstan: 999999 Retained system inherited from former Soviet Union.
- Kenya: 99999. Deliveries to PO Boxes only
- Kiribati: No postal code used.
- Korea, North: No postal code used.
- Korea, South: 999-999*
- Kosovo: 99999 A separate postal code for Kosovo was introduced by the UNMIK postal administration in 2004. Serbian postcodes are still widely used in the Serbian enclaves. No country code has been assigned.
- Kuwait: 99999*
- Kyrgyzstan: 999999 Retained system inherited from former Soviet Union.
L-M
N-Q
R-T
U-Z
- Uganda: No postal code used.
- Ukraine: 99999*
- United Arab Emirates: No postal code used.
- United Kingdom: known as the postcode: A9 9AA*', AA9 9AA*'AA99 9AA but other variants are also used. In general the first letter(s) indicate the town, or area, or part of London.
- United States of America: known as the ZIP Code with five digits 99999* or the ZIP+4 Code with nine digits 99999-9999* (while the minimum requirement is the first five digits, the U.S. Postal Service encourages everyone to use all nine). Also used by the former US Pacific Territories: Federated States of Micronesia; Palau; and the Marshall Islands, as well as in current US territories American Samoa, Guam, Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico, and the US Virgin Islands.
- Uruguay: 99999
- US Virgin Islands: 99999* or 99999-9999*. US territory - part of the US zip-code system.
- Uzbekistan: 999999 Retained system inherited from former Soviet Union.
- Vanuatu: No postal code used.
- Vatican City: (VA-)00120. Single code used for all addresses. Part of the Italian postal code system.
- Venezuela: 9999*. 9999 A may also be used.
- Vietnam: 999999*, previously 99999
- Wallis and Futuna: Overseas Territory of France. French codes used.
- Yemen: No postal code used.
- Zambia: 99999. The code is not widely publicized, and thus hardly used.
- Zimbabwe: No postal code used.
On the use of country codes
The use of country codes in conjunction with postal codes started as a recommendation from CEPT (European Conference of Postal and Telecommunications Administrations) in the 1960s. In the original CEPT-recommendation the distinguishing signs of motor vehicles in international traffic ("car codes") were placed before the postal code, and separated from it by a "-" (dash). Country codes were only used on international mail and were hardly ever used internally in each country.
Since the late 1980s, however, a number of postal administrations have changed the recommended codes to the two-letter country codes of ISO 3166. This would allow a universal, standardized code set to be used, and bring it in line with country codes used elsewhere in the UPU (Universal Postal Union). Attempts were also made (without success) to make this part of the official address guidelines of the UPU. Recently introduced postal code systems where the UPU has been involved have included the ISO 3166 country code as an integral part of the postal code.
At present there are no universal guidelines as to which code set to use, and recommendations vary from country to country. In some cases, the applied country code will differ according to recommendations of the sender's postal administration. UPU recommends that the country name always be included as the last line of the address.
In the list above, the following principles have been applied:
- Integral country codes have been included in the code format, in bold type and without brackets. These are also used on internal mail in the respective countries.
- The ISO 3166 codes is used alone for countries that have expicitly recommended them.
- Where there is no explicit recommendation for ISO 3166 codes and the codes differ, both "car codes" and ISO 3166 codes are listed, with the "car code" listed first.
References