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A semi-postal stamp or semipostal stamp, also known as a charity stamp, is a
postage stamp A postage stamp is a small piece of paper issued by a post office, postal administration, or other authorized vendors to customers who pay postage (the cost involved in moving, insuring, or registering mail), who then affix the stamp to the f ...
issued to raise money for a particular purpose (such as a charitable cause) and sold at a premium over the postal value. Typically the stamp shows two denominations separated by a plus sign, but in many cases the only denomination shown is for the postage rate, and the postal customer simply pays the higher price when purchasing the stamps.


The first semi-postals

The first semi-postal was actually a
postal card Postal cards are postal stationery with an imprinted stamp or indicium signifying the prepayment of postage. They are sold by postal authorities. On January 26, 1869, Dr. Emanuel Herrmann of Austria described the advantages of a ''Corre ...
; to commemorate the
Uniform Penny Post The Uniform Penny Post was a component of the comprehensive reform of the Royal Mail, the UK's official postal service, that took place in the 19th century. The reforms were a government initiative to eradicate the abuse and corruption of the e ...
in 1890, the
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland was a sovereign state in the British Isles that existed between 1801 and 1922, when it included all of Ireland. It was established by the Acts of Union 1800, which merged the Kingdom of Grea ...
issued a card with a face value of one penny, but sold it for sixpence, with the difference given to a fund for postal workers. The first semi-postal stamps were issued by the Australian colonies of
New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...
and
Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada * Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory * Victoria, Seychelle ...
, who both marked the
Diamond Jubilee A diamond jubilee celebrates the 60th anniversary of a significant event related to a person (e.g. accession to the throne or wedding, among others) or the 60th anniversary of an institution's founding. The term is also used for 75th anniver ...
of Queen Victoria in 1897 with stamps denominated in pennies, but sold for shillings, a 12× increase over the face value.


Twentieth century issues

Semi-postals became widespread in European countries at the beginning of the 20th century. In many cases they have become standard annual issues, such as the
Pro Juventute ''Pro Juventute'' is a charitable foundation in Switzerland established in 1912. It is dedicated to supporting the rights and needs of Swiss children and youth. Since 1913, the Swiss post office has issued an annual charity stamp series to suppo ...
series of
Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...
started in 1913. Many countries issued semi-postal stamps to raise money for the
Red Cross The International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement is a Humanitarianism, humanitarian movement with approximately 97 million Volunteering, volunteers, members and staff worldwide. It was founded to protect human life and health, to ensure re ...
in
World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
. The surcharges are typically a fraction of the face value; at one point the
Fédération Internationale de Philatélie The Fédération Internationale de Philatélie (FIP) was founded on 18 June 1926, and is the world federation for philately based in Zürich, Switzerland. Aims The primary aims of the FIP are: *To promote stamp collecting and philately. *To m ...
was officially boycotting stamps with surcharges greater than 50 per cent of face value, saying that such issues were exploitive of stamp collectors. The
United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...
's Royal Mail, a relative newcomer to semi-postals, issued its first stamp of this type in 1975 with a p denomination and a premium of p for charitable causes making the total cost 6p, with funds going to health and handicap charities. The stamp issue was not considered a success and there have been few UK semi-postal issues since. Some non-European countries followed suit (such as
New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...
, which has issued
health stamp Health stamps are a long-running series of charity stamp issued by New Zealand which include a premium for charitable causes in addition to the charge for postal service. Health stamps were issued annually from 1929 to 2016. Origins The idea of i ...
s annually since 1929); the New Zealand associated territories of the
Cook Islands ) , image_map = Cook Islands on the globe (small islands magnified) (Polynesia centered).svg , capital = Avarua , coordinates = , largest_city = Avarua , official_languages = , lan ...
and
Niue Niue (, ; niu, Niuē) is an island country in the South Pacific Ocean, northeast of New Zealand. Niue's land area is about and its population, predominantly Polynesian, was about 1,600 in 2016. Niue is located in a triangle between Tong ...
often issue Christmas or Easter stamps in two sets of values, with one set having a charitable surcharge. But semi-postal stamps are still predominantly European. By contrast, the
United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...
is a newcomer to semi-postals, with its first semi-postal being the
Breast cancer research stamp The breast cancer research stamp (BCRS) is a semi-postal non-denominated postage stamp issued by the United States Postal Service, priced in 2011 as eleven cents higher than the standard first-class letter rate. The surplus above the price of th ...
issued in July 1998. Through 2016 four additional stamps were issued, three for other causes and the fourth a reissue of the Breast cancer stamp. A subsequent law allowed five more stamps to be issued at two year intervals over the next decade. The first, for Alzheimer's disease, was released in November, 2017. Semi-postal issues are not always issued on a regular basis for health and similar causes; they have been on occasion issued as a means of raising funds for disaster relief. These are usually sold as charity stamps, though occasionally, as with the 1971 refugee relief stamps of
India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
, the excess cost has been levied as an obligatory tax. One of the highest value semi-postal stamps is the
Falkland islands The Falkland Islands (; es, Islas Malvinas, link=no ) is an archipelago in the South Atlantic Ocean on the Patagonian Shelf. The principal islands are about east of South America's southern Patagonian coast and about from Cape Dubouze ...
' "rebuilding fund" stamp, issued in 1982 after the Anglo-Argentinian war over the islands. This was aimed primarily at collectors, and had a postal value of £1 with an added £1 surcharge. Charitable disaster relief stamps are commonly found in smaller island nations as a result of natural disasters, as in the case of
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Saint Vincent and the Grenadines () is an island country in the Caribbean. It is located in the southeast Windward Islands of the Lesser Antilles, which lie in the West Indies at the southern end of the eastern border of the Caribbean Sea w ...
' 1980 hurricane relief issues, and
Tonga Tonga (, ; ), officially the Kingdom of Tonga ( to, Puleʻanga Fakatuʻi ʻo Tonga), is a Polynesian country and archipelago. The country has 171 islands – of which 45 are inhabited. Its total surface area is about , scattered over in ...
's 1982 cyclone relief stamp. In these cases, existing issues are often used,
overprint An overprint is an additional layer of text or graphics added to the face of a Postage stamp, postage or revenue stamp, postal stationery, banknote or Ticket (admission), ticket after it has been Printing, printed. Post offices most often use ...
ed with text indicating the reason for the surcharge.


See also

*
Postal tax stamp A postal tax stamp refers to a stamp which raises revenue for charity or war related projects. Postal tax stamps are similar to semi-postals, except their use is mandatory instead of voluntary. They are used to show payment of a compulsory tax on m ...


References


Notes


Bibliography

* Richard McP. Cabeen (1979). ''Standard Handbook of Stamp Collecting''. Harper & Row. pp. 455–457. .


External links


U.S. General Accounting Office report on semipostal sales, 30 September 2005
{{DEFAULTSORT:Semi-Postal Philatelic terminology