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# 									Key Topics							

Office of Logistics Management

## 								In This Section							

        - Freight 
- Mail
- Claims
- Travel/Relocation
- Overseas Vehicles

## Freight Management

A/LM provides the full range of key logistics shipping and warehouse services for State Department overseas posts. This includes support of daily operations as well as emergency needs for high priority shipments at over 250 world-wide locations.

Additonally, A/LM manages the diplomatic pouch and mail service to and from overseas missions. Shipping services are managed through Washington DC as well as five additional domestic and two overseas offices.

Domestic distribution is managed in Virginia.

Vendors shipping supplies or equipment to American Embassies and Consulates should contact our Despatch Agencies.

### Overseas

##### Shipping Freight Overseas to Embassies & Consulates

The Department manages consolidation points for freight shipments destined for the Department’s operating locations worldwide. These consolidation points, called Despatch Agencies, are located in New York, Miami, Brownsville, Seattle and Antwerp. The Despatch Agencies maintain contracted warehouse space to consolidate the freight, and manage the transportation arrangements to move the freight to destination.

Vendors shipping supplies or equipment from the United States to American Embassies and Consulates can consult the table below for additional contact information.

Each box, in each shipment must be labeled with the **Name** of the Embassy or Consulate as well as the **Purchase Order Number**.

When there are multiple boxes in a shipment, each must be marked with a sequence number and total number. The first box in each shipment should have a copy of the packing list for the entire shipment attached in an external envelope.

**For shipments exceeding 5,000 pounds or 500 cubic feet, vendors should contact the designated office prior to shipment.**
        - Destination Area:  Europe, Middle East, Africa, and South Asia   Responsible Office:  U.S. Despatch Agent New York   Phone:  732-855-8880
        - Destination Area:  Central America, South America, Caribbean   Responsible Office:  U.S. Despatch Agent Miami   Phone:  305-640-4574
        - Destination Area:  Mexico   Responsible Office:  U.S. Logistics Center Brownsville   Phone:  956-982-3916
        - Destination Area:  Asia Pacific   Responsible Office:  U.S. Despatch Agent Seattle   Phone:  206-764-3805
        - Destination Area:  Worldwide Shipment of Official Vehicles   Responsible Office:  U.S. Despatch Agent Baltimore   Phone:  410-631-0045

*Please note that the Embassy and Consulates in Canada and the Consulates in Mexico at Nuevo Laredo, Ciudad Juarez, Nogales, Hermosillo and Tijuana have other shipping arrangements and should be contacted directly.*

Vendors shipping from Europe can contact our European Logistical Support Office in Antwerp:  ELSO Despatch Agent (Email) | 32-3-5402011 (Phone)

The Department also operates a Diplomatic Pouch and Mail Service which can support extremely limited shipments of supplies and equipment:Diplomatic Pouch and Mail Mailbox (Email) | 202-663-1588 (Phone)

### Domestic

##### Washington, DC Domestic Distribution

The Department’s domestic and selected overseas distribution are managed from warehouses in Springfield, Virginia.

For more information – you may contact the Springfield Warehouse by email .

**Labeling Instructions**For each shipment, each box must be labeled with the **purchase order number**. When there are multiple boxes in a shipment, each must be marked with a sequence number and total number. The first box in each shipment should have a copy of the **packing list** for the entire shipment attached in an external envelope.

## Mail Management

Welcome to the Diplomatic Pouch and Mail Division of the U.S. Department of State. We process all incoming and outgoing mail, maintain the internal messenger service and to provide diplomatic pouch service, both classified and unclassified, to State Department Foreign Service missions.

The following are common questions directed to the Pouch and Mail Division. If you cannot find an answer to your question below, please contact the Pouch and Mail Division.

**Am I allowed to send liquids through the Diplomatic Pouch?**

No, not unless it is medically related. See all ***prohibited materials*** in the Foreign Affairs Manual 14 FAM 720 for more information.

**If I send an item via Diplomatic Pouch and it’s rejected, what happens to it?**

If the parcel contained a valid address, it will be returned to sender and post will be notified that a parcel was rejected and returned to sender. See more information on rejected parcels Foreign Affairs Manual 14 FAM 720 for more information.

**How do I address mail to an embassy, for example, in New Delhi?**

A list of all official addresses is available.

American Embassy9000 New Delhi PlaceWashington DC 20521-9000

**Can I send fund-raising materials via the Pouch for a charity?**

No. Under International Conventions, the Diplomatic Pouch may only be used for carrying official items between Washington and the various Foreign Service Posts.

## Travel/Relocation Management

A/LM provides travel management and household relocation services that support State Department and other U.S. Government agency personnel.

Claims provides information on how a USG employee can file a claim for personal property lost, damaged, or destroyed incidental to service.

### Regulations

Department of State Foreign Service Personnel – Foreign Affairs Manual.U.S. Government civilian non-Department of Defense personnel – The Federal Travel Regulations.Civilian Department of Defense personnel – The Joint Travel Regulations.Members of the Uniformed Services – The Joint Federal Travel Regulations.

### Relocation Information

For problems with accessing any of the documents contact Transportation and Travel Management Division.

### Transportation Information

Transportation Service Providers who wish to offer their services to the Department should contact our Transportation and Travel Management Division.

Department of State personnel with questions regarding personally owned vehicles (POVs) or household effects (HHEs) in transit to or from the Washington, DC area may contact the Transportation Division.

## Claims

The Department of State Claims office adjudicates and authorizes payment of claims made by the Department’s employees under the **Military Personnel and Civilian Employees Claims Act of 1964**, as amended, which authorizes the payment of civilian employees’ claims for the fair market value of personal property lost, damaged, or destroyed incidental to service.

Employees should bear in mind three deadline dates:
        - 75 Days  from the date of delivery to submit a letter of intent or a form DS-1620E “Notice of Loss or Damage” itemizing damages or missing items.
        - Two years  from the date of delivery to file a written claim with the Claims Office or Post.
        - Six months  from the date of settlement or denial of a claim to file for a reconsideration.

Employees should note that the Act **will not** fully compensate an employee for the loss, it is designed to lessen the burden and improve morale for a service that employees perform that benefits the Government. Because of this, it is strongly recommended that employees arrange for **private insurance covering both loss and damage** for household effects (shipped and stored). You cannot insure anything after it has left your possession. It is also important that you obtain commercial insurance to cover both marine and land transits of your vehicle.

For additional information employees should contact the Claims Office.

## Overseas Vehicle Management

The Department’s policy is to use United States domestically manufactured vehicles wherever possible at all of our embassies and consulates.

The vehicle fleet at each embassy or consulate is locally managed by the General Services Officer **(GSO)** at the post.

A complete list of contact information for GSOs and other key officers is also available.

Contact the Overseas Motor Vehicle Program staff for more information.

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