Send all of your FPO mail via Priority Mail. If you send your package via a surface-mail route, it can take up to eight weeks to get to your soldier. That's because the package will be put onto a ship instead of an airplane to be shipped overseas.
Fill out Form 2976 on the USPS website (see Resources). Form 2976 will ask you to provide information about the package's contents and weight, and where the item is being mailed from. The info is required as a safety measure to keep all potentially hazardous items away from military personnel. This form will need to be displayed on the box during shipment.
Address the package. Enter the name of your soldier on the first line of the mailing address. On the second line, put the address of the military base to which the package is being sent. On the third line of the address, indicate which unit -- AA (Armed Forces America), AE (Armed Forces Europe) or AP (Armed Forces Pacific) -- the package is going to.
Put your items in bubble wrap, and make sure they aren't shifting around when you shake your package. Remove the batteries from any battery-powered device, and seal the box with two-inch tape.
Go to your local post office. Have the agent at the front counter calculate how much it will cost to send. Ship from there.
