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I want to send a postcard to the US from France. I have two stamps that can be used to send mail within France (value 0.69 each). A normal international stamp is 0.89€.

Can I just put these two local stamps on my postcard or do I have to buy an international stamp?

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  • This question appears to be off-topic because it is about postal service rules which are not particular to travel.
    – Flimzy
    Apr 13, 2014 at 17:16
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    In my humble opinion, it as as much on topic as the multiple questions about mobile phones.
    – mouviciel
    Apr 13, 2014 at 18:32
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    Are there any countries where stamps are specifically for international or domestic destinations? Stamps just have a value and you simply need to affix stamps totalling sufficent value.
    – toandfro
    Apr 13, 2014 at 23:42
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    @toandfro In fact, in France, the most common stamps have no value printed on them but only the words “Lettre prioritaire”, “Europe” and “Monde”. They do work the usual way but it can be confusing.
    – Relaxed
    Apr 14, 2014 at 7:29
  • Thanks, yes the truth is, every time I travel to a new country I am mailing something, usually postcards, and otherwise I have my country's mail pretty much figured out.
    – Nels Beckman
    Apr 14, 2014 at 17:56

2 Answers 2

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In France there is no distinction between local and international stamps. All french stamps are created equal (except their value).

You can put as many stamps as you want and you can put as much value as you want. You just need to put at least the required value to the destination.

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    This is the case for most of Europe, though it's worth bearing in mind that 2× 69c = €1.38, so you'd be overpaying by 49c. Though I'm guessing you won't be too worried about 68¢ ;)
    – Owen Blacker
    Apr 13, 2014 at 19:53
  • Thanks for the response. The only thing that confuses it a bit is that the stamps I have have no printed value (i.e., they are valid forever). Maybe you could update your response to include a mention of this? i.e., 'forever' stamps have whatever the current value is.
    – Nels Beckman
    Apr 14, 2014 at 17:57
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    @NelBeckmnan It seems my answer already covers this. It's not that there is anything wrong with mouviciel's answer but accepting it when you seem to think it's not comprehensive and another one addresses the issue seems to defeat the purpose of the system.
    – Relaxed
    Apr 16, 2014 at 12:43
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As mouviciel explained, you can indeed combine stamps to reach the required value. You can do that even with stamps that don't have a value printed on them. They remain valid even if the prices changes and their value is the current price for the relevant service (green stamp = letter in France, red = priority letter in France, blue = EU, purple = rest of the world). You can also buy 1, 5, and 10 cents stamps to complement regular stamps.

A regular red stamps is currently worth 0.66 € and an international letter (outside the EU) costs 0.98 €. So two red stamps or even two green stamps are definitely enough for an international letter.

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