Refresher Course

Semipostals are voluntary, tax stamps are not

By Janet Klug

Semipostal stamps are postage stamps that cost more than their postage value. The additional surcharge is collected for charitable purposes.

Figure 1. The nondenominated Breast Cancer Research semipostal stamp (Scott B1) was the first semipostal issued by the United States. Click on image to enlarge.

Figure 2. The British Post Office Jubilee of Uniform Penny Postage stamped envelope was a semipostal forerunner. The 1-penny envelope was sold for 1 shilling, with the 11d surtax going to the Rowland Hill Benevolent Fund for the assistance of post office widows and orphans. Click on image to enlarge.

Figure 3. This New South Wales Consumptives Home semipostal stamp (Scott B2) sold for 2 shillings, 6 pence but had a postal value of 2½d. Click on image to enlarge.

Figure 4. This New Zealand 40¢+5¢ Children's Health semipostal stamp (Scott B154) was withdrawn because of a design error. The few that escaped destruction are quite valuable. Click on image to enlarge.

Figure 5. A Chinese 50-fen stamp with an attached 50f label (Scott 2894), issued for the relief of flood victims. Click on image to enlarge.

Figure 6. An Austrian 1-schil-ling+20-groschen semipostal stamp (Scott B287). The stamp included a surtax to aid avalanche victims. Click on image to enlarge.

Figure 7. An overprinted Moroccan 5-franc+10fr semipostal stamp (Scott B1), issued to aid families of victims of adulterated cooking oil. Click on image to enlarge.

Figure 8. On-cover use of an Indian 5-paise cerise Refugee Relief postal tax stamp (Scott RA1). Click on image to enlarge.

Figure 9. A Trinidad and Tobago 1-penny scarlet war tax stamp (Scott MR1). Click on image to enlarge.

In the Scott Standard Postage Stamp Catalogue, the Scott Classic Specialized Catalogue of Stamps and Covers 1840-1940 and the Scott Specialized Catalogue of United States Stamps and Covers, semipostal stamps are listed after the regular postage stamps, and their catalog numbers are prefixed with the letter "B."

Many stamp collectors dislike semipostal stamps. They believe that stamps of this nature constitute a tax on stamp collecting because they are primarily purchased by collectors and little used by the general public.

For this reason, the U.S. Postal Service's decision in 1998 to issue a semipostal stamp to benefit breast cancer research was very controversial within the hobby. The nondenominated (32¢+8¢, at the time of its first issue) Breast Cancer Research semipostal stamp (Scott B1) is shown in Figure 1.

Since the stamp was issued July 29, 1998, its surtax has raised nearly $50 million to benefit breast cancer research.

Since then, the Postal Service has issued additional semipostal stamps to raise money to combat family violence (Scott B3) and to aid families of emergency relief personnel killed or permanently disabled in the line of duty in connection with the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001 (B2).

How and when did semipostal stamps begin?

Officially sanctioned charity envelopes and postal cards were first issued in Great Britain. In 1890, Great Britain issued a postal card and a stamped envelope honoring the Jubilee (50th anniversary) of the Uniform Penny Postage. The envelope, shown in Figure 2, sold for 1 shilling, but its imprinted stamp bore only the value of the postage, 1 penny. The remaining 11d went to the Rowland Hill Benevolent Fund that assisted post office widows and orphans. The 1d card sold for 6d.

In 1897, the colony of New South Wales issued two semi-postal stamps that had face values of 1sh (Scott B1) and 2sh, 6d (B2) but that paid postage of only 1d and 2½d, respectively. Funds collected from the surtax benefited the Home for Consumptives (those suffering from tuberculosis). The 2sh, 6d semipostal stamp is shown in Figure 3.

Many other countries, including Switzerland, Germany, the Netherlands and New Zealand, have long histories of issuing semipostal stamps, with programs for youth being the primary beneficiary.

Switzerland has been issuing Pro Juventute (for youth) stamps annually since 1913. Many of the stamps picture popular topics such as flowers and butterflies, undoubtedly adding to the belief of some stamp collectors that semipostal stamps are a special tax imposed on stamp collectors.

New Zealand's health stamps began in 1929 at the urging of Mette Kirstine Nielsen, a Danish woman who immigrated to New Zealand with her husband.

Nielsen asked the New Zealand government to support her fundraising for hospitals and health organizations by issuing labels similar to those used in her native homeland. The government adopted the idea. The first New Zealand semipostal stamps were inscribed "Help Stamp Out Tuberculosis."

Since then, New Zealand has issued semipostal stamps annually to support children's health camps that promote good health through a balance of good nutrition, sunshine, exercise, rest and fresh air.

Arguably the most famous of New Zealand's health stamps are the Teddy Bear design-error stamps issued in 1996, one with water-activated gum and one a self-adhesive.

The original design of the 40¢+5¢ semipostal, shown in Figure 4, depicts a baby in a car seat alongside a teddy bear strapped into the car's seat belt.

From the bear's position and the location of the seatbelt strap, it was obvious that the baby's car seat was placed in the car incorrectly, in a position actually dangerous to the baby.

The stamps were withdrawn before their planned issue date, but not before some had been prematurely sold by three post offices. Auckland Savings Bank used many of the error stamps, and covers bearing the error are quite rare.

Enschede, the stamp printers, produced 402 perforated souvenir sheets containing the Teddy Bear stamp and gave them to employees and customers.

The stamps exist perforated (Scott B154) and with serpentine die cuts (B155). All are quite valuable in either mint or used condition. The stamp design was corrected by removing the teddy bear, and the redesigned stamp was issued in perforated and die cut versions (B151, B153).

Semipostal stamps have also been issued to provide money to aid victims of natural disasters such as floods and earthquakes.

Figure 5 illustrates a 50-fen stamp with an attached 50f label (Scott 2894) issued by China in September 1998 to aid those affected by flooding in the Yangtze River valley. This stamp is a variation of traditional semipostal stamps: the charity surtax is shown only on the attached label.

Figure 6 shows an Austrian 1-schilling+20-groschen semipostal stamp (Scott B287) that includes a surtax to aid avalanche victims.

Perhaps the most bizarre charity semipostal stamps were those issued by France between 1935 and 1940 that collected money to support unemployed intellectuals.

Prisoners of war, famine relief, restoration of cathedral windows, and even the overprinted Moroccan 5-franc+

10fr semipostal stamp (Scott B1), to aid the families of victims of adulterated cooking oil, shown in Figure 7, are some of the more unusual uses of semipostal funds.

Postal tax stamps are closely related to semipostal stamps. The catalog numbers for postal tax stamps are prefixed with the letters "RA" in the Scott standard catalog, the Scott classic specialized catalog and the Scott specialized U.S. catalog.

Postal tax stamps differ from semipostal stamps in that the usage of semipostal stamps is voluntary, whereas the usage of postal tax stamps is obligatory when so mandated. Postal tax stamps are not valid for payment of postage. They pay only the required tax.

Figure 8 shows an on-cover example of a postal tax stamp on an Indian postal stationery aerogram. The 5-paise Family Planning stamp overprinted "Refugee Relief" (Scott RA1) was mandatory on all mail from November 1971 to March 1973. The tax was for relief for the millions of Bangladeshi refugees fleeing ethnic violence in what was formerly East Pakistan.

Another kind of compulsory tax placed on mail is war tax. In times of war many countries, including the United State have instituted a tax on the mails.

In the United States, a tax of 1¢ for first-class letters went into effect Nov. 2, 1917, and remained in effect until June 30, 1919. The tax was paid by the use of ordinary postage stamps, and no special war tax stamps were issued by the United States.

Other countries also used taxes collected from the mail to pay for the cost of doing battle and issued war tax stamps specifically for the payment of this tax. The catalog numbers of war tax stamps are prefixed with the letters "MR" in the Scott standard catalog, the Scott classic specialized catalog and the Scott U.S. specialized catalog.

In some cases, these stamps were specially designed and printed, such as issued by Canada in 1915. Other countries simply overprinted ordinary postage stamps "War Tax." An overprinted Trinidad and Tobago 1-penny scarlet war tax stamp (Scott MR1) is shown in Figure 9.

Finding examples of all these kinds of stamps and figuring out who benefited from the money raised can make an interesting specialty.

Finding them used on cover increases the challenge.