Ministério das Obras Públicas, Transportes e Comunicações (Ministery for Public Works, Transports and Communications)
Administrative Rule
(This is not an official translation of the law)
No. 2 of article 56 of the Public Postal Services Regulations, approved by Decree-Law no. 176/88 of 18th May, provides for the dispositions on the postal order service to be set out in their own regulations, approved by a joint ministerial order to be issued by the Ministers responsible for the finance and communications areas.
Pursuant to the restructuring of the State treasury, as set out in Decree-Law no. 275-A/93 of 9th August, postal order operations are no longer to be carried out through the coffers of the State.
Adjustments resulting from the changes brought in by the referred to Decree Law nr. 275-A/93 must therefore be made and advantage taken of the opportunity to improve the efficiency of the postal order service, without losing sight of the need to continue to ensure the public acceptance thereof.
Accordingly:
The Government, through the offices of the Ministers of Finance and Public Works, Transport and Communications, pursuant to the conditions of n. 2 of article 56 of the Public Postal Services Regulations, approved by Decree-Law no. 176/88 of 18th May, hereby declares the following:
1. The Postal Order Service Regulations are hereby approved.
2. The regulations are published in an annex to this ministerial order and are a full part thereof.
ANNEX
Postal Order Service Regulations
Article 1
Concept
Postal orders are special payment orders permitting the transfer of funds.
Article 2
Classification
1. Postal orders may be standard or internal.
2. Postal orders sent by any CTT customer are considered to be standard postal orders.
3. Postal orders representing payments made by CTT are referred to as internal postal orders
Article 3
Competence
CTT Correios de Portugal, S.A. hereinafter referred to, in short, as CTT shall be exclusively competent to issue, pay and transfer funds in the form of postal orders.
Article 4
Issue
1. Postal orders shall be issued by the filling in of special forms to be provided by CTT.
2. CTT is responsible for establishing the maximum amount for the issue of a postal order.
Article 5
Requirements
1. A postal order shall contain:
a. The word "postal order" inscribed in the actual text;
b. The amount payable;
c. The name and address of the sender;
d. The name and address of the payee;
e. The identification of the issuing service;
f. The date of issue and period of validity.
2. In the event of any discrepancy between the amounts expressed in writing and the amount expressed in figures, the amount expressed in writing shall prevail.
Article 6
Period of validity
1. Postal orders shall be valid for the period elapsing between the date of issue thereof and the same date in the following month, inclusive; if there is no corresponding date in the following month, the period shall end on the date of the said month.
2. A period of validity which expires on a Sunday or Public Holiday shall be transferred to the next working day.
Article 7
Revalidation
After the termination of the period referred to in the preceding article, postal orders may be revalidated at the request of either the sender or payee, on one or more occasions, for periods equal to that of the initial period, without prejudice to the conditions of article 9.
Article 8
Alterations
1. The amount set out on the postal orders belong to the sender until paid out.
2. The cancelling of postal orders or alterations made thereto by the sender shall only be effective 45 days from the date of respective issue unless the sender retains possession of the postal order.
3. The amount set out on the postal orders may not be altered.
Article 9
Expiry
1. Postal orders shall expire after a period of one year from their date of issue has elapsed.
2. Postal orders involved in legal proceedings either in court or in CTT shall only expire after a period of 90 days has elapsed from date of the sentence passed down by the court or the date upon which the interested party is notified of CTT's final decision provided that, prior to the end of the period referred to in the preceding number, any interested party notifies CTT that such a process is in progress.
3. After the postal order has expired, the sender may apply for the amount thereon contained to be repaid.
4. The repayment application shall be addressed to CTT and set out on a special application form.
Article 10
Payment orders
1. Postal orders which have been mislaid, lost, damaged or destroyed may be replaced by payment orders after the respective period of validity thereof has elapsed.
2. Postal orders whose state of conservation allows the respective postal order to be identified are excluded from the conditions referred to in the final part of the preceding number.
3. The conditions of article 6, 7 and 9, adapted as necessary, refer to the payment orders, and the date of the period of expiry thereof shall begin to be counted as from the date of issue of the postal orders to which they refer.
Article 11
Endorsement
1. Postal and payment orders may be transferred by endorsement.
2. Postal orders may only be endorsed once.
3. Endorsements must be nominative.
Article 12
Payment
1. Postal and payment orders are paid to the payee, sender, endorsee or the lawful or voluntary representatives thereof.
2. Payments are made at post offices or authorised postal depots.
3. Postal orders are accepted by credit institutions pursuant to the terms agreed with CTT.
4. Receipts shall be issued for the payment of postal and payment orders.
Article 13
Payment and other accessory operations advices.
1. The sender may request the provision of a payment advice.
2. The application for the provision of a payment advice shall be submitted when issuing the postal order, on a CTT application form which shall accompany the postal order until such time as it is paid.
3. CTT may realise other accessory operations involving the postal order service pursuant to conditions to be established by the company s complementary operating norms.
Article 14
Identification
1. Persons receiving payment of postal or payment orders shall provide proof of identification in the form of their identity card, passport or other documents which CTT considers to be appropriate for the purpose in question.
2. When payment is made to a lawful or voluntary representative, a document certifying the power of representation must be produced.
3. When payment is made to the endorsee, the latter and the endorser shall provide proof of identification pursuant to the terms of the preceding numbers.
4. If the person entitled to receive payment is not capable of or is unable to sign the receipt, after providing proof of identification he/she may use his/her right forefinger as a fingerprint or request a third party to sign on his/her behalf, with the person receiving such a request providing proof of identification pursuant to the terms of nos. 1 and 2.
Article 15
Refusal to make Payment
1. The following cannot be paid:
a. Postal orders which do not comply with the requirements set out the requirements in the preceding articles;
b. Postal orders which are filled in, in such a manner as to elicit doubts;
c. Postal and payment orders whose period of validity has elapsed.
2. Postal orders also cannot be paid out to persons who do not provide proof of identification pursuant to the terms referred to in the preceding article.
3. The postal orders referred to in sub paragraphs a) and b) of the preceding number may be paid after due regularisation in the cases and pursuant to the terms referred to in the complementary operating norms to be established by CTT.
Article 16
Charges
Charges for the issue of postal orders, their respective accessory operations and payment orders are set out on CTT's price list.
Article 17
Filing of Records
The documents referring to postal orders shall be filed until the end of the expiry period of the postal orders to which they refer.
Article 18
Complementary Norms
1. CTT may prepare complementary norms to those which have been set out in these Regulations and in conformity with them.
2. ICP (Portuguese Communications Institute) shall be notified in advance of the operating norms the prepared pursuant to the terms of the preceding number and such norms shall be advertised in such a manner as for customers to be explicitly aware of the service.
Article 19
Revocation
Ministerial orders nos. 311/784 of 24th April, 666/82 of 5th July and 578/84 of 8th August are hereby revoked.
Ministries of Finance and Public Works, Transport and Communications. Signed on 5th May 1995 For and on behalf of the Minister of Finance, Walter Valdemar Pêgo Marques, Assistant Secretary of State and for the Treasury. For and on behalf of the Minister of Public Works, Transport and Communications, Carlos Alberto Pereira da Silva Costa, Secretary of State for Housing.
