DPV Codes and Information

DPV Confirmation Indicator

The DPV Confirmation Indicator is the primary method used by the USPS to indicate whether an address was considered deliverable or undeliverable.

Unfortunately, because National Change of Address information is consumer sourced, even regular NCOA processing will not prevent all returned mail. In addition, there are a number of non-move related reasons an address may not be deliverable.

Delivery Point Validation or DPV checks addresses against the USPS database to determine deliverability. Matching records are marked valid. If they have no matching entry, they are marked invalid with a corresponding note and cannot be delivered.

DPV Confirmation Indicator Codes:

Y - Address was DPV confirmed for both:

primary and (if present) secondary
numbers.

D - Address was DPV confirmed for the
primary number only, and Secondary
number information was missing.

S - Address was DPV confirmed for the
primary number only, and Secondary
number information was present but
unconfirmed.

N - Both Primary and (if present)
Secondary number information failed
to DPV Confirm.

Blank - Address not presented to hash
table.

You can read more about how to identify invalid addresses here, and to see more detail on the DPV Confirmation Indicator, check out the Delivery Point Verification Codes Table in our data dictionary here.