Counterfeit Forever Stamps

The problem is not the value of the new stamp. It is the legal and logistical friction required to get it. Under the Fifth Amendment Takings Clause, just compensation usually means full fair market value without placing an undue burden on the individual.

In the UK, the Royal Mail swapped wrongly flagged genuine stamps as fakes. If the USPS forces a swap and a clerk rejects your genuine stamps because they look like high quality fakes, the government has essentially seized your property without compensation. These forever stamps were sold as a non-expiring commodity. Forcing millions of people to prove their property is legitimate, with the risk of erroneous seizure, moves the burden of proof from the government to the citizen.

Updated: Every stamp design issued in 2025 has CF, except for the following:

• CVP15, CVP16 (vending machine issues)
• 6024 – Putting a Stamp on the American Experience (released in a prestige booklet, so not worthwhile to CF)
• 6031 – Luna Moth (non-machinable surcharge so low market demand) ~> CF already in the market as of Mar 2026
• 6043 – James "Jimmy" Carter, U.S. President ~> CF already in the market as of Apr 2026

Well, I believe there won't be CVP15–16 or 6024 CF, so collectors can now obtain a... complete CF set for 2025 :)

Counterfeiting US stamps, then selling them for people to use, is illegal and needs to be more forcefully addressed... Actually, this practice is a form of shoplifting from our postal service. It's a theft that,indirectly, is stealing from us all, as it is a contributor to higher postal rates for the honest...Why aren't the guilty ever caught? Why don't our national leaders take China to task for this? Would it be politically incorrect? Further, Scott shouldn't help to "legitimize" their existance.. Time to "cancel" this practice!

New low price for Forever stamps? Just less than 4 and 1/4 cents each on ebay or 3000 for $99.00 (opening bid).

Listing title: "30 rolls usps postage stamps 3000 certified forever stamps"





New York seller has feedback of zero (0).

Edit: Seller also has "15 rolls us postage 1500 certified stamps" but this one is $50 which raises the per price over 4 and 1/4 cents. Does have a bid though.

ebay doesn't care

I can't believe ebay is allowing this. The fact that the seller has 0 feedback should be a red flag.

I did get ebay to remove a listing like this recently, so please report it to them.

Here's the new scam: Show a lot of older discount postage, and spike it with a bag of counterfeit coil stamps.

Why are you so sure that's a "scam"? This isn't your typical single-digit feedback seller. It could very well be a lot as purchased by the seller.

You are imputing knowledge and motive upon a seller without any evidence whatsoever other than the existence of the Forever stamps. The fact of the matter is that the number of dealers, sellers, and collectors that can accurately determine genuine from counterfeit stamps is likely well under 10%.

If the norm now is to blindly presume that any seller of any Forever coils is automatically trafficking in counterfeit goods until or unless they can prove otherwise, that is a dangerously slippery slope.

1. The photo is deceptive. It advertises "$400 in postage" while prominently displaying a wide variety of 4-cent stamps. Only upon close inspection does it become apparent that most of the value comes from a bag of coil stamps.

2. Forever stamps and 4-cent stamps appeal to different markets and have different price points. Buyers generally pay more for forever stamps, so if they make up most of the value, they should be the prominent feature of the display rather than being hidden.

3. They are essentially selling the same formula over and over again, with only minor variations in the stamp assortment or presentation.



4. The seller repeatedly offers large quantities of Forever stamps at roughly 25% of face value. That naturally raises questions about the source of the inventory. While discounted postage can sometimes come from legitimate bulk purchases or liquidation sales, a consistent supply of deeply discounted Forever stamps warrants scrutiny.

If a seller repeatedly listed 2026 Ford Broncos for around $8,000, most buyers would question where the vehicles came from rather than simply assuming everything was legitimate. The same principle applies here. When an item with a fixed, well-known value is offered at a steep discount over and over again, it is reasonable to ask whether the merchandise is genuine and lawfully obtained before giving the seller the benefit of the doubt.

The additional context and history that was missing from the initial point blank claim is helpful and important, thank you. Candidly, I think that information should have been included the first time around, especially when someone is being accused of committing fraud.

While useful, the additional information does not actually prove anything. Just for example, I once worked on a lot for a wholesale dealer purchased from a well known auction house. The lot description said that there was about $15000 in postage in the lot, and the sale price pretty much reflected that. The lot turned out to have about $40000 in postage and about $20000 in real catalog value of stamps as well. A lot like that could easily be broken down into many smaller lots which might have looked similar to these.

I think the norm should be to presume any seller of large quantities of Forever stamps as suspect when they offer prices below 50% face. That is just the reality of the stamp market, especially on places like ebay or Facebook Marketplace. Caveat emptor.

These were not "offered", they were put up for bids. So the first price depends entirely on bidders, not the seller.

"These were not "offered", they were put up for bids. So the first price depends entirely on bidders, not the seller."

Huh? The minimum bid was set by the seller.