Ukrainian Philatelic and Numismatic Society

Promoting Ukrainian stamps, coins and other collectibles

Expertization service

Ukraine Philately is an infinitely complex and challenging area.  The need for expertizing of questionable items in order to safeguard the hobby and to protect future collectors is obvious.

New technologies and the availability of published information present the opportunity and promote development of sophisticated and extremely convincing alterations and counterfeits.  Many dangerous and well executed forgeries exist.

The present UPNS experts were all tutored and sanctioned by the late Mr. J. Bulat, an internationally recognized expert in all areas of Ukraine Philately in their respective specialty areas.  Our experts can provide opinions on the genuineness of material at a modest cost.

Kindly review the Rules and Procedures prior to submitting for examination.


UKRAINIAN PHILATELIC AND NUMISMATIC SOCIETY (UPNS)
EXPERTIZING COMMITTEE

Rules and Procedures

  1. Each item must be the property of the individual submitting it for expertizing.
  2. Insurance against loss in shipment to and from the owner and the Expertizing Committee or the designated expert will be the responsibility of the owner (UPNS does not provide any insurance.) Postal systems do not usually provide insurance between countries internationally. For shipments valued over $100, registered mail is recommended.
  3. Requests for the true market value or real value of an item will not be honored.
  4. Reasonable care will be taken by the Expertizing Committee for the items submitted for examination. However, all items are accepted only with the distinct understanding that neither the UPNS nor any of the members of the Expertizing Committee are liable in any way for any loss, damage, or the result of errors.
  5. No terms will be accepted if the owner insists upon a deadline date for its return. Turn around time on an average of forty-five (45) days should be allowed.
  6. Each application for expertizing must include complete name and address of the individual (typed or printed). Specific mailing and insurance instructions and proper fees for expertizing and return shipping must be included and made out to the designated expert according to the listed category. As a guide, assume the cost of returning your material to you will be the same as your cost to send the material for experlization.
  7. Submitted items must be arranged so that they are readily accessible and visible to the examiner. Currently accepted categories are: Western Ukraine, 1918-1920 Ukraine trident overprints, Carpatho-Ukraine and Mariupil issues. Please do not mix categories when submitting them for expertizing.
  8. Each stamp or cover valued over $50 must be accompanied by a separate application. A maximum of twenty (20) philatelic items with a total value of less than $50 may be submitted with one (1) application.
  9. The fees for expertizing are based on:
    Comprehensive Catalogue of Ukrainian Philately by John Bulat (2003)
    Copies of the handbook may be purchased for $30.00 (postpaid in U.S. & Canada) from:
Bohdan Pauk
PO Box 11184
Chicago, IL 60611-0184
U.S.A.
 
  1. The value of a cover will be set at $25, plus the sum of the values of the stamps on that cover.
  2. If the submitted item(s) is a forgery , a refund of 25% will be made to the owner based on the posted catalog value and expertization costs as published at the bottom of this page. The refund applies to UPNS members only.
  3. Genuine stamps will be "signed" unless the owner requests otherwise. No notation will be made on non-genuine items.
  4. The Application for Expertizing constitutes an acceptance of of the foregoing rules, procedures, fees and conditions.
  5. A copy of each issued certificate will be kept for future reference in UPNS files by the Expertizing Committee Chairman.
  6. All requests and submissions should be addressed directly to the designated experts according to the listed categories.

All Western Ukraine stamps and covers; Mariupil issues:

Service Not Available at this time

All 1918-1922 Ukraine trident overprints and postal history: 

Service Not Available at this time

All Carpatho-Ukraine (1939 and 1945) stamps and covers; Mariupil issues:

Service Not Available at this time

The fees are subject to revision and changes will be announced in UPNS publications.

Current Catalog Value

(USD)

UPNS Members

Non-Members

$100 or less
$10.00 $20.00
$101 to $500
$20.00 $30.00
$501 to $1000
$25.00 $40.00
$1001 and over
1.5% 2.0%
Unpriced items
$25.00 $40.00

 

 Application for Expertization

{phocadownload view=file|id=1}

You are here: Home Expertization Services