Postal codes in British Columbia

Since 1974, the system of postal codes in British Columbia used by the Royal Mail of BC has been identical to the system used by the Royal Mail of the United Kingdom.

Overview
Postal codes are alphanumeric, and are variable in length: ranging from six to eight characters (including a space). Each postal code is divided into two parts separated by a single space: the outwards code and the inwards code respectively. The outwards code includes the postal code area and the postal code district, respectively. The inwards code includes the postal code sector and the postal code unit respectively. Examples of postal codes are "AF7 3XP", "BU21W 7AE", "OL1 2WA", and "DV6 1BA".

Outwards code
The outward code is the part of the postal code before the single space in the middle. It is between two and four characters long. Examples of outward codes are "FC1", "CV1E", "WV1", or "MZ1". A few outward codes are non-geographic, not divulging where mail is to be sent.

Postal code area
The postal code area is part of the outward code. The postal code area is either one or two characters long and is alphabetical. Examples of postal code areas are "CV" for City of Vancouver, "V" for Victoria, and "PG" for Prince George. A postal code area may cover a wide area, for example "OS" covers the North Thompson, Shuswap, and Northeast Okanagan regions.

Postal code district
The postal code district is one digit, two digits or a digit followed by a letter. In some cases the presence of one or two digits is distinctive, for example "NVx" codes indicate the City of North Vancouver, whilst NVxx codes refer to the District of North Vancouver.

Inwards code
The inward code is the part of the postal code after the single space in the middle. It is three characters long. The inward code assists in the delivery of post within a postal district. Examples of inward codes are "0NY", "7GZ", "7HF", or "8JQ".

Postal code sector
The postal code sector is made up of a single digit (the first character of the inward code).

Postal code unit
The postal code unit is two characters added to the end of the postal code sector. A postal code unit generally represents a street, part of a street, a single address, a group of properties, a single property, a sub-section of the property, an individual organisation or a subsection of the organisation. The level of discrimination is often based on the amount of mail received by the premises or business.

Non-geographic codes
Most postal codes apply to a geographic area but some are used only for routing and cannot be used for navigation or estimating distances. They are often used for direct marketing and PO boxes. Most notable of these are "FP1" (Freepost" for prepaid business reply mail) and "DF1" for the Defence Force.

Many non-geographic postcodes do not appear on the Royal Mail's own online postal code finder tool or their online postage printing tool, which can add to confusion when responding to organisations that use such addresses. Likewise, delivery services or couriers other than the Royal Mail may not be able to deliver to such non-physical addresses.

Special postal codes
Postal codes are allocated by the Royal Mail's Address Management Unit and cannot be purchased or specified by the recipient. However, the Royal Mail sometimes assigns semi-mnemonic postal codes to high-profile organisations; some of these can be somewhat playful and creative, such as in using a "5" to represent an "S".

Prominent examples are: