Announced November 20, 2018. The most recent information will appear after the large illustration and the introductory description from the USPS. The Scott catalogue numbers are also below.With this new 2019 stamp, the Postal Service celebrates the American flag, the most recognizable symbol of our nation. The stamp features a U.S. flag, one of several on the flagpoles near the end of Chicago’s Navy Pier, waving in a May breeze. The photograph was taken by art director Antonio Alcalá¡.

December 19th: This stamp will be issued Sunday, January 27th, with a Kansas City MO postmark but no first-day ceremony.

December 21st: Two formats, two printers (four varieties altogether).

On January 27, 2019, in Kansas City, MO, the U.S. Postal Service will issue the U.S. Flag 2019 stamp (Forever priced at the First-Class Mail rate) in one design, in the following formats:

• A pressure-sensitive adhesive (PSA) booklet of 20 stamps (Item 682300) produced by security printers Ashton Potter (USA) Ltd. (APU) and Banknote Corportation of America (BCA), and
• A PSA coil of 100 stamps (Item 740100) produced by security printers APU and BCA.

The stamps will go on sale nationwide January 27, 2019, and must not be sold or cancelled before the first-day-of-issue.

With this new 2019 stamp, the Postal Service celebrates the American flag, the most recognizable symbol of our nation. The stamp features a U.S. flag, one of several on the flagpoles near the end of Chicago’s Navy Pier, waving in a May breeze. The photograph was taken by art director Antonio Alcalá.

Availability to Post Offices:

• Item 682300, U.S. Flag 2019 PSA (Forever Priced at the First-Class Mail Rate) Double-sided Booklet of 20 Stamps: Stamp Fulfillment Services will make an automatic push distribution to Post Offices of a quantity to cover approximately 30 days of sales.
• Item 740100, U.S. Flag 2019 PSA (Forever Priced at the First-Class Mail Rate) Coil of 100 Stamps: Stamp Fulfillment Services will not make an automatic push distribution to Post Offices.

How to Order the First-Day-of-Issue Postmark:
Customers have 120 days to obtain the first-day-of-issue postmark by mail. They may purchase new stamps at their local Post Office or at The Postal Store website at usps.com/shop. They must affix the stamps to envelopes of their choice, address the envelopes (to themselves or others), and place them in a larger envelope addressed to:

FDOI – U.S. Flag 2019 Stamp
USPS Stamp Fulfillment Services
8300 NE Underground Drive, Suite 300
Kansas City, MO 64144-9900

After applying the first-day-of-issue postmark, the Postal Service will return the envelopes through the mail. There is no charge for the postmark up to a quantity of 50. There is a 5-cent charge for each additional postmark over 50. All orders must be postmarked by May 27, 2019.

Technical Specifications (Ashton Potter booklet):

Issue: U.S. Flag 2019 Stamp
Item Number: 682300
Denomination & Type of Issue: First-Class Mail Forever
Format: Double-sided Booklet of 20 (1 design)
Series: N/A
Issue Date & City: January 27, 2019, Kansas City, MO 64108
Art Director: Antonio Alcalá, Alexandria, VA
Designer: Antonio Alcalá, Alexandria, VA
Typographer: Antonio Alcalá, Alexandria, VA
Photographer: Antonio Alcalá, Alexandria, VA
Modeler: Joseph Sheeran
Manufacturing Process: Offset, Microprint
Printer: Ashton Potter (USA) Ltd. (APU)
Press Type: Muller A76
Stamps per Booklet: 20
Print Quantity: 1,500,000,000 stamps
Paper Type: Nonphosphored Type III, Block Tagged
Adhesive Type: Pressure-sensitive
Processed at: Ashton Potter (USA) Ltd. (APU)
Stamp Orientation: Horizontal
Image Area (w x h): 0.84 x 0.73 in./21.336 x 18.542 mm
Stamp Size (w x h): 0.98 x 0.87 in./24.892 x 22.098 mm
Full Booklet Size (w x h): 1.96 x 5.52 in./49.784 x 140.208 mm
Colors: Black, Cyan, Magenta, Yellow
Plate Size: 1040 stamps per revolution
Plate Numbers: “P” followed by four (4) single digits
Marginal Markings: Header. “20 First-Class Forever Stamps U.S. Flag” • ©2018 USPS in peel strip area • Barcode • Promotional text • Plate number in peel strip area

Technical Specifications (Banknote booklet):

Issue: U.S. Flag 2019 Stamp
Item Number: 682300
Denomination & Type of Issue: First-Class Mail Forever
Format: Double-sided Booklet of 20 (1 design)
Series: N/A
Issue Date & City: January 27, 2019, Kansas City, MO 64108
Art Director: Antonio Alcalá, Alexandria, VA
Designer: Antonio Alcalá, Alexandria, VA
Typographer: Antonio Alcalá, Alexandria, VA
Photographer: Antonio Alcalá, Alexandria, VA
Modeler: Sandra Lane/Michelle Finn
Manufacturing Process: Offset, Microprint
Printer: Banknote Corporation of America
Press Type: Alprinta 74
Stamps per Booklet: 20
Print Quantity: 1,500,000,000
Paper Type: Phosphor Tagged Paper, Block Tagged
Adhesive Type: Pressure-sensitive
Processed at: Banknote Corporation of America
Stamp Orientation: Horizontal
Image Area (w x h): 0.84 x 0.73 in./21.336 x 18.542 mm
Stamp Size (w x h): 0.98 x 0.87 in./24.892 x 22.098 mm
Full Booklet Size (w x h): 1.96 x 5.52 in./49.784 x 140.208 mm
Colors: Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, Black
Plate Size: 960 stamps per revolution
Plate Numbers: “B” followed by four (4) single digits
Marginal Markings: Header. “20 First-Class Forever Stamps U.S. Flag” • ©2018 USPS in peel strip area • Barcode • Promotional text • Plate number in peel strip area

Technical Specifications (Ashton Potter coil):

Issue: U.S. Flag 2019 Stamp
Item Number: 740100
Denomination & Type of Issue: First Class Mail Forever
Format: Coil of 100 (1 design)
Series: N/A
Issue Date & City: January 27, 2019, Kansas City, MO 64108
Art Director: Antonio Alcalá, Alexandria, VA
Designer: Antonio Alcalá, Alexandria, VA
Typographer: Antonio Alcalá, Alexandria, VA
Photographer: Antonio Alcalá, Alexandria, VA
Modeler: Joseph Sheeran
Manufacturing Process: Offset, Microprint
Printer: Ashton Potter (USA) Ltd. (APU)
Press Type: Muller A76
Stamps per Coil: 100
Print Quantity: 1,900,000,000 stamps
Paper Type: Nonphosphored Type III, Block Tag
Adhesive Type: Pressure-sensitive
Processed at: Ashton Potter (USA) Ltd. (APU)
Colors: Black, Cyan, Magenta, Yellow
Stamp Orientation: Horizontal
Image Area (w x h): 0.84 x 0.73 in./21.336 x 18.542 mm
Stamp Size (w x h): 0.98 x 0.87096 in./24.892 x 22.122 mm
Plate Size: 744 stamps per revolution
Plate Numbers: “P” followed by four (4) single digits
Coil Number Frequency: Plate numbers every 31st stamp beside stamp image

Technical Specifications (Banknote coil):

Issue: U.S. Flag 2019 Stamp
Item Number: 740100
Denomination & Type of Issue: First-Class Mail Forever
Format: Coil of 100 (1 design)
Series: N/A
Issue Date & City: January 27, 2019, Kansas City, MO 64108
Art Director: Antonio Alcalá, Alexandria, VA
Designer: Antonio Alcalá, Alexandria, VA
Typographer: Antonio Alcalá, Alexandria, VA
Photographer: Antonio Alcalá, Alexandria, VA
Modeler: Sandra Lane/Michelle Finn
Manufacturing Process: Offset, Microprint
Printer: Banknote Corporation of America
Printed at: Browns Summit, NC
Press Type: Alprinta 74
Stamps per Coil: 100
Print Quantity: 1,900,000,000 stamps
Paper Type: Phosphor Tagged Paper, Overall
Adhesive Type: Pressure-sensitive
Processed at: Banknote Corporation of America
Colors: Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, Black
Stamp Orientation: Horizontal
Image Area (w x h): 0.84 x 0.73 in./21.336 x 18.542 mm
Stamp Size (w x h): 0.96 x 0.871 in./24.384 x 22.123 mm
Plate Size: 744 stamps per revolution
Plate Numbers: “B” followed by four (4) single digits
Coil Number Frequency: Plate numbers every 31st stamp beside stamp image

Updated January 9th:
There is only a B&W pictorial first-day cancel for this issue:It measures 2.9″x1.14″.

Updated January 17th:

The first-day postmark design has changed:

The Scott catalogue numbers for this issue are as follows:

5342 (55¢) Flag coil (Ashton-Potter printing), serpentine die cut 11 horiz., microprinted “USPS” at lower flag grommet
5343 (55¢) Flag coil (Banknote printing), serpentine die cut 9½ horiz., microprinted “USPS” to right of sixth red flag stripe
5344 (55¢) Flag booklet stamp (Ashton-Potter printing), serpentine die cut 10¾x11¼ on 2 or 3 sides, microprinted “USPS” at upper left corner of flag
a. Convertible booklet pane of 20
5345 (55¢) Flag booklet stamp (Banknote printing), serpentine die cut 10¾x11¼ on 2 or 3 sides, microprinted “USPS” to right of sixth red flag stripe
a. Convertible booklet pane of 20