Adopted July 5, 1985 · Last amended June 14, 1999 · Last verified June 30, 2026
In one sentenceRule 405 requires the sheriff or other person who serves original process to make a prompt return of service setting forth the date, time, place, manner, and person served, with mail service proved by the return receipt and non-sheriff service proved by affidavit, all filed with the prothonotary.
(a)When service of original process has been made the sheriff or other person making service shall make a return of service forthwith. If service has not been made and the writ has not been reissued or the complaint reinstated, a return of no service shall be made upon the expiration of the period allowed for service.
(b)A return of service shall set forth the date, time, place and manner of service, the identity of the person served and any other facts necessary for the court to determine whether proper service has been made.
(c)Proof of service by mail under Rule 403 shall include a return receipt signed by the defendant or, if the defendant has refused to accept mail service and the plaintiff thereafter has served the defendant by ordinary mail,
(1)the returned letter with the notation that the defendant refused to accept delivery, and
(2)an affidavit that the letter was mailed by ordinary mail and was not returned within fifteen days after mailing.
(d)A return of service by a person other than the sheriff shall be by affidavit. If a person other than the sheriff makes a return of no service, the affidavit shall set forth with particularity the efforts made to effect service.
(e)The return of service or of no service shall be filed with the prothonotary.
(f)A return of service shall not be required when the defendant accepts service of original process.
(g)The sheriff upon filing a return of service or of no service shall notify by ordinary mail the party requesting service to be made that service has or has not been named upon a named party.
End
Plain-English Summary
This rule governs proving that service happened. The sheriff or other person making service must make a return of service forthwith, setting forth the date, time, place, and manner of service, the identity of the person served, and any other facts the court needs to determine whether service was proper.
Proof varies by method and server. Mail service under Rule 403 is proved by a return receipt signed by the defendant, or, where the defendant refused delivery, by the returned letter and an affidavit of follow-up ordinary mailing. A return by anyone other than the sheriff is by affidavit. The return of service or of no service is filed with the prothonotary, and no return is required when the defendant accepts service.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a return of service?
The server’s prompt report — setting forth the date, time, place, manner, and person served — filed with the prothonotary to prove that service was made.
How is mail service proved?
By the return receipt signed by the defendant, or, if the defendant refused delivery, by the returned letter plus an affidavit that an ordinary-mail copy was sent and not returned within fifteen days.
Official Note
Official Note: See Lamp v. Heyman, 469 Pa. 465, 366 A.2d 882 (1976), with respect to original process as a means of tolling the statute of limitations, wherein the Court stated that original process ‘‘shall remain effective to commence an action only if the plaintiff then refrains from a course of conduct which serves to stall in its tracks the legal machinery he has just set in motion.’’
Amendment History
The provisions of this Rule 405 adopted July 5, 1985, effective January 1, 1986, 15 Pa.B. 2452; amended July 7, 1986, effective January 1, 1987, 16 Pa.B. 2716; amended November 7, 1988, effective January 1, 1989, 18 Pa.B. 5333; amended June 14, 1999, effective September 1, 1999, 29 Pa.B. 3191. Immediately preceding text appears at serial page (256956). (Editor’s Note: The Supreme Court of Pennsylvania has suspended its order of June 14, 1999, published at 29 Pa.B. 3191 (June 26, 1999). See 29 Pa.B. 4859 (September 18, 1999).)
Source & verification. Rule text, the Official Note, and the amendment
history are reproduced verbatim from the Pennsylvania Code, Title 231, the official compilation
of rules adopted by the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania. Last verified June 30, 2026. ·
Official text
Also known as:return of serviceproof of serviceaffidavit of service