Great British Official Stamps – Issued 1882 to 1904
Official Stamps is not really the correct term for these stamps. They should really be called Government Departmental Stamps, as they were produced solely for the use of certain Government Departments. The first Official stamp was produced in 1840 and is known as the VR Black. It was prepared, but never issued. However, as is the case with most prepared Stamps, a few managed to find their way out onto the market.

The first issued Officials were in 1882 and were for the Inland Revenue. Before this time all Departments used ordinary Stamps for all their mail. More Government Departments followed, each bearing the name of the department overprinted on the stamp. Only overprinted Stamps are listed by Stanley Gibbons, though other departments did have their own Official stamps perfined, The Board of Trade being one such example.
The only general stamps issued were the Government Parcel Stamps as these could be used by any department. Most of the Mint Official stamps were never meant to fall into the hands of Collectors, but as with most stamps, some did. Indeed, two people went to prison for the supply and receipt of Official stamps.
Official stamps were withdrawn in 1904.

A main point to consider for collectors of these stamps is that they have been forged on a massive scale. Some are very good, even for an expert to detect; others are crude to say the least. Many inexperienced collectors have been duped into parting with their money for what is in essence a load of junk. So be careful, if a rare official stamp is offered to you for a fraction of its value, then it is probably a fake. Unfortunately, places such as Ebay are a haven for sellers who knowingly sell fake overprints. Just type ‘Ebay fake overprints’ into Google and you’ll see what I mean. So Be Careful!!