<P> In the Ottoman empire, Damga resmi was already in use by the sixteenth century . Records of tax revenue from stamps for silk provide evidence of changes in silk production over time . </P> <P> The use of revenue stamps goes back further than that of postage stamps (first used in 1840); the stamps of the Stamp Acts of the 18th century were revenues . Their use became widespread in the 19th century, partly inspired by the success of the postage stamp, and partly motivated by the desire to streamline government operations, the presence of a revenue stamp being an indication that the item in question had already paid the necessary fees . Revenue stamps have become less commonly seen in the 21st century, with the rise of computerization and the ability to use numbers to track payments accurately . </P> <P> There are a great many kinds of revenue stamps in the world, and it is likely that many remain unrecorded . Both national and local entities have issued them . Governments have sometimes combined the functions of postage and revenue stamps . In the former British Empire, such stamps were often inscribed "Postage and Revenue" to reflect their dual function . Other countries have simply allowed revenue stamps to be used for postage or vice versa . A revenue stamp authorized subsequently for postal use is known as a postal fiscal . Bhutan, for instance, authorized the use of revenue stamps for postal purposes from 1955 until the first proper postage stamps of the country were issued in 1962 . In the Stanley Gibbons catalog, this type of stamp has an F prefix . </P> <P> While revenue stamps often resemble postage stamps, they are not normally intended for use on mail and therefore do not receive a postal cancellation . Some countries such as Great Britain have issued stamps valid for both postage and revenue, but this practice is now rare . Many different methods have been used to cancel revenue stamps, including pen cancels, inked handstamps, perforating, embossing, hole punching or simply tearing . </P>

Difference between revenue stamp and postage stamp in india