It's hard to believe that Christmas is literally just around the corner - a little over a month away. And, this year, it's worth making sure that you're aware of Royal Mail's postal dates and deadlines as there are a number of planned strike days taking place during the key Christmas mailing period.
Royal Mail is advising that people allow plenty of time for posting items and gifts for Christmas early, particularly for international deliveries. We've put together a handy list of everything you need to know when it comes to the latest Royal Mail posting dates, as well as all the latest strike action information.
We'll be sure to update this page if and when additional information is released. Here's the latest as it stands on November 21, 2022.
Read more: Bristol Christmas shopping named best in the UK beating the likes of London and Manchester
Latest posting dates
The latest Royal Mail Christmas posting dates are as follows:
- Friday, December 16 - Royal Mail Bulk Mail, Economy
- Monday, December 19 - 2nd Class, 2nd Class Signed For, Royal Mail 48
- Wednesday, December 21 - 1st Class, 1st Class Signed For, Royal Mail 24, Royal Mail Tracked 48
- Thursday, December 22 - Special Delivery Guaranteed, Royal Mail Tracked 24
- Friday, December 23 - Special Delivery Guaranteed with Saturday Guarantee
(Royal Mail Tracked 24 and Royal Mail Tracked 48 are not available to purchase at Post Office branches)
International final posting dates
International Economy
- Monday, September 12 - All non-European destinations (unless listed below)
- Friday, October 14 - Far and Middle East, Hong Kong, Singapore, South Africa
- Monday, October 31 - Canada and USA
- Friday, November 25 - Cyprus, Eastern Europe, Greece, Iceland, Malta, Turkey
- Monday, November 28 - Western Europe
International Standard & International tracking and signature services
- Friday, October 7 - British Virgin Islands, Dominica and Anguilla
- Thursday, December 1 - Australia and New Zealand
- Friday, December 2 - China (People's Republic)
- Monday, December 5 - All remaining Caribbean destinations
- Wednesday, December 7 - Africa, Asia (except China, People's Republic), Central and South America, Far and Middle East
- Thursday, December 8 - Cyprus and Malta
- Friday, December 9 - Greece, Eastern Europe (except Czech Republic, Poland and Slovakia) and Turkey
- Saturday, December 10 - Canada, Czech Republic, Finland, Italy, Poland, Sweden, USA
- Monday, December 12 - Austria, Denmark, Germany, Iceland, Ireland, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Slovakia, Spain, Switzerland
- Wednesday, December 14 - Belgium, France, Luxembourg
HM Forces Mail - British Forces Post Office (BFPO)
- Friday, December 2 - Operational HM Forces and Static HM Forces
Latest news on industrial action
According to official information from Royal Mail, CWU members are taking national strike action on November 24, 25 and 30, and December 1, 2022. The latest information on this can be found here.
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