Postage rate changes in YOUR country - please update us here!

[henrik_rrb]

Rates from Sweden:

Sending a letter/postcard within Sweden (up to 50 gram): 12 SEK (about 1,20 euro). 100 gram letter: 24 SEK (2,40 euro).

Sending a letter/postcard to anywhere in the world (50 gram): 24 SEK (2,40 euro). 51-100 gram: 36 SEK (3,60 euro).

Registered letters international (1-50 gram): 135 SEK (13,50 euro). 51-100 gram: 140 SEK (14 euro).

The postage rates has continuously gone up in Sweden, once or even twice per year. In the year of 2000 an international letter cost 6 SEK (0,60 euro) to send... 21 years later it's four times as high.

I believe, and hope, that now it won't be raised anymore, as the Swedish Post since a few months has started with every second day delivery only. Meaning this week we'll get post delivered on Tuesday and Thursday. And next week on Monday, Wednesday and Friday.

On the other side, the Swedish Post seem to have no shame, so I wouldn't be surprised if they raise the rates again in a few months...

[Stewie1980]

For the first time in many years the postage rates in the Netherlands were not increased on 1 january!

Last increase was on 1 january 2021.

Domestic mail up to 20 gr. €0,96
International mail up to 20 gr. €1,55

And for the first time in many years Swiss Post increased the domestic rate, from CHF 1.00 to CHF 1.10

Last increase was in 2004(!) from CHF 0.90 to CHF 1.00

[AMark]

It's 2022 everywhere in the world now, so I think it's the perfect time to give this thread a bump.

If your country has increased its postal rates, (I wonder if any countries now decrease their postal rates?) please update us here.

Thank you and Happy New Year!

[RevRed+]

No change here - yet!

Irish Postal Rates.

Irish Postal Rates.

Irish Postal Rates.

[henrik_rrb]

I believe, and hope, that now it won't be raised anymore, as the Swedish Post since a few months has started with every second day delivery only. Meaning this week we'll get post delivered on Tuesday and Thursday. And next week on Monday, Wednesday and Friday.

On the other side, the Swedish Post seem to have no shame, so I wouldn't be surprised if they raise the rates again in a few months...

I wasn't wrong...

From the 1st of January 2022 the postage rate within Sweden (50 gram) is 13 SEK (up from 12) and for anywhere else in the world 26 SEK (up from 24).

Registered letters up to 50 grams are the same (135 SEK), while letters 51-100 grams went up from 140 SEK to 150 SEK.

And this after Postnord now have started to deliver the mail only every second day in the whole Sweden.

1 SEK = 0,1 euro

[erich]

First Class mail in the US is up to 58c, which is still cheap compared to most places. It's packages where they get the big bucks from you. I'd be good with FCM going up to $1 or even $1.50 if we actually got decent service, which we don't.

[Number-O-Ne]

First Class mail in the US is up to 58c, which is still cheap compared to most places. It's packages where they get the big bucks from you. I'd be good with FCM going up to $1 or even $1.50 if we actually got decent service, which we don't.

Yes, and even a slightly thicker envelope is charged as a package.

[Global Administrator]

The global definition of a "letter" is getting fine-tuned all the time.

A larger Xmas card from here cost about $15 this year overseas, even if under 50g weight.

MANY angry clients at PO counters. NASTY increase - a normal card overseas was about $2.50.

Glen

[asmodeus]

Germany Deutsche Post:

All national postage rates went up.

Letter, postcard, large letter and so on went up + 0,05€

International letter rates did not change.

[Phila-Tourist]

Oman (not sure when current rates came into effect, but seems to be recent):
Foreign postcard worldwide 0.500 rial
Standard letter to Europe 1.800
Registered letter to Europe 3.400, to Australasia 4.000 (To some countries, not at all exotic, registered mail is no longer being accepted at all.)

Go to an online currency converter to discover how much this is in your local money. Unf*ckingbelievably expensive. These must be among the highest postage rates in the world. Only postcards are still affordable, perhaps a gesture to the many tourists. Though quite developed, Oman is not a high-income country for many who live there. You can get lunch in a simple restaurant for 1 rial, about half the cost of letter postage.

Oman Post is pricing itself out of business. Post offices all over the country are closing down. The ones that are open see a few customers per day, most of whom only come to collect mail.

[Stewie1980]

At least registered letters from Oman are cheap compared with the rates in the Netherlands!

Within Netherlands: €9,05
Europe zone 1: €12,55
Europe zone 2: €14,55
Rest of the world: €19,30

[HalfpennyYellow]

Some of Malta's most commonly used postage rates are currently as follows:

Local mail

Local letter (up to 50g) = €0.30
Local letter (50-100g) = €0.50
Local registered = €2.50 registration fee + regular postage (eg. up to 50g = €2.80)

Foreign mail
(Zones: A1 = Europe, A2 = non-European Mediterranean countries and Kazakhstan, B = Africa, North America and parts of Asia, C = most of East Asia, Central/South America and Australia, D = rest of East Asia and Oceania)

Zone A1 letter (up to 30g) = €0.59
Zone A2 letter (up to 20g) = €0.37
Zone B letter (up to 20g) = €0.51
Zone C letter (up to 20g) = €0.63
Zone D letter (up to 20g) = €0.86

All zones, postcards = €0.86
All zones, registered = €5.50 registration fee + regular postage (eg. Zone A1 = €6.09)

Some of these rates are new (introduced 1 July 2021) while others have remained the same for a long time. Malta's current rates are a bit bizarre, in the sense that a normal letter to Europe (€0.59) costs more than a letter to Kazakhstan (€0.37), India or the USA (both €0.51). The €0.59 rate came about in 2014 - prior to that Zones A1 and A2 were just Zone A, and the €0.37 rate applied to Europe as well.

Since last July's rate increase, postcards are now more expensive than regular letters - I'm not aware of any other country which has rates like this.

More details are available on the MaltaPost website: https://www.maltapost.com/postagerates

[Princestamps]

NZ Post have already threatened us with a rate increase for mid 2022.

They have not said how much, but said it would be significant.

They are blaming falling mail volumes of now 250 million letters per year down from 400 million in 2017 and 1.2 billion in 2001! I guess they can also blame Covid 19, Climate Change, the sun's cycles, the anger of Gods, and Mercury in retrograde to.

I blame it on the fact no one wants to wait 3 weeks for a letter to get across town.

It's currently $1.50 for a local letter, so my guess is this will climb to $1.80 or $2.00 with this increase.

[jduester]

Oman (not sure when current rates came into effect, but seems to be recent):
Foreign postcard worldwide 0.500 rial
Standard letter to Europe 1.800
Registered letter to Europe 3.400, to Australasia 4.000 (To some countries, not at all exotic, registered mail is no longer being accepted at all.)
...
Oman Post is pricing itself out of business. Post offices all over the country are closing down. The ones that are open see a few customers per day, most of whom only come to collect mail.

Indeed. If you look at the quantities of stamps printed for each issue, they range mostly between 11.000 and 15.000. These quantities clearly indicate that the stamps are only issued to satisfy the philatelic market. There is no demand for their commercial use in Oman. Covers franked with stamps are usually philatelic, or sent by stamp collectors.

No one else buys Omani commemorative stamps. Oman Post still delivers a lot of mail, but these are mostly bank statements, electricity and water bills, magazines and adverstisements. Such mail is seldom franked with postage stamps, the covers mostly show the postage pre-paid number on the envelope in a stamp-like imprint.

Despite the lack of demand, Oman Post's stamp programme envisages an ever larger number of commemorative issues for 2022.

[Phila-Tourist]

Well, the few customers that do still send individual letters (not mass mailings) must use stamps because no alternative is available in post offices. No franking machines, no label printers. And the stamp types available in post offices are a mix of recent commemoratives and older definitives, so new stamp issues are being put to postal use.

That is actually a good thing and the lady at the Oman Post philatelic outlet (probably the world's only philatelic bureau located in an ultra-luxury shopping mall ) told me quite proudly that that for small-quantity mailings stamps must be used.

The problem is that high prices and cumbersome procedures discourage customers from sending mail altogether. Posting a registered item is akin to a sit-down interview at your bank if you want a loan. For example, in theory, you cannot even send a registered letter without providing your and the sender's (!) phone number.

The commemorative stamps are very colourful and pretty, but the quantity and variety (too many souvenir sheets) borders on the excessive. To date the sky-high postage rates have not been reflected in adjusted face values: Many commemoratives still cost only 100, 200 or 500 baisa.

But Oman Post will need to catch up and issue high-value stamps to reflect the current rates. A 3 rial definitive was issued a few weeks ago, that's almost 8 US$. Once many or most new stamp issues are in the 1 or 2 rial category collectors will start grumbling.

[Stewie1980]

Rates in France have also been increased on january 1.

Green letter 20gr 'Lettre verte' from €1.08 to €1.16
Priority letter 20gr 'Lettre prioritaire' from €1.28 to €1.43
International letter 20gr from €1.50 to €1.65

[RevRed+]

AN POST to increase price of stamps! [IRELAND]


An Post is increasing the price of a standard as well as an international stamp for the second time in less than a year.
Bad news for all the philatelists and letter writers out there as An Post has announced yet another increase in the price of a stamp, which will come into effect from 1st March.

The price of a stamp for a standard letter or postcard will increase by 15 cent to €1.25, or by almost 14%.

The price increase comes at a time of rising inflation, which is currently at a 20-year high of 5.5%.

An Post only raised the price of a stamp by 10 cent last May.

The cost of sending a standard international letter is also set to rise by another 20c to €2.20.

An Post claims the cost of postage here is still below the European average, especially when adjusted for income levels. It says the average price of a national stamp across 14 European Union countries and the UK is €1.58, while the comparable worldwide price is €2.27.

In better news, there will be a price freeze until the end of 2022 on the €11 consumer booklet of ten stamps (a saving of 15c per stamp).

An Post stamp price Letter: May 2020 = €1.00, May 2021 = €1.10, March 2022 = €1.25.

International Letter May 2020 = €1.70, May 2021 = €2.00, March 2022 = €2.20.

Why now?

Up until last May, An Post hadn't increased the price of a stamp for around four years.

However extra costs incurred due to the Covid pandemic, and now sharp price inflation across transport, fuel and energy, which An Post says is increasing the cost of providing national and international postal services, has led to hefty price increases.

However, CEO of An Post, David McRedmond has defended the move.

"While these increases are essential to cover rising costs, and ensure service continuity on a par with the very best in Europe, we will mitigate the impact on SMEs by increasing discounts available to them, while freezing the price of the ten-stamp booklet for consumers and offering regular price promotions. "

An Post also says its service is consistently rated amongst the best in Europe and unlike many other postal companies, which suspended services during the pandemic, An Post maintained services throughout, supporting both personal and business customers.

What's more, An Post’s Community Focus supports, including free postage to and from nursing homes, and free newspaper delivery for older customers, will remain indefinitely, while ‘Check-Ins’ by postal delivery staff on older, vulnerable or isolated customers living alone are now a standard part of An Post’s service nationally.

Will older stamps still be accepted?
Yes.

Any existing National ‘N’ rate stamps will automatically represent the new €1.25 postage rate while Worldwide ‘W’ stamps will cover the new €2.20 international letter rate.

[Erinmania]

AN POST to increase price of stamps! [IRELAND]


An Post is increasing the price of a standard as well as an international stamp for the second time in less than a year.
Bad news for all the philatelists and letter writers out there as An Post has announced yet another increase in the price of a stamp, which will come into effect from 1st March.

The price of a stamp for a standard letter or postcard will increase by 15 cent to €1.25, or by almost 14%.

The price increase comes at a time of rising inflation, which is currently at a 20-year high of 5.5%.

An Post only raised the price of a stamp by 10 cent last May.

The cost of sending a standard international letter is also set to rise by another 20c to €2.20.

An Post claims the cost of postage here is still below the European average, especially when adjusted for income levels. It says the average price of a national stamp across 14 European Union countries and the UK is €1.58, while the comparable worldwide price is €2.27.

In better news, there will be a price freeze until the end of 2022 on the €11 consumer booklet of ten stamps (a saving of 15c per stamp).

An Post stamp price Letter: May 2020 = €1.00, May 2021 = €1.10, March 2022 = €1.25.

International Letter May 2020 = €1.70, May 2021 = €2.00, March 2022 = €2.20.

Why now?

Up until last May, An Post hadn't increased the price of a stamp for around four years.

However extra costs incurred due to the Covid pandemic, and now sharp price inflation across transport, fuel and energy, which An Post says is increasing the cost of providing national and international postal services, has led to hefty price increases.

However, CEO of An Post, David McRedmond has defended the move.

"While these increases are essential to cover rising costs, and ensure service continuity on a par with the very best in Europe, we will mitigate the impact on SMEs by increasing discounts available to them, while freezing the price of the ten-stamp booklet for consumers and offering regular price promotions. "

An Post also says its service is consistently rated amongst the best in Europe and unlike many other postal companies, which suspended services during the pandemic, An Post maintained services throughout, supporting both personal and business customers.

What's more, An Post’s Community Focus supports, including free postage to and from nursing homes, and free newspaper delivery for older customers, will remain indefinitely, while ‘Check-Ins’ by postal delivery staff on older, vulnerable or isolated customers living alone are now a standard part of An Post’s service nationally.

Will older stamps still be accepted?
Yes.

Any existing National ‘N’ rate stamps will automatically represent the new €1.25 postage rate while Worldwide ‘W’ stamps will cover the new €2.20 international letter rate.

So going forward savvy users will buy the N rate national booklet available from the Bureau in Dublin and from Post offices for €11.00 until the end of the current year. They can also buy the Advantage Booklets at a 12½% discount availing themselves of the current €1.10 rate until the end of the year. Users of International mail will just have to grin and accept the increased rates. The only way to avoid the increase is to stock up on a few W rate booklets now.

[Princestamps]

I Euro 10 cents!!!

My last Irish stamps from 2008 were 0.58 Euros!

Then again the stamps since 2008 have been very sub par compared to earlier issues.

It would be interesting to compare standard letter rates in your country from the time Stampboards began on a large scale in April/May 2007 and now.

For example in New Zealand postage then was 45 cents (It went up to 50 cents in June 2007) and now its $1.50. A standard set of stamps then had the rates, 45c, 90c, $1.35, $1.50 and $2.00. Now its $1.50, $2.80, $3.30, $4.10 and now $4.90!

[RevRed+]

IRELAND.

Stamp prices to increase from 1st March 2022, in line with European postal rates.

Overall Price Increase of less than 6% - in line with inflation.

Sharp price inflation across transport, fuel and energy increasing cost of providing national and international postal services.
​
Price freeze on 10-stamp Consumer booklets and increased discounts on SME ‘Advantage’ stamp packs​.

‘COVID’ community supports to be permanently available to older and isolated customers who need them.

All existing stamps with ‘N’ (National) and ‘W’ (Worldwide) denominations remain valid and fully useable.

An Post will increase the price of basic national and international stamp on Tuesday 1st March 2022. The standard national letter stamp will increase to €1.25 (currently €1.10) while the standard international stamp will be €2.20 (currently €2.00). These levels are well below the current average European tariffs for high quality, letter delivery services.

The average price of a comparable national stamp across the principal EU14 (+ UK) countries is now €1.58, while the comparable worldwide tariff is €2.27. An Post’s service is consistently rated amongst the best in Europe, delivering top quality of service nationally and internationally compared to European carriers.

Unlike many postal companies who suspended services during the pandemic, An Post maintained services throughout, supporting both personal and business customers.

Conscious of the impact on personal customers and SMEs who are regular mailers, there will be no increase in the price of ten-stamp booklets priced €11.00 (a 15c discount per stamp). SMEs can also avail of the €1.10 stamp price through the An Post Advantage Card with increased discount of 12% on larger stamp packs and 34% discount on parcel postage will be available to all SMEs to year-end.

An Post’s Community Focus supports including free postage to and from nursing homes, and free newspaper delivery for older customers will be available indefinitely, while ‘Check-Ins’ by postal delivery staff on older, vulnerable or isolated customers living alone are now a standard part of An Post’s service nationally.

The new stamp prices reflect sharp transport, fuel and energy cost inflation and the true cost of maintaining a nationwide postal service with steadily falling traditional letter volumes. International air freight prices have increased by up to 360% in the Pandemic; transport cost inflation is running at 18% and electricity, gas and fuel costs are up 27% year on year (CSO-Dec 2021). The new postal tariffs will help ensure the continuity of next-day national letter services based on customers paying the same price for delivery of letters nationwide regardless of distance, as well as ongoing investment in letter services, staff and infrastructure.

David McRedmond, CEO of An Post said “While these increases are essential to cover rising costs, and ensure service continuity on a par with the very best in Europe, we will mitigate the impact on SMEsby increasing discounts available to them, while freezing the price of ten-stamp booklet for consumers and offering regular price promotions.

An Post is rebuilding the postal infrastructure for the future by developing new service and product choices to suit how we live now and how we will choose to live, work, communicate and connect in the future. Through innovation and building physical and digital infrastructure, we will protect our customers and support Irish firms who are doing business at home and expanding across the globe, while ensuring safe, decent work for our staff.

“We’re helping to shape a more sustainable future. New services, delivery depots and equipment will come on stream this year and we’ll expand our e-Vehicle fleet for fast, sustainable, zero-emission delivery”, he added.

Key Points

The price of the standard national letter stamp will increase to €1.25, below the EU14 +UK average of €1.58.

The standard worldwide letter stamp will increase to €2.20. Rising transport, fuel and energy costs impact An Post’s cost of doing business. As an island, Ireland is impacted far more by flight and freight costs than other European carriers who can rely on road haulage to transport mail.

There will be a price freeze until the end of 2022 on the €11 consumer booklets of ten stamps (a saving of 15c per stamp). Seasonal discounts and price promotions will also continue.

There will also be increased discounts on larger stamp packs available to SMEs through the An Post Advantage Card, a discount of 12% on the new rates to help them back to recovery and growth.

SMEs can also avail of 34% discount on parcel postage with the An Post Advantage Card.

Bulk mail rates will increase by 6c and meter rates by 10c. Large mailers, including meter customers can receive discounts for high volume postings.

All existing stamps with ‘N’ (National) and ‘W’ (Worldwide) denominations remain valid and fully useable after the new prices come into effect on Tuesday 1st March 2022.

Also on 1st March, tariffs for parcels to EU countries are being reduced in line with improved routing options.

Letter, packet and parcel price zones are being revised for different parts of Europe, maintaining prices at the lowest possible rates, while reflecting the cost of transporting Irish mail to these countries.

This revised pricing structure supports the core economics of the mails business which continues to be a cornerstone of An Post’s ongoing transformation. This has been made more challenging by the length of the COVID-related disruption, the extent of special measures to ensure customer and staff safety and the cost of maintaining essential collection, sorting and delivery services throughout the pandemic.

[Erinmania]

The new postal rates in Ireland have now come into force.
All N and W value commemoratives are being sold by An Post Philatelic Bureau at the new increased rates, that includes commemoratives issued prior to 2022. The exception being the 2021 Christmas booklet of 20 currently on offer at €23.00 (€1.15 per stamp).

The only ways to save on the new N rate (€1.25) is to buy the definitive booklets of 10 stamps or if you have the requirement the Advantage card.

[norvic]

Royal Mail has announced new rates for the United Kingdom from 4 April 2022.

Press release: statement from Royal Mail

From 4th April 2022, the price of a 1st Class stamp will increase by 10p to 95p and the price of a 2nd Class stamp will increase by 2p to 68p.

Royal Mail has considered these pricing changes very carefully in light of the long term structural decline in letter usage and rising inflation. Letter volumes have declined by more than 60% since their peak in 2004/5, and around 20% since the start of the pandemic.

Overall, these changes are broadly in line with inflation and are necessary to ensure the one-price-goes-anywhere Universal Service remains sustainable. The Universal Service Obligation (USO) requires Royal Mail to deliver letters to 31 million home and business addresses across the UK six days a week at the same price.

Nick Landon, Chief Commercial Officer at Royal Mail said: “We understand that many companies and households are finding it hard in the current economic environment, and we will always keep our prices as affordable as possible.

“Whilst the number of letters our postmen and women deliver has declined from around 20 billion a year to around 7 billion since 2004/5, the number of addresses they have to deliver to has grown by around 3.5 million in the same period. We need to carefully balance our pricing against declining letter volumes and increasing costs of delivering to a growing number of addresses six days a week.

“As customer needs change and we see a greater shift from letters to parcels, it is vital that the Universal Service adapts to stay relevant and sustainable. These prices changes are necessary to ensure we can continue to maintain and invest in the one-price-goes-anywhere Universal Service for future generations.”

Inland

The 1st class letter rate rises from 85p to 95p, an increase of over 11% so well above the rate of inflation. The 2nd class rate rises from 66p to 68p, a regulated increase of 3%. Increases for Signed For letters are the same (ie the Signed For premium is unchanged).

The rates for 100g Large Letters rise from 96p to £1.05 2nd class and £1.29 to £1.45 1st class, rises of 9.3% and 12.4%. Again the Signed For premium is unchanged for the basic weight.

Standard 1pm Special Delivery rates are unchanged at £6.85 for 100g and £7.65 for 500g.

A standard PO Box annual fee increases by £16.50 from £283.50 to £300 - so don't think that stamp dealers and other online sellers are making big money if their costs are increasing by this sort of figure, it's a rise of nearly 6%.

International

The basic table of letters up to 100g has only one change, the increase from £1.70 to £1.85 for the Europe 100g and Worldwide 20g rate. The Worldwide 100g rate remains £2.55.

The Large Letter prices are unchanged at all weight steps, the maximum weight being 750 g.

When it comes to anything heavier, that is a Small Parcel, and here things get really complex. The rates for Worldwide Small Parcels are unchanged. But Europe is now divided into three Zones, with only Denmark, France, Germany, the Republic of Ireland, and Monaco being in the cheapest.

The cost of a 100g small parcel rises by 5p (Zone 1), 15p (Zone 2) and 50p (Zone 3). But this is only because the first weight step is now 250g. For this weight Zone 2 is unchanged, Zone 1 is 10p cheaper, and Zone 3 is up 35p.

Beyond that, the Zone 2 rates are largely in line with existing prices up to 1kg, with Zone 1 rates lower* and Zone 3 rates higher.

After that it gets more complicated, although the charge for each additional 250g over 2kg is £.140 across the board, which is unchanged.

For full details download the new rate leaflet here.

[cgm]

Royal Mail 2022:
Also note that the 1Kg step has disappeared for domestic small and medium parcels.
The effect of this is hefty increases for parcels up to 1Kg, but reductions for ones weighing 1-2Kg.

The 5Kg step has disappeared for medium parcels, but higher weights have gone down considerably - e.g. 10 Kg second class down from £20.25 to £6.95. I assume this is to compete with couriers' prices.

So anyone shipping bulk kiloware or albums should be happy.

[faro]

The division of Europe into three zones is confusing for the sake of (at present) a small difference in price for parcels.

Monaco (zone 1) Switzerland (zone 3)
Sweden (zone 2) Norway (zone 3)
Spain (zone 2) Gibraltar (zone 3)
etc.

Also note that the 1Kg step has disappeared for domestic small and medium parcels.
The effect of this is hefty increases for parcels up to 1Kg, but reductions for ones weighing 1-2Kg.

2nd class 2kg is still an increase and another 10p for the signed-for premium.
Still reasonable compared with some of the other mark-ups.

The price for 20kg UK parcels is, however, reducing dramatically. No surprise given the competition, but good news for those who have stamps purchased at ~60% of face and a post office that knows how to accept them!

[Eternal]

Postal rates in Laos:
Postcard to any foreign country: 8,000 Kip
Regular letter to Vietnam, Thailand and Cambodia: 15,000 Kip
Regular letter to ASEAN: 16,000 Kip
Regular letter to Europa, Africa and Oceania: 17,000 Kip
Regular letter to Americas: 18,000 Kip
For Registered add 11,000 Kip
Official exchange rate 1 USD = 11,800 Kip, unofficial 1 USD = over 13,000 Kip

No stamps were issued in 2020 and so far none in 2022 also.
Last set issued as in December 2021 with three stamps of 4,000 Kip and one stamp of 8,000 Kip.
For mini sheets (perforated and imperforated) an extra 2,000 Kip is charged.

[Crowsnestidaho]

Update on united States of America Postal changes:

April 6, 2022

U.S. Postal Service Announces New Prices for 2022
Two Cents Increase for Forever Stamp

WASHINGTON, DC — Today the United States Postal Service filed notice with the Postal Regulatory Commission (PRC) of price changes to take effect July 10, 2022. The new prices, if favorably reviewed, include a two-cent increase in the price of a First-Class Mail Forever stamp from 58 cents to 60 cents.

The proposed prices, approved by the Governors of the U.S. Postal Service, would raise First-Class Mail prices approximately 6.5 percent which is lower than the Bureau of Labor Statistics annual inflation rate of 7.9 percent as of the end of February. The price changes reflect a judicious implementation of the Postal Service’s pricing authority provided by the Postal Regulatory Commission.

If favorably reviewed by the PRC, the single-piece letter additional ounce price would increase to 24 cents, the metered mail 1-ounce price would increase to 57 cents and the price of a postcard stamp would increase to 44 cents. A one-ounce letter mailed to other countries would increase to $1.40 cents. The Postal Service is also seeking price adjustments for Special Services products including Certified Mail, Post Office Box rental fees, Money Order fees and the cost to purchase insurance when mailing an item.

The proposed Mailing Services price changes include:

Product Current Prices Planned Prices

Letters (1 oz.) 58 cents 60 cents

Letters (metered 1 oz.) 53 cents 57 cents

Letters additional ounce(s) 20 cents 24 cents

Domestic Postcards 40 cents 44 cents

International Letter (1 oz.) $1.30 cents $1.40 cents

As inflation and increased operating expenses continue, these price adjustments will help with the implementation of the Delivering for America plan, including a $40 billion investment in core Postal Service infrastructure over the next ten years. With the new prices, the Postal Service will continue to provide the lowest letter-mail postage rates in the industrialized world and offer a great value in shipping.

The PRC will review the prices before they are scheduled to take effect. The complete Postal Service price filing with prices for all products can be found on the PRC site under the Daily Listings section at prc.gov/dockets/daily. The Mailing Services filing is Docket No. R2022-1. The price change tables are also available on the Postal Service’s Postal Explorer website at pe.usps.com/PriceChange/Index.

The Postal Service generally receives no tax dollars for operating expenses and relies on the sale of postage, products, and services to fund its operations.

###

For U.S. Postal Service media resources, including broadcast-quality video and audio and photo stills, visit the USPS Newsroom. Follow us on Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest and LinkedIn. Subscribe to the USPS YouTube channel, like us on Facebook and enjoy our Postal Posts blog. For more information about the Postal Service, visit usps.com and facts.usps.com.

USPS NEWS

Media contacts
David P. Coleman
david.p.coleman@usps.gov

Printable version

copied from USPS website

Don

[RevRed+]

An application form from Ireland's An Post, for reduced postal rates for businesses.

An application form from Ireland's An Post, for reduced postal rates for businesses.

[Princestamps]

Further rate increases by NZ Post effective July 1st 2022

Reasons given - cost of "processing", infrastructure and technology costs, costs for seeking innovations, absorbing cost of staff absences due to Covid 19 pandemic and winter illnesses.
Mail volumes have dropped to 250 million in 2021 down from 400 million in 2016 and 1.1 billion in 2001.

NZ standard letter - $1.70 (Up from $1.50)
NZ large letter (A5) - $3.00 (Up from $2.80)
NZ oversize letter (Page sized) - $4.30 (Up from $4.00)
Weight limit for all - 100 grams

Overseas
All Postcards and Aerograms - $3.00 (Up from $2.80)
Standard Letter to Australia and Pacific - $3.00
Standard Letter to Rest of the World - $3.80
Large letter to Australia - $5.10
Large letter to Rest of World - $6.70

Some mail may attract Covid surcharges?

The page was very vague and took lots of searching to get answers.

Recent stamp issues have seen stamps with face values never seen in New Zealand before