Last posting dates for Christmas and shipping deadlines
Royal Mail hasn't published its 2026 Christmas dates yet: in 2025, the last days to post in the UK were Wednesday 17 December for 2nd Class, Saturday 20 December for 1st Class and Tuesday 23 December for Special Delivery Guaranteed. In the US, USPS says to send by Thursday 17 December 2026 with Ground Advantage or First-Class Mail, and by Saturday 19 December with Priority Mail Express. The tables below give each carrier's own deadline as checked on Friday 9 October 2026, with last year's date where this year's is not out yet.
United Kingdom: Royal Mail, Parcelforce, Evri and InPost
UK carriers haven't put their 2026 dates on their own pages yet (Royal Mail: "Last posting dates coming soon"), so most dates here are last year's, for UK addresses.
| Carrier | Service | Send by |
|---|---|---|
| Royal Mail | 2nd Class, 2nd Class Signed For | Not announced yet (2025: Wednesday 17 December) |
| Royal Mail | Tracked 48 | Not announced yet (2025: Friday 19 December) |
| Royal Mail | 1st Class, 1st Class Signed For | Not announced yet (2025: Saturday 20 December) |
| Royal Mail | Tracked 24 | Not announced yet (2025: Sunday 21 December) |
| Royal Mail | Special Delivery Guaranteed | Not announced yet (2025: Tuesday 23 December) |
| Royal Mail | Letters to Santa, for a reply | Wednesday 9 December |
| Parcelforce | express48 | Not announced yet (2025: Friday 19 December) |
| Parcelforce | express10, expressAM, express24 | Not announced yet (2025: Monday 22 December) |
| Evri | Standard, UK mainland | Not announced yet (2025: Friday 19 December) |
| Evri | Next Day, UK mainland, drop-off by 11am | Not announced yet (2025: Saturday 20 December) |
| InPost | Drop-off at a locker or shop | Not announced yet (2025: Saturday 20 December) |
Royal Mail and Parcelforce say their dates can change. Parcelforce's own page names "expressPM" where Royal Mail's 2025 leaflet names "expressAM", with the same date. DPD UK's pages show no Christmas cut-off for UK deliveries.
United States: USPS, UPS and FedEx
All three have published their 2026 dates. USPS aims at delivery before Christmas Day; UPS and FedEx aim at Christmas Eve, Thursday 24 December.
| Carrier | Service | Send by |
|---|---|---|
| USPS | Ground Advantage, First-Class Mail (cards and letters) | Thursday 17 December |
| USPS | Priority Mail | Friday 18 December |
| USPS | Priority Mail Express | Saturday 19 December |
| USPS | Ground Advantage to Alaska, Hawaii, Puerto Rico and US territories | Wednesday 16 December |
| USPS | Military APO/FPO/DPO, Ground Advantage | Wednesday 4 November |
| USPS | Military APO/FPO/DPO, First-Class Mail and Priority Mail | Wednesday 9 December |
| UPS | Ground | No fixed date: check ups.com/ctc |
| UPS | 3 Day Select | Monday 21 December |
| UPS | 2nd Day Air | Tuesday 22 December |
| UPS | Next Day Air | Wednesday 23 December |
| FedEx | Ground Economy | Tuesday 15 December |
| FedEx | Ground, Home Delivery | Thursday 17 December (5 days in transit) to Wednesday 23 December (1 day) |
| FedEx | Express Saver | Monday 21 December |
| FedEx | 2Day, 2Day AM | Tuesday 22 December |
| FedEx | First, Priority or Standard Overnight | Wednesday 23 December |
| FedEx | SameDay | Thursday 24 December |
USPS notes that Hanukkah, from Friday 4 to Saturday 12 December, is earlier this year, so send for it earlier. FedEx's Ground dates assume a scheduled pickup or a drop-off at a staffed FedEx location.
Ireland: An Post
An Post's page still shows 2025's dates, which it says "may be subject to change".
| Carrier | Service | Send by |
|---|---|---|
| An Post | Standard Post letters, Republic of Ireland | Not announced yet (2025: Monday 22 December) |
| An Post | Standard Post letters, Northern Ireland | Not announced yet (2025: Friday 19 December) |
| An Post | Standard Post letters, Great Britain | Not announced yet (2025: Thursday 18 December) |
| An Post | Standard Post parcels, Republic of Ireland, Northern Ireland or Great Britain | Not announced yet (2025: Tuesday 16 December) |
Canada: Canada Post
Canada Post's 2026 dates are out, by zone, between major urban centres. Its tool at canadapost.ca/deliverytool gives the time from your postal code.
| Carrier | Service | Send by |
|---|---|---|
| Canada Post | Priority | Wednesday 23 December |
| Canada Post | Xpresspost | Local: Wednesday 23 December. Regional or national: Tuesday 22 December |
| Canada Post | Expedited Parcel or flat rate box | Local: Tuesday 22 December. Regional: Friday 18 December. National: Monday 14 December |
| Canada Post | Regular Parcel | Local: Monday 21 December. Regional: Wednesday 16 December. National: Thursday 10 December |
| Canada Post | Cards | Local: Tuesday 22 December. Regional: Monday 21 December. National: Friday 18 December |
| Canada Post | Letter to Santa, for a reply | Wednesday 9 December |
Australia: Australia Post
Australia Post's 2026 dates are out, for metro areas: elsewhere, allow more time. Over the counter, Parcel Post and Express Post must be lodged by 2.30pm.
| Carrier | Service | Send by |
|---|---|---|
| Australia Post | Parcel Post within your state | Tuesday 22 December |
| Australia Post | Parcel Post between NSW, ACT, Vic, Qld, SA and Tas | Monday 21 December (between Qld and Tas: Friday 18 December) |
| Australia Post | Parcel Post between WA and NSW, ACT, Vic or SA | Friday 18 December |
| Australia Post | Parcel Post, other pairs with WA or NT | Monday 14 to Thursday 17 December, by pair |
| Australia Post | Express Post within your state, between NSW, ACT, Vic, Qld, SA and Tas, or to WA | Wednesday 23 December |
| Australia Post | Express Post, "NT and from WA" | Tuesday 22 December |
| Australia Post | Cards and letters within your state | Monday 21 December |
| Australia Post | Cards and letters interstate | Friday 18 December |
| Australia Post | Parcel Post to Christmas and Cocos Islands | Wednesday 14 to Monday 26 October, by sending state |
Sending a parcel abroad for Christmas
International dates come earlier, and carriers ask you to post as early as you can. Royal Mail and Parcelforce give no Christmas date per country, and warn that recent changes to customs procedures may slow gifts to the USA.
| From | Carrier and service | Send by |
|---|---|---|
| UK | Evri standard to the USA or Australia, ParcelShop drop-off | Not announced yet (2025: Friday 12 December) |
| US | USPS Priority Mail International, First-Class Package International Service | Wednesday 9 December |
| US | USPS Priority Mail Express International | Wednesday 16 December |
| Ireland | An Post Standard Post parcels to the rest of Europe | Not announced yet (2025: Friday 12 December) |
| Ireland | An Post Standard Post parcels to the USA or the rest of the world | Not announced yet (2025: Thursday 4 December) |
| Canada | Canada Post to the USA: Xpresspost USA, Expedited Parcel USA, Tracked Packet/Small Packet | Thursday 17, Monday 14 and Friday 11 December |
| Canada | Canada Post to the UK: Xpresspost International, Tracked Packet/Small Packet | Tuesday 15 and Friday 11 December |
| Australia | Australia Post to the UK: Express, Standard, Economy Air | Tuesday 15, Friday 11 and Friday 4 December |
| Australia | Australia Post to the USA: Express, Standard, Economy Air | Friday 11 December, Monday 7 December and Monday 30 November |
- Cards: Canada Post says Friday 11 December to the USA or the UK. An Post's 2025 date for letters to the USA was Wednesday 10 December.
- Australia: from SA, Tas or the NT, add 2 business days for Express and 5 for Standard and Economy.
- Canada: Canada Post's service alerts list France, Germany and seven other EU countries as suspended, though its Christmas page still gives dates for France and Germany.
Ordering online: leave time for customs
These dates are for parcels already with the carrier, so a shop's own last order date comes earlier.
A parcel from outside your country also passes through customs, which can hold it, and from China the trip can take weeks. None of the carrier pages here gives a Christmas date for parcels coming in from abroad, so order early and go by the shop's delivery estimate. See tracking a parcel from China and what happens at customs.
What if your Christmas parcel is late?
Sent after the last date? Australia Post delivers such items as quickly as it can, but says they may not arrive until after Christmas. A faster service often closes later, such as Special Delivery Guaranteed or UPS Next Day Air.
| Carrier | Days off, Christmas 2026 |
|---|---|
| Royal Mail | No collections or deliveries on Friday 25, Saturday 26 and Monday 28 December |
| DPD UK | Closed the same three days in Great Britain |
| UPS | Normal delivery on Thursday 24 December, none on Friday 25 December |
| FedEx | Modified service on Thursday 24 December, closed on Friday 25 December |
| Australia Post | No deliveries on Christmas Day or Boxing Day |
| An Post, Canada Post | Not announced yet |
- Check the carrier's own trackingOn its site or app, with the number from your shipping email.
- Allow for days offOn the days above, the parcel may not move at all.
- Read the service alertsEvri, FedEx and Canada Post post disruptions there, such as bad weather.
- Still stuck after Christmas?See why tracking stops updating.
Waiting for a gift? Paste its number into Peek and set its notifications to "Delivery day only": it checks up to every 2 minutes once the parcel is out for delivery, though it can't make it arrive sooner.
Sources
- Royal Mail: Christmas – 2026 dates coming soon
- Royal Mail: Christmas last posting dates – 2025 dates, abroad
- Royal Mail: Letters to Santa – 9 December 2026
- Royal Mail: Service update – 2026 days off
- Parcelforce: Christmas dates – 2025 dates, abroad
- Royal Mail: Christmas 2025 posting dates (PDF) – Parcelforce expressAM
- Evri: Last posting dates for Christmas 2025 – 2025 dates, service status
- InPost: Christmas drop-off date – 2025 date
- DPD UK: Delivery schedule – 2026 days off
- USPS: Holiday shipping deadlines – 2026 dates, Hanukkah
- UPS: Holiday shipping schedule – 2026 dates, days off
- FedEx: Last days to ship – days off, service alerts
- FedEx: 2026 last days to ship – 2026 dates, pickups
- An Post: Christmas postal dates – 2025 dates
- Canada Post: Holiday sending guidelines – 2026 dates, delivery tool
- Canada Post: Service alerts – suspensions
- Australia Post: Christmas sending dates – 2026 dates, 2.30pm, interstate days
- Australia Post: Public holiday services – days off