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 1^st March 2022.
• Also on 1^st 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.