Australia Post welcomes the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission's (ACCC) preliminary view to not object to the proposed price increase for reserved ordinary letter services, including a change in the Basic Postage Rate (BPR) from $1.50 to $1.70.
In the first half of FY25, letter volumes dropped a further 10.6% leading to a loss of $83.7 million in Australia Post's letter service. The decline in letter volumes is a trend happening across postal services globally.
The proposed price increase will help Australia Post address losses in this part of the business as it continues to deliver for its customers and communities.
In recognising the cost-of-living challenges faced by vulnerable Australians, concession and seasonal greeting stamps, which have not changed in price for more than a decade, will remain at 60 and 65 cents respectively.
The ACCC has commenced a further round of consultation, which will conclude on 12 May 2025.
Following the conclusion of the consultation period, and pending no objection from the ACCC, Australia Post will lodge a formal application with the ACCC. Australia Post will provide customers with a minimum of 30 days' notice ahead of any price changes coming into effect.
Australians will continue to have some of the lowest stamp prices in the OECD and, with this increase, the basic postage rate will have risen by just 70 cents in the past eight years.
Currently, the vast majority of letters are sent by business and government, with less than 3% of letters being sent by consumers, which is expected to reduce further as digitisation increases. The average household purchases five to six full-rate stamps each year. The proposed increase would cost them about an additional $1.20 each year.
Costs to deliver letters continue to increase, with more than 200,000 extra delivery points added across our delivery network each year.
As a self-funded government business enterprise that receives no government funding, Australia Post is focused on responsibly addressing its financial challenges so it can continue to meet the evolving needs of Australian communities.
Media contacts:
Lara Evans, Head of Media Relations, Australia Post
M: 0419 226 449
Tracy Hicks, General Manager Communications, Australia Post
M: 0477 027 860
About Australia Post:
As Australia's postal service for more than 215 years, we're at the heart of every community. Last financial year we delivered more than 2.3 billion items to 12.7 million delivery points. Australia Post has one of the largest retail networks nationally, with more than 4,000 Post Offices. Australia Post employs people of all ages, genders, and abilities in our extended workforce of more than 64,000 team members, reflective of the diverse communities we operate in. We are proud to be included in the inaugural Indigenous Employment Index with 3% of our workforce identifying as Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander and we are one of the largest Australian employers to be certified as a Disability Confident Recruiter.
