Australia Post has announced a Christmas deadline for interstate parcels and postcards

As post offices prepare for a busy couple of months, customers are being encouraged to send gifts to loved ones interstate by December 12 if they want them under the tree by Christmas.

If this deadline causes panic among those who do not have time to buy and send gifts, express delivery will bring some relief.

Gifts can be sent by express until December 19 to reach their destination before the holiday.

However, the cut-off date is more important for customers sending gifts to loved ones in Western Australia or the Northern Territory.

For these destinations, Australia Post has extended the deadline to December 7 for parcels and December 14 for the more expensive and faster Express Post option.

The Postal Service also provided a cut-off for Christmas cards that had to be put in the mailbox by Dec. 15 to make it to the mantelpiece in other states.

If the cards are for the same state, the deadline is pushed back to the last minute on December 19.

Domestic deadlines do not come until one week after the postal service issues international terms for Christmas packages that are more urgent.

While cut-off dates vary for different destinations, Australia Post recommends sending cards and gifts by November 14 as a general rule.

For those wanting to send parcels and letters to the UK, you will need to get them in the post by November 21st for Economy Air.

For those of you who aren’t as organized this holiday season, the last date you can send gifts to popular countries like the US, UK, New Zealand and Canada is December 9 if you send them via international express.

Executive general manager Gary Starr said gifts need to be shipped early to ensure they reach their destination during the busy holiday season.

“We know that our latest dispatch dates are an important reference point for people in the run-up to Christmas and we’ve been preparing all year for another busy peak season to make sure everything runs as smoothly as possible,” he said.

“As always, we will continue to deliver items sent after these dates as quickly as possible, but they may not arrive until after Christmas.”

The postal service is gearing up for a very busy few months after delivering more than 52 million parcels in December 2021.

“We’ve been gearing up for another busy peak season all year by recruiting thousands of new team members, investing in our network and making digital improvements such as improved parcel delivery notifications,” Mr Starr said.

Originally published as Australia Post has revealed the latest dates for sending Christmas gifts domestically