Full details and up-to-date information can be found on:
https://business.help.royalmail.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/5317/~/international-incidents-update
- "on suspension" means Royal Mail are currently not sending items to the named area as there are no available transport links. Items sent will be held and you'll experience significant delays.
- Other areas may experience delays due to staff shortages, prioritising essential supplies or the clearing of backlogs after postal suspensions.
- Even after the resuming of services delays may still be evident in some countries due to in-country restrictions remain in place to prevent the spread of Coronavirus.
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Update 2 September 2020 for:
- Hong Kong:
Latest Update: 2 September 2020
End date: Ongoing
Incident: Coronavirus
Hong Kong Post has advised that the special working arrangements have again been extended, and will remain in force until further notice, affecting the processing and delivery of all mail causing delivery delays. Force Majeure remains in place.
- Spain:
Latest Update: 2 September 2020
End date: Ongoing
Incident: Coronavirus
Correos, has advised they continue to experience problems with capacity, frequency and regularity of international flights due to the current COVID-19 situation. The force majeure situation previously declared remains in force, which continues to have a major impact on operations. As a result, we cannot guarantee the quality of service for all inbound and outbound mail until further notice.
- Equatorial Guinea - On Suspension
- Haiti - On Suspension
- Liberia - On Suspension
- New Caledonia - On Suspension
- Nicaragua - On Suspension
- Paraguay - On Suspension
- Sierra Leone - On Suspension
- Turkmenistan - On Suspension
- Ukraine - Crimea & Sevastopol Regions - On Long-Term Suspension
- Venezuela - Long-term Suspension
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UPDATES (5 JULY 2020)
Canada:
Latest Update: 1 July 2020
End date: Ongoing
Incident: Coronavirus
Update: 1 July 2020
Canada Post has received unprecedented volumes of mail in the past months, particularly at their Toronto gateway. They are recruiting additional staff and working overtime to reduce the incoming volumes and accumulated backlog, and significant delays will be experienced. Some items may also be delivered out of date order. Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA), responsible for customs clearance, has also experienced significant Coronavirus related staff absenteeism which added to this issue, but they are also now bringing in additional resource.
Update: 19 June 2020
There are no delays to letters and parcels leaving the UK destined for Canada. The overwhelming majority of items enter Canada via the Toronto gateway, where record levels of mail are creating significant delays at the entry point. Canada Post has been affected, as all logistics operations, with reduced staffing and social distancing requirements impacting on efficiency and processing times.
Until May, the majority of Tracked services were being delivered in under 15 days. Since w/c 11 May, already congested gateway operations have been further compounded by searches for Fentanyl (an opioid drug), required by customs authorities. This is causing additional delays.
Customers may also experience items being delivered out of sequence. This affects all mail, not just that from Royal Mail. For further updates, please visit the Canada Post website.
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Latest Update: 11 June 2020 2020
End date: Ongoing
Incident: Coronavirus
Update: 11 June 2020 - Chicago Gateway (see below)
Update: 2 June 2020
Mail and parcels are being moved around the USA and managed through many international mail centres across the country. This is outside of the normal operating procedures, and is so the United States Postal Service (USPS) can manage the very high volumes.
- Los Angeles - is processing 50% more than they do in Christmas peak period, and are experiencing significant delays.
- JFK (New York) & Miami - is up to date and processing normally.
- San Fransisco - is handling heavy volumes and have moved international work to domestic mail centres outside of the normal International Mail Centres to cope with high volumes. Customers should expect delays.
- Chicago - Significant delays are still being seen through the Chicago gateway. We're diverting traffic away from this gateway in consultation with United States Postal Service.
Customers should expect delays across the USA, some are significant as USPS continues to deal with heavy increases in volumes.