Christmas FAQ's

Please see our last date of posting page for more information.  

We are handling much higher volumes of mail at this time of year but will we continue to deliver your post as normal right up to 24th December 2024. We also have the latest dates of posting for sending mail worldwide so you can plan ahead on when to send your post. You can view these on our Christmas Hub. 
 

Our gift packaging options start from €6 for a gift bag and from €9 for a gift box. There are no weight restrictions but additional charges will apply for sending items internationally. They can be purchased at your local post office or on our online shop. Send early to ensure your present travels across the world on time for Christmas.  
 

An Post holds missed deliveries for the following periods:  

• 5 working days for Standard Post and Express Post. 
• 3 working days for registered post.  
• 16 working days if it is received from abroad.

After that, we will try to return the item to the person who sent it, if there’s a legible address on the outside. If anything has to be returned to the sender, we will attach a sticker explaining why we couldn’t deliver it.  In order to avoid missing a delivery you can sign up anpost.com and set up a delivery safe spot. This can be a safe, dry place out of view or a neighbour.

Our Christmas stamps are available to buy at your local post office or on our online shop. Send early to ensure your cards arrive on time for Christmas.  

An Post holds missed deliveries for the following periods:  

• 5 working days for Standard Post and Express Post. 
• 3 working days for registered post.  
• 16 working days if it is received from abroad.

After that, we will try to return the item to the person who sent it, if there’s a legible address on the outside. If anything has to be returned to the sender, we will attach a sticker explaining why we couldn’t deliver it.  In order to avoid missing a delivery you can sign up anpost.com and set up a delivery safe spot. This can be a safe, dry place out of view or a neighbour.

We will try to deliver to the address at least once, if there is no one available to accept the parcel we will leave you a “sorry we missed you!” notice explaining how to get it. This will explain the options to collect the parcel from one of our locations or you can arrange a redelivery online. If you're not going to be at home, you can avoid missing a delivery by setting a safe spot up. This can be a safe, dry place out of view or a neighbour. Sign up now at anpost.com/signup to set a safe spot.

The first step is to track your parcel online. If we have delivered your parcel and there is a signature available you can view the item history and will be offered the option to request a proof of delivery. You can then download a PDF of the delivery record immediately. 

Due to high seasonal volumes, parcels may take a bit longer to arrive. Once scanned into our parcel hub in Ireland, we'll deliver it to you as soon as possible. For the latest tracking information, download the An Post app for iOS or Android or use track and trace an anpost.com. Sign up to anpost.com with the email and phone number you are using for online shopping to see the latest updates for items on their way to you. Please ensure you verify your phone number. You can also check with the original postal carrier for updates. 

At this time of year with the extra seasonal volumes they can take a bit longer.  Please allow up to 5 working days for processing. If your item originated from a non-EU country please refer to our customs hub for more details. 

You can only track your pre-paid gift packaging if you upgrade to a tracked service upon sending. This can be done at your local post office. When this is done, you will receive a tracking number for the parcel. You can then track your item on track and trace using this number. Tracking information is updated throughout the day.  

Once an item leaves Ireland, we have no control over the delivery of an item.  All updates will come from the Receiver Postal Service and will be available via track and trace as soon as they become available. We advise that you contact the Receiver Postal Service for an update on the status/location of this item. Visit our list of international carriers for more information.  

Some retailers will provide us with your contact details and we will get in touch by email or text to let you know when we will be delivering your parcel. You can expect to hear from us a few days in advance of your delivery if your contact details have been provided. If you know you're not going to be at home you can set your safe spot to have your item delivered to. This can be a safe, dry place out of view or a neighbour. Sign up now at anpost.com/signup to set a safe spot.

Please see the list of delivery and collection dates over the Christmas period for more information.

Due to heavy volumes, redelivery requests can take 3-5 workings days over the Christmas period. 

Please visit our postage calculator for the latest list of countries we are dispatching mail to.   
Once an item arrives into the destination country, we have no control over the delivery of an item in that country.