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10-07-2026
The Hague, 10 July 2026 – From this weekend, PostNL will deliver standard letterbox mail within two days. For those who want to send priority mail, next-day delivery will remain available. This change better fits the declining mail volume received in the Netherlands. It is an important intermediate step, but not sufficient to safeguard a future-proof postal service. Additional political decisions are therefore needed as soon as possible.
Maurice Unck, Director Mail NL at PostNL: “Where people in the Netherlands used to receive around three mail items per day, that number has now dropped to just three per week. From 12 July, the mail deliverer will pass all streets in the Netherlands three days a week as standard. This better fits today’s mail volumes. To allow for this change, we have adjusted 20,000 schedules and spoken with all our mail colleagues about what this means for them. That we are able to implement this step across the entire Netherlands in one go is entirely thanks to the commitment and flexibility of our employees. That is a major achievement.”
Intermediate step, not the final destination
PostNL is responsible for carrying out the Universal Service Obligation (USO). The USO is the statutory obligation to ensure, among other things, the timely delivery of letterbox mail and to maintain a nationwide network of postboxes and postal locations. Over the past twenty years, mail volumes have declined by 70% and are continuing to decrease. As a result, the statutory obligations are no longer aligned with the reality of the postal market for quite some time now. In 2025, PostNL recorded a loss of €35 million on the execution of the USO, which is a a disproportionate financial burden for the company. Delivery within two delivery days, with a quality standard of at least 90%, and later within three days, is a necessary first step. However, even with these legislative adjustments, the costs for the USO remains too high, meaning it continues to be loss-making. The continued decline in mail volumes therefore needs further political decisions on the requirements of the USO and new access conditions for postal operators that fit today’s market developments.
Next step for mail delivery
The next step is the introduction of delivery within three delivery days. To enable this step, it is necessary to abolish Saturday as a statutory delivery day for standard UPD mail. Saturday has the lowest mail volumes, meaning that removing this delivery day has the least impact on the service. Further political decisions are also required, such as reducing the number of postboxes.
Maurice Unck: “We cannot afford to stand still while mail volumes continue to decline. Statutory obligations and associated costs need to align again with the reality of structurally declining mail volumes. Alternatively, a solution must be found for the costs PostNL incurs in carrying out this legally mandated, loss-making public task. It is up to policymakers to determine what safeguards are needed for the postal service of the future. If these decisions are not taken, uncertainty for thousands of postal workers will persist, and the postal service will remain financially unsustainable and not viable in the long term.”
Source: PostNL