Tasmanians wanting Christmas parcels and cards to arrive on time will need to post them a few days before the national deadlines, Australia Post says.
For metro areas across Australia, parcel post items should be sent by December 21 for interstate deliveries and December 22 for deliveries within the same state.
Express Post parcels should be sent by December 23.
Christmas letters and cards have earlier cut-offs, with December 18 for interstate and December 21 within the same state.
Items being sent over the counter at a post office must be lodged by 2:30pm on the cut-off dates.
Gary Starr, Australia Post’s executive general manager of parcel, post and eCommerce services, said people sending to or from Tasmania needed to plan further ahead.
“Please allow a few extra days when sending to or from Western Australia, Tasmania and the Northern Territory or regional and remote areas,” he said.
Overseas deadlines depend on the destination.
Economy Air cut-offs run from November 24 to December 4, International Standard from December 1 to 11 and International Express from December 4 to 15.
“International cutoff dates vary, so it’s best to check our website,” Starr said.
“For Economy Air and International Standard Post, some destinations require you to send your parcels in November.”
He said people using International Express or sending to destinations such as the USA, UK, New Zealand or Canada, would have a little more time.
“We’ll always do our best to deliver every item as quickly as possible, but if items are sent after the cutoff dates, they may not arrive until after Christmas,” he said.
“Our message is simple. Check the dates, send early and get one more thing ticked off your Christmas to-do list.”
