March 23, 2020

UPDATE 6: International Mail Service Disruptions Due to COVID-19

On March 23, 2020, the Postal Service™ received notifications from various postal operators regarding changes in international mail services due to the novel coronavirus (COVID-19).

The following countries have suspended certain mail services:

Mauritania: MAURIPOST has advised that the Mauritanian government has taken the decision to close its air borders effective March 18, 2020 until further notice. As a result, MAURIPOST is no longer able to send or receive mail items to or from other countries.

Portugal: CTT Correios de Portugal has advised that given the diminishing number of flights and reduced capacity, CTT Correios de Portugal is temporarily unable to send outbound international letter-post, parcel-post and EMS items to many destinations outside of Europe, as well as to some European destinations. [See below regarding international items sent from the U.S. to Portugal.]

Sri Lanka: Department of Posts has advised that the Sri Lankan Government has declared a “work from home” period until March 27, 2020 subject to further extension if necessary. The Department of Posts is therefore suspending the processing and delivery of all international inbound and outbound letter-post, parcel-post and EMS items until sufficient transport and workforce capacity is available.

As a convenience for our customers, the Postal Service will continue to accept and process mail destined for the aforementioned countries. This mail will be held within our network and will be delivered once mail service is restored.

The following countries have announced service disruptions:

Bermuda: Bermuda Post Office has advised that all public transportation, including flights into Bermuda, have been suspended effective March 20, 2020. These measures are having a direct impact on postal operations and service quality. Customers should expect delivery delays.

Brazil: Correios has advised the Brazilian Government has introduced a series of measures to minimize the spread of the coronavirus (COVID-19). There may be a severe impact on service quality for international inbound and outbound services. Correios can no longer guarantee the service delivery standards (including delivery times and other quality parameters). Additionally, until further notice, letter-post, parcel-post and EMS items requiring signature on delivery will no longer be signed for at the moment of handover to the recipient.

Canada UPDATE!: Canada Post confirms that that the surface/air network between USPS and Canada Post is operating smoothly. While processing of domestic and inbound mail from USPS will continue as normal, there may be some delays on certain inbound mail items from USPS due to limited air network capacity. Given the potential for service delays for our customers, Canada Post is treating this situation as a case of force majeure, customers should expect delivery delays.

Colombia: Servicios Postales Nacionales S.A. 4-72 has advised that customer should expect delivery delays owning to road and border closures and the suspension of airline services affecting logistics operations at the national and international level. Additionally, preventive measures have also been taken to protect administrative and operational personnel.

Greece: Hellenic Post (ELTA) has advised that, owing to the lack of transport capacity following numerous international flight cancellations resulting from measures to limit the transmission of COVID-19, it is currently unable to transport mail to many countries. Effective March, 20 2020, Hellenic Post will only be able to send – with delays expected due to limited capacity – letter-post and parcel-post items destined to:

• Europe (EU and non-EU countries), except Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Cyprus, Serbia, and Slovenia.

• Argentina, Australia, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Brazil, Canada, Georgia, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Iran, Japan, Mexico, Morocco, New Zealand, Pakistan, Qatar, Singapore, South Africa, South Korea, Thailand, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, United States of America, and Venezuela.

The above list is subject to change on a daily basis. A situation of force majeure is declared and the acceptance of letter-post and parcel-post items destined to all other countries is suspended with immediate effect, until sufficient transport capacity becomes available.

Guyana: Guyana Post Office Corporation has advised that it received a Government directive on March 18, 2020, stating that staff must work on a rotation basis. This will directly affect all postal operations. Furthermore, all entry ports into Guyana have been closed for 14 days. Therefore, delays are to be expected in the handling and delivery of all letter-post, parcel-post and EMS items.

Panama: Correos de Panamá has advised that all incoming and outgoing international flights to and from Panama have been suspended effective March 19, 2020. As a result, airlines have cancelled mail transportation until further notice. In view of this situation, transportation services for all categories of mail item (letter post, parcel post and EMS) are suspended until further notice. The postal network, national and international operations centers and national post offices will, however, remain open, but with a reduced workforce and modified working hours. A situation of force majeure clause for quality of service and quality of remunerations for all categories of mail item (letter post, parcel post and EMS) is invoked until further notice.

Portugal: CTT Correios de Portugal has advised that International and domestic operations will continue to operate normally as far as possible. However, several measures have been implemented to ensure the safety of both customers and staff, including the following:

• Post offices will remain open in general (closing over lunchtime);

• For domestic and inbound international items that would normally require a signature, the postwoman or postman will sign for delivery in place of the customer (as already stated in EmIS 115);

• CTT Correios de Portugal is no longer able to guarantee delivery times, observe the standard rules for signature on delivery, or make tracking data available for all shipments.

• Given the diminishing number of flights and reduced capacity, Correios de Portugal is also temporarily unable to send letter-post, parcel-post and EMS items to many destinations outside of Europe, as well as to some European destinations.

Thailand: Thailand Post confirms that processing of international inbound items is still proceeding as usual. However, in compliance with the strict ad hoc measures taken by the government, delays may be expected for all types of inbound mail (letter-post, parcel-post and EMS). Signature on delivery for international services that would ordinarily require the recipient’s signature is still provided wherever possible. In cases where the recipients refuse to sign, the mail carrier will sign on the recipient’s behalf. The processing of outbound mail to all countries affected by the spread of novel coronavirus is also expected to be subject to delays.

Tonga: Tonga Post Ltd., has advised that that the Government of Tonga has declared a state of emergency for one month effective March 20, 2020, (period subject to extension). Restrictions will be in place in the coming days that will have an impact on postal operations and quality of service for all types of inbound and outbound mail. The measures will have repercussions on Tonga Post’s ability to keep its sorting and delivery operations running. For this reason, service delivery standards cannot be guaranteed.

Uruguay: Correo Uruguayo, wishes to inform the designated operators of other UPU member countries of the following measures to minimize the spread of the coronavirus:

• Staff numbers in postal facilities are being reduced as far as possible, and teleworking introduced where feasible;

• Direct physical contacts are being minimized, and appropriate hygienic measures introduced;

• Post offices with large numbers of customers are being kept closed, with special collection points set up directly with customers.

The above steps, along with the suspension and reduction of international flights and connections, will impact inbound and outbound postal operations and delivery. Customers should expect delivery delays.

These service disruptions affect Priority Mail Express International^® (PMEI), Priority Mail International^® (PMI), First-Class Mail International^® (FCMI), First-Class Package International Service^® (FCPIS^®), International Priority Airmail^® (IPA^®), International Surface Air Lift^® (ISAL^®), and M-Bag^® items.

The DMM Advisory will continue to update mailers regarding new service disruptions as they are received. For a full list of international service disruptions, please the visit https://about.usps.com/newsroom/service-alerts/international/welcome.htm