Australia Post has provided the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) with a draft notification proposing to increase the Basic Postage Rate (BPR) from $1.10 to $1.20, effective January 2023.
The proposed increase would be the first since January 2020 and will help Australia Post to provide essential mail services for all Australians. This proposed change will not affect the $0.60 concession rate or the $0.65 Christmas and seasonal greetings rate.
If accepted, households that regularly send letters will pay on average an extra $1.50 per year and the change would help Australia Post manage increasing operating costs and declining letter volumes.
Group Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director Paul Graham said the proposed change was necessary to ensure Australia Post can continue to deliver sustainably and serve their communities, especially in remote and rural areas.
"Over the past three years, the volume of letters mailed in Australia has fallen by 15 per cent, or 280 million articles. In 2021-22, our letters business lost $152 million, and these losses are expected to continue to rise over the coming years," Mr Graham said.
"The number of Australian addresses also increased to 12.6 million, which is 400,000 more letterboxes our posties must pass, even if there is no mail. So, we are actually making a loss on every stamped letter that is delivered.
"Despite this, we're committed to providing this important service, and increasing the basic postage rate by just 10 cents will ensure our customers across Australia can continue to access this essential service."
Charities will continue to receive significant discounts on letter services while business and government customers, who send more than 95 per cent of all mail in Australia, will still receive incentives to encourage mail usage.
Australia Post is an entirely self-funded business that pays taxes and dividends, receives no government funding, additional payments or concessions, and is impacted by the same inflationary pressures as every other business.
For further information, please contact:
Tracy Hicks, General Manager Communications, Australia Post
M: 0477 027 860
Lara Evans, Head of Media Relations, Australia Post
M: 0419 226 449
