Christmas Royal Mail post deadlines

Royal Mail has predicted its busy festive period will see more than two billion items delivered, and has released reccomended postal dates to ensure cards and parcels can be delivered in time for December 25.

Standard parcels - weighing up to 20kg and less than 1.5m in length - to be delivered in the UK and Channel Islands needs to be posted by December 15 to arrive in time for Christmas.

For cards heading to Africa, South and Central America, the Caribbean, the Far East, the Middle East, Asia, Australia and New Zealand the recommended date is December 6 - and December 10 for Eastern Europe, the USA and Canada. Cards to Western Europe need to be posted by December 13.

For UK deliveries, the reccomended dates are December 18 for second class, December 21 for first class, and December 23 for special deliveries.

For information about all Royal Mail services, visit www.royalmail.com or call 08457 740740.