The postman is retiring: letters will be banned in Denmark from 2026. Is this the start of a postal revolution?

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https://www.firstonline.info/en/Postman ... evolution/

(original text as posted)

Letter deliveries will be halted starting in 2026: they're no longer relevant. PostNord is focusing entirely on parcels, and even Santa Claus will be forced to open a digital address. This historic change could shape the future of postal services throughout Europe (and beyond).

The postman is retiring: letters will be banned in Denmark from 2026. Is this the start of a postal revolution?
Who knows what will Santa Claus think? when he finds out that, from 2026, In Denmark you will no longer be able to receive paper mail, perhaps a digital domicile will be activated. And what about King Christian IV, who, way back in Christmas 1624, gave the Danes their first national postal service? The fact is that, after more than four centuries of honorable service, On December 31, 2025, the Danish postman will deliver his last letter..

In fact, from January 1, 2026, PostNord, the company born in 2009 from the merger of the postal services of Denmark and Sweden, will officially stop distributing paper mail throughout the country. A historic decision, but also a concrete sign of an epochal change, the result of digitalization and the evolution of daily habits.

Denmark: Why the letter deliveries were stopped?
Over the last 25 years, the volume of letters sent in the country is dropped by more than 90%, going from 1,4 billion to just 110 million a year. Driving the change is not only technological progress, but also a drastic change in citizens' habits, increasingly oriented towards digital communications and online shopping. The latter has made demand for parcel deliveries explode, turning a crisis into an opportunity. The future of postal services is called e-commerce: for this very reason, PostNord has chosen to abandon the delivery of letters and concentrate all resources on the parcel segment, which is now much more profitable. In fact, the letters division accumulated losses of over 620 million Swedish kronor (about 56 million euros) in 2024 alone.

Meanwhile, the iconic red mailboxes, once a national symbol, were dismantled and put up for sale to the publicPostNord put 1.000 of them on sale, which sold out in just three hours. Price? 2.000 Danish kroner (about 268 euros) for those in good condition, 1.500 (about 200 euros) for the most worn ones. From everyday tools to collector's items, they quickly became relics of the collective memory.

Then there's the human issue. The letter postal ban will also have a significant impact on employment. PostNord has announced the layoff of approximately 1.500 employees out of a total of 4.600 in Denmark.

What will happen next
The decision does not mean that letters will disappear completely in Denmark. Dao private company has already equipped itself for take the baton, expanding its capacity from 30 to 80 million letters per year. The service, however, will be less widespread and more expensive. citizens will have to go to the Dao points to send mail or pay a surcharge for home delivery. Traditional stamps will be refunded for a limited period, while digital ones will remain purchasable online or via app.

The Danish government has assured that the ability to send letters will always be guaranteed by lawIf Dao were to leave, the executive would be obliged to appoint a new operator.

In the rest of the world, those following the Danish example
La Denmark is just the first til.e A domino effect that could involve many other countries. Already, several governments and postal operators are redrawing the boundaries of universal service, driven by the collapse in letter volumes and the unstoppable advance of digitalization.

In the Scandinavian countries the revolution has already begun. In NorwaySince 2020, letters have been delivered only 2–3 times a week. Consideration is being given to eliminating home delivery and replacing it with collection points. In SwedenSince 2021, delivery has been taking place every other day, and many citizens are using digital boxes like Kivra to receive official documents. In FinlandSince 2023, mail has been delivered three days a week. But starting in 2026, all public communications will automatically switch to digital mailboxes.

In the rest of Europe, the UK It has reduced the delivery of ordinary mail to every other day from July 2025, maintaining the daily frequency only for priority mail. In France, the red stamp has been replaced by the “e-lettre rouge”: you write online, Post Office Print near the recipient and deliver on paper. In Germany, from 2025, delivery times will be extended and service obligations will be eased, in view of a possible downsizing. Estonia too is evaluating a reduction to two deliveries per week.

In Oceania, Australia will switch to alternate-day deliveries for letters by 2025, while maintaining daily delivery for parcels only. In New Zealand, delivery already takes place twice a week in the city and three times in rural areas.

In the United StatesInstead, the post office remains a cultural and symbolic issueJust think of films like The Postman (The Postman), starring Kevin Costner. Today, USPS delivers mail six days a week, Monday through Saturday, and this standard has been confirmed by the Postal Service Reform Act of 2022. Although reductions have been discussed in the past, the Congress has legislated the frequency of deliveryNo cuts are in sight, although declining mail volumes are making the system increasingly expensive to maintain.

And in Italy?
Even in Italy the postal service is changing, although at a slower pace than other countries. Since 2015, Poste Italiane has introduced alternate-day delivery in less populated areas, while daily delivery remains active in the cities.

In 2022 1,6 billion postal items were recorded, but only 10% were private lettersThe rest is mostly made up of mail such as bills, bank communications, invoices, and letters that are increasingly oriented towards digitalization. 2024 marked a turning pointFor the first time, parcels significantly outnumbered mail. Out of a total of 3,1 billion items, mail shipments decreased by 6,2% year-over-year and by 18% compared to 2020. The packagesInstead, grew by 7,3%, reaching 1,17 billion shipments (+34,6% in four years), driven by e-commerce. This shift is also reflected in the sector's revenues, which reached €8,59 billion in 2024, a 1,9% increase over the previous year, primarily due to growth in the parcel sector.

And then there is the advancing digitalizationThe National Index of Digital Domiciles (Inad) has been active since 2023, which allows every citizen to receive official documents via certified email. The urban landscape is also changing: mailboxes have dropped from 46.500 to 28.000, partly replaced by 1.400 “smart” mailboxes equipped with sensors.

Poste Italiane continues to guarantee universal service, but the future seems increasingly oriented towards a hybrid system, where digital takes over.

If Denmark, therefore, had the courage to take the first step, the rest of the world, albeit with different nuances and times, seems ready to follow. fate of the paper letter, once the heart of communication, is more uncertain everywhere.

The future of correspondence: end or metamorphosis?
What is emerging is a global scenario where the Traditional mail is giving way to new hybrid or completely digital methodsThe risk is that, in the process, the elderly, people with disabilities, and residents of rural areas with limited digital skills will be left out. But at the same time, the transformation could represent an opportunity to rethink a more sustainable, modern, and flexible service. As always, it will be a a question of balanceBetween technological progress and inclusion. Between nostalgia and necessity.