Denmark's Postal Service to Cease Letter Deliveries by 2025

With a significant drop in letter volumes, Denmark's PostNord plans to shift focus away from letter deliveries, impacting both employment and the elderly population relying on traditional mail.

Denmark's long-standing relationship with letter deliveries will come to a close as PostNord, the state-run postal service, announces its plan to halt all letter deliveries by the end of 2025. This decision marks the end of a 400-year-old service, highlighted by a staggering 90% decline in letter volumes since the beginning of the 21st century. The company plans to begin reducing the nation's 1,500 postboxes starting this June.

Transport Minister Thomas Danielsen emphasized that while mailboxes may vanish, Danes will still have the ability to send and receive letters through alternative methods. Additionally, one private courier has indicated interest in potentially taking over the delivery of letters.

This shift is part of a larger trend across Europe, where postal services are contending with falling letter usage due to the rise of digital communication. Earlier this week, Germany’s Deutsche Post disclosed plans to cut 8,000 jobs, prompting concerns from labor representatives about future cuts.

Until the end of 2023, Denmark maintained a universal postal service, but the adoption of digital solutions has drastically reduced the necessity for physical mail. Officially, letter volumes plummeted from a peak of 1.4 billion to just 110 million last year. The decision is particularly concerning for the elderly demographic, as approximately 271,000 Danes still depend on traditional postal services despite 95% usage of the Digital Post app.

Danish MP Pelle Dragsted criticized the privatization policies that led to this conclusion, indicating that those in remote areas would face significant disadvantages due to the changes. The transition will result in around 1,500 job losses among PostNord's 4,600 workers, with the company pivoting its focus toward parcel deliveries. Moreover, postage stamps purchased this year and next will be eligible for refunds within a limited timeframe in 2026, according to PostNord's chief executive, Kim Pedersen, who noted a notable 30% drop in letter volumes over the past year alone.

PostNord operates in both Denmark and Sweden, with a ownership structure of 40% Danish and 60% Swedish stakeholders.