Mailing a letter is now going to cost more after Canada Post increased the prices of stamps for the third time in five years after the Crown corporation posted a $748 million loss for 2023.
As of May 6, the cost of a domestic stamp, when purchased in a booklet or coil, will increase seven cents from 92 cents to 99, according to a release from Canada Post.
The cost of a single stamp will increase eight cents from $1.07 to $1.15. This is on top of the five-cent increase in stamp prices in 2019, and a two-cent increase in 2020. Canada Post said the last major pricing change was in 2014.
Price changes will also be seen on international stamps costs and registered mail items, according to the release. The organization said that permanent stamps can still be used.
New prices were first proposed in February and earned regulatory approval in April, the release says.
Canada Post previously said that the price adjustments would cost the average Canadian household an additional 65 cents per year, and a small business $12.07.
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The price increase comes days after Canada Post announced a loss of $748 million for 2023.
It said the results were a combination of delivery competition, erosion of “transactional mail,” and an increase in delivery costs.
“Canadians understand our business model must change,” Canada Post president and CEO, Doug Ettinger said in a May 3 news release. “They can see it in their mailbox. An operating model designed to deliver nearly 5.5 billion letters in 2006 cannot be sustained on the 2.2 billion letters we delivered last year,” he said, adding that the trend was not unique to Canada.
Canada’s minister overseeing Canada Post, Jean-Yves Duclos, said the government will work with the Crown corporation to “secure its long-term future.”
“The Government of Canada recognizes that Canadians have changed the way they use the postal service, while continuing to view its role as vital to the country, particularly in rural and remote communities,” he said in the release.
Mr. Duclos also said the government was considering how to use Canada Post properties to create more housing.
“As announced in Budget 2024, the government is also considering how to leverage Canada Post’s portfolio of federal properties to build more housing for Canadians. We will ensure postal service is maintained as part of Canada Post’s mandate as a ‘service first’ organization focused on delivering the mail.”
Canada Post’s share in the parcel delivery industry has dropped from 62 percent before the pandemic to 29 percent in 2023, the release said.
In 2006, the average Canadian household received about seven letters a week. That number dropped to two in 2023.
Additionally, Canada Post said it’s under financial pressure as the number of addresses in the country increased by over three million over the past 20 years.
The Canadian Press contributed to this report.
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