Canada Post has just been approved to increase postage rates, and the changes kick in starting May 6.
You can expect to pay more the next time you buy stamps in a booklet, coil, or pane because they will now cost 99 cents per stamp — an increase of 7 cents. The price of a single domestic stamp has now been bumped from $1.07 to $1.15.
Other affected products include US and international letter post, and domestic registered mail items. Price changes will also affect regulated letter mail rates.
It’s not the first time Canada Post has increased prices in recent years; domestic letter mail rates went up five cents in 2019 and two cents in 2020. Before that, the last significant pricing change was on March 31, 2014.
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“Canada Post understands the importance of the delivery service it provides and works to minimize the impact of price changes on all customers, ensuring any increases are fair and reasonable,” reads a statement on its website.
According to Canada Post, these changes are made “according to the regulatory process outlined in the Canada Post Corporation Act.”
It’s perhaps not a surprise for the beleaguered crown corporation.
On May 3, Canada Post announced that it recorded a loss before tax of $748 million in 2023. It stated that the loss was due to a surge in competition, increasing operating costs, and “ongoing erosion of Transaction Mail.”
“The postal service has confronted significant new challenges in recent years,” reads a statement. “In the post-pandemic parcel delivery landscape, competition has accelerated at a pace not seen in the company’s history.”
It stated that changes are needed to meet Canadians’ needs; otherwise, the corporation will face “larger, unsustainable losses in future years.”