Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
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Ask senders to address letters to you with your surname in capital letters and underlined, followed by poste restante,
GPO (main post office), and the city or town in question.
»
Many 'lost' letters are simply misfiled under given/first names, so check under both your names and ask senders to
provide a return address.
»
Letters sent via poste restante are generally held for around one to two months before being returned.
»
It's best to have any parcels sent to you by registered post.
Sending Mail
LETTERS
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Posting letters/aerogrammes to anywhere overseas costs ?20/15.
»
International postcards cost around ?7.
»
For postcards, stick on the stamps
before
writing on them, as post offices can give you as many as four stamps per
card.
»
Sending a letter overseas by registered post costs an extra ?15.
PARCELS
»
Posting parcels can either be relatively straightforward or involve multiple counters and lots of queuing; get to the
post office in the morning.
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Prices depend on weight (including packing material). Packing the article safely is your responsibility.
»
A small package (unregistered) costs ?40 (up to 100g) to any country and ?30 per additional 100g (up to a maximum
of 2000g; different charges apply for higher weights).
»
Parcel post has a maximum of 20kg to 30kg depending on the destination.
»
Airmail takes one to three weeks, sea mail two to four months and Surface Air-Lifted (SAL) - a curious hybrid where
parcels travel by both air and sea - around one month.
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Express mail service (EMS; delivery within three days) costs around 30% more than the normal airmail price.
»
All parcels sent through the government postal service must be packed up in white linen and the seams sealed with
wax - agents outside the post office usually offer this service for a small fee.
»
Customs declaration forms, available from the post office, must be stitched or pasted to the parcel. No duty is payable
by the recipient for gifts under the value of ?1000.
»
Carry a permanent marker to write on the parcel any information requested by the desk.
»
Books or printed matter can go by international book post for ?350 (maximum 5kg), but the package must be wrapped
with a hole that reveals the contents for inspection by customs - tailors can do this in such a way that nothing falls out.
India Post
(
www.indiapost.gov.in
)
has an online calculator for domestic and international postal tariffs.
