Royal Mail issues stamp warning as customers could be slapped with extra charges

If you have a stash of stamps tucked away, now is the time to use them up before they finally become worthless at the end of next month.

Everyday stamps that feature a profile of the late Queen’s head – so-called ‘definitive stamps’ – are being phased out after the original deadline of January 31 was extended to July 31 by Royal Mail in recognition of customers needing more time to adjust to the change.

From August 1, you can only use barcoded stamps and Royal Mail will treat any post sent with non-barcoded stamps on as having insufficient postage, so the person you’re sending the letter or parcel to will face an additional charge to receive it. Royal Mail says that full details of this charge will be issued nearer the deadline.

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You don’t need to use or exchange Christmas stamps or ‘special’ stamps with pictures on, as they will continue to be valid after the 31 July 2023 deadline.

Royal Mail has also confirmed that all King Charles III stamps in circulation have barcodes on them, so it’s only the non-barcoded ones with the Queen’s profile on that you need to swap.

The barcoded stamps are on sale now, but Royal Mail is urging people to check they haven’t got any old stamps lying about that will need to be used. If you don’t think you will use your stamps in time, Royal Mail is operating a ‘Swap Out’ scheme to let you exchange these stamps for free.

There’s currently no deadline on when you need to complete the swap by, though Martin Lewis advises it might be best to do so sooner rather than later in case the scheme closes.

You cannot take the stamps to the Post Office to be swapped, but you can to complete a standard ‘Swap Out’ form for stamps worth up to £200, or a Bulk Stamp ‘Swap Out’ form for stamps worth more than £200. Both forms are available on the Royal Mail website where they can be printed and filled out. If you don’t have a printer, you can fill in this form here or call customer services on 03457 740740.

If you have collected the form or had it sent to you, it will come with a freepost envelope for you to send the form off with the stamps for free, and for those who have printed the form themselves, you’ll need to send the envelope to “Freepost Swap Out” – no other address details are needed.

Royal Mail is advising those sending bulk forms to send via special delivery and the additional cost of doing this will be refunded by Royal Mail in the form of barcoded stamps worth the same amount. Royal Mail says it will try to ensure all stamps are swapped within seven working days.