Frequently asked questions about the coronavirus (business)

According to the Dutch National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM), there is only a small risk of being infected through contact with surfaces and items such as post and parcels. To reduce the risk even further, their advice is to wash your hands regularly and avoid touching your face after handling post and parcels. Please refer to the RIVM website for more information.

Yes. PostNL points are disabled in the API if they are temporarily closed.

This is not an issue at the moment - you can continue to offer your post and parcels for delivery.

Information that you can share with your customers is available here.

We are doing everything we can to deliver in line with the agreed service frameworks. We have also identified the critical streams that should be delivered with priority.

Like other companies, we are feeling the effects of the coronavirus. We are doing everything we can to ensure that normal service continues. However, delays remain possible in these exceptional circumstances. It goes without saying that we try to deliver all post and parcels as soon as possible.

We are doing everything we can to deliver in line with the agreed service frameworks, taking additional measures when appropriate. If there is reason to change the measures, we will inform you through your contact person, by email and via Mijn PostNL. The latest information is available at postnl.nl/corona.

Post addressed to a business address that is no longer accessible is returned to sender.

If you use the pickup and/or delivery service and your location is closed, please contact us and we will find a solution together. Alternatively, you can place a note on the front door stating where the delivery worker can leave your post, for example in the letterbox or in a bag or box nearby. Please note that parcels, registered items and other shipments requiring a signature cannot be delivered through the letterbox and will therefore be returned. If you want to cancel a pick-up service, you can do so in Mijn PostNL in just a few simple steps.

We ask the recipient to place their ID on the parcel. We maintain a 1.5m distance when exchanging parcels.

Almost all non-essential shops are open again. As of 12 May, parcels can be delivered directly to PostNL points again. Automatic updates will ensure that only up-to-date information is shown in your webshop’s check-out process.

We send updates about international deliveries in the form of ISAs (International Service Alerts). You can subscribe to these alerts. We use these messages to keep you up to date about the developments for each destination. In general, many countries are experiencing delays at the moment. Exports to some countries are also no longer possible at the moment. Information about these countries is also shared in the ISAs. We currently do not accept deliveries for these destinations.

Many countries have taken measures that affect the delivery of post and parcels. Deliveries are delayed in some countries, and in other countries deliveries have stopped entirely. The latest information on international deliveries is available at postnl.nl/isa.

In more and more countries, the delivery worker will now sign on behalf of the recipient. This minimises physical contact and the risk of spreading the virus.

More and more international postal companies also have guidelines that aim to minimise physical contact and the chance of spreading the virus. This can affect service provision, for example when it comes to signing for receipt. In many countries, the delivery worker will sign on behalf of the recipient.

We are storing those items of post until their destinations become accessible again. If a destination is inaccessible for an extended period of time, we will return the post to the sender. For most destinations, we do this after seven days of storing the post.
Find out which countries are not accepting deliveries at the moment on postnl.nl/isa.

This varies for each country. In many countries, the postal company will contact the recipient so that they can deliver the post at the first attempt. We don’t know how the post is returned if this does not work.

In many countries, freight traffic continues. It is therefore still possible to deliver to those countries, although parcels may take longer to arrive. Some countries have closed their borders completely. Find out which countries are affected on postnl.nl/isa.

Destinations within the EU remain accessible for the time being
Measures taken by our network partners may result in delays and closures of postcode areas. In that case, the parcels will be stored until the area becomes accessible again.