Major postal reform from Oct 1: Registered mail now only through Speed Post

The Central Government has announced a significant overhaul of domestic mail services provided by the Department of Posts, aimed at streamlining operations and adapting to evolving customer needs.

Effective October 1, Speed Post—covering both letters and parcels—will become the primary service for address-specific delivery of accountable mail within the country.

The government has clarified that the registration service—commonly used for delivering statutory documents such as summons and notices—will now be available exclusively as a value-added service linked to Speed Post. This means registration will no longer be offered with other categories of postal mail.

Officials stated that the move is intended to ensure reliable, addressee-specific delivery while aligning postal services with legal and customer requirements. “The revised framework reflects the government’s commitment to modernising the postal system and better responding to market demands,” the Department of Posts noted in a notification.

Detailed operational guidelines, service terms, and applicable tariffs for Speed Post and its value-added services will be issued separately.

The notification has been circulated to statutory and constitutional bodies, all central ministries and departments, state governments, union territories, NITI Aayog, and the Comptroller and Auditor General of India.