SINGAPORE – It will soon cost 20 cents more to post a basic letter, as Singapore Post (SingPost) changes its rate structure to deal with rising costs and declining mail volumes.

But the rate will come down by as much as 35 cents for standard large mail weighing up to 500g.

The changes, which will kick in from Oct 9, will see the rates for standard regular mail increase from 31 cents to 51 cents, and are meant to “reflect the escalating costs of maintaining the postal service”, said SingPost in a statement on Tuesday.

The company said the adjustments are aimed at simplifying the local rate structure and making postal services more user-friendly.

With the new rate structure, local mail services will also no longer have weight tiers, said a SingPost spokesperson in response to queries from The Straits Times.

Rates under the current structure are set according to different weight tiers and dimensions, ranging from 20g to 500g and in sizes up to 162mm by 240mm by 6mm for standard regular basic mail.

For example, a standard regular basic mail weighing up to 20g now costs 31 cents, and 38 cents if it weighs up to 40g. Going forward, a standard regular mail with maximum dimensions of 162mm by 240mm by 6mm and weight of up to 500g will cost a flat 51 cents.

Currently, SingPost charges 60 cents for standard large basic mail with maximum dimensions of 229mm by 324mm by 14mm and weighing up to 100g, 90 cents for those up to 250g, and $1.15 for those up to 500g.

Starting Oct 9, standard large mail measuring up to 229mm by 324mm by 14mm and weighing up to 500g will cost a flat fee of 80 cents.

For customers with existing first and second local stamps as well as 31-cent and 38-cent stamps, SingPost will accept them for standard regular mail even after the new rates kick in.

To help people manage the increase in costs, SingPost will also issue a complimentary booklet of 10 first local stamps to each household from the end of October.

A signature-needed doorstep delivery service will also be available for standard regular mail and standard large mail. This will cost $6.10 on top of the delivery rate.

With the new structure, the Basic Package category, which costs $1.55 currently and for mail weighing up to 2kg and 324mm by 229mm by 65mm in size, will be replaced by the Tracked Letterbox, which will boast a tracking feature and cost $2. The maximum weight and size remain the same. The current Basic Package category does not have a tracking feature.

The last significant rate increment was in 2014, when postage costs increased from 22 cents to 30 cents.

“The global structural decline in postal volume over the last decade brought about by digital disruption has impacted the commercial viability of postal firms globally,” said SingPost.

Between financial year 2018/19 and financial year 2022/23, mail volume declined by more than 40 per cent, it said.

SingPost said the rate adjustment will help address the loss caused by the persistent decline, as well as from costlier labour, utilities and fuel, and higher conveyance expenses.

“This rate increment is necessary for SingPost to continue serving its obligations as Singapore’s public postal licensee while allowing further exploration of a more sustainable postal business model in the long term, balancing the need to remain viable while safeguarding the interests of its shareholders,” it said.

Since 2014, SingPost has been absorbing inflationary costs and essentially kept its postage rates constant, said Ms Neo Su Yin, Singapore chief executive of SingPost.

“With the intensifying cost pressures and challenging business landscape, it is inevitable that we raise our prices to remain commercially sustainable so that we can continue providing the essential postal service for the nation,” she said.

The statement added that SingPost is working closely with the Infocomm Media Development Authority to conduct a structural review of the postal business and formulate a longer-term strategy to attain commercial sustainability.

Shares of the mainboard-listed company rose on the news. They were up one cent, or 2.06 per cent, to 49.5 cents at closing on Tuesday.