What does 'Held at Delivery Office' mean?

Royal Mail could not deliver your item (no one home, no safe place, too large for letterbox) and it is being held at your local delivery office. Collect with ID within 18 days.

How do I claim for a lost Royal Mail item?

Report at royalmail.com/help/claim. For tracked items, wait 10 working days from the expected delivery date before claiming. Include proof of value and postage.

Does Royal Mail deliver on Saturdays?

Yes, Royal Mail delivers 1st and 2nd Class mail, tracked parcels, and Special Delivery items on Saturdays. There is no standard Sunday delivery.

What is Royal Mail Tracked 48?

Tracked 48 delivers within 2 working days with full parcel tracking -- an economical option for senders who do not need next-day delivery.

Track Royal Mail Package

Royal Mail, the UK's trusted postal service, offers reliable mail and parcel delivery across the UK and globally.

Royal Mail Tracking

Royal Mail is the UK's designated universal postal service provider and one of Britain's most iconic institutions, founded by King Henry VIII in 1516 and operating as a public company since 2013. Delivering to over 31 million addresses across the UK six days per week, Royal Mail handles more than 8 billion pieces of mail and over 500 million parcels annually. From standard 1st and 2nd Class letters to tracked parcels and international services, Royal Mail remains the backbone of UK postal logistics. Track at royalmail.com/track-your-item or call 03457 740 740.

Key facts about Royal Mail

Royal Mail Tracked items

Royal Mail Tracked items use a 13-character UPU S10 format (e.g., JD123456785GB).

Special Delivery Guaranteed delivers

Special Delivery Guaranteed delivers by 1 PM or 9 AM next working day with full scan tracking.

Royal Mail delivers six

Royal Mail delivers six days per week (Monday-Saturday); no standard Sunday delivery.

International items use the

International items use the same UPU format but with a GB country suffix.

Royal Mail Tracking Statuses Explained

Use the last visible scan to decide whether to wait, track more closely, or escalate.

Status	What it means	What to do next
Sender preparing item	A tracking number has been assigned but the item has not yet been submitted to Royal Mail.	Monitor the next scan event.
Item received	Royal Mail has scanned and accepted the parcel at a collection centre or post office.	Monitor the next scan event.
Item leaving the UK	The package has been processed for export and loaded for international transport.	Monitor the next scan event.
In transit to the destination	The package is en route to the destination country by air or surface transport.	Monitor the next scan event.
Ready for delivery	The item has arrived at the local delivery office and is being prepared for the day's delivery round.	Monitor the next scan event.
Out for delivery	The item is with the delivery postman and is expected to arrive today.	Monitor the next scan event.

Can't find your status? Use the full status decoder to translate unclear carrier scan events.

Royal Mail Tracking Number Formats

Identify your tracking number type before entering it into the search box above.

character alphanumeric

2 uppercase letters + 9 digits + 'GB'

UPU S10 format. Common prefixes: EE (EMS/Special Delivery International), RR (Registered), SD (Special Delivery Guaranteed). Check digit uses Mod-11 with weights [8,6,4,2,3,5,9,7].

Royal Mail Tracked 24 / Tracked 48 (domestic barcode)

JD014600004GB

21-character alphanumeric starting with 2 letters, e.g. JD followed by digits

Domestic tracked services use a mix of 13-char and longer formats depending on label generation method.

Royal Mail door tag / redelivery reference

WC068047876GB

Variable alphanumeric; may appear as 'WC 068 047 876 GB' (spaced) or 20+ digit numeric

Space-separated format appears on delivery notifications; remove spaces when entering online.

How to Track a Royal Mail Package

Follow these steps to get real-time status on any Royal Mail shipment.

Find the tracking reference on your Royal Mail receipt, shipping label, or confirmation email (13 characters ending in GB)
Open https://www.royalmail.com/track-your-item
Go to https://www.royalmail.com/track-your-item.
Enter the tracking reference and click 'Track your item.'
View the delivery status, scan events, and estimated delivery date
Sign up for email notifications by entering your email on the tracking results page

Common Royal Mail Tracking Problems

Expand each issue for the cause, what to do, and when to call Royal Mail directly.

Tracking number not recognised

Cause

The tracking number may not be registered in Royal Mail's system yet (common immediately after label creation), or may have been entered incorrectly.

What to do

Wait 24 hours after the sender posts the item, then try again. Remove all spaces from the tracking number before entering.

Escalate when

If the number still isn't found 48 hours after confirmed posting, contact the sender and then Royal Mail on 03457 740 740.

No tracking updates for multiple days

Cause

Some Royal Mail services only scan at receipt and delivery, causing multi-day gaps with no intermediate updates. This is normal for 2nd class and some economy services.

What to do

Wait up to 5 business days for standard services. Check the Royal Mail service standards for expected delivery windows.

Escalate when

Raise a 'Where's my parcel?' enquiry at royalmail.com if the item is past the expected delivery date.

Item shown as delivered but not received

Cause

May have been left with a neighbour, in a safe place, or at a local post office. A 'Something for you' card should have been left.

What to do

Check with neighbours, your building's communal areas, and look for a red 'Something for you' card. Wait 24 hours in case of a scan timing error.

Escalate when

If not found after 24 hours, submit a formal enquiry at royalmail.com.

Fee to pay before delivery

Cause

Customs or unpaid postage fees are owed on an international inbound item. Royal Mail handles HMRC customs processing on behalf of UKBF.

What to do

Pay the stated fee via the Royal Mail online payment portal. Do not ignore - unclaimed items are returned after 18 days.

Escalate when

If the fee seems incorrect, contact Royal Mail to dispute before payment.

Royal Mail Shipping Services Compared

Compare Royal Mail service tiers and their typical delivery windows side by side.

Service options

1st Class

Aims to deliver the next working day