Purpose: learn how to avoid unwanted PostNL surcharges when your package does not meet the carrier shipping conditions.
Peak surcharges
What are peak surcharges?
Black Friday and the Christmas season are right around the corner, resulting in a radical increase in shipping volumes.
Shipping carriers charge peak season surcharges to ensure that service levels and the delivery experience are still maintained despite this influx of increased shipments during this period. These additional fees compensate for the additional costs shopping carriers face, including increased staffing and longer service hours. They are applied in addition to other, regular surcharges.
PostNL Peak surcharge (Virtual and Post)
During the period 19.11.2024 - 31.12.2024 PostNL charges a surcharge of €0.26 per parcel. This surcharge applies to all PostNL shipments.
Energy surcharge
The Energy surcharge applies to all PostNL shipping methods on routes within the Netherlands and Europe, excluding Mailbox and PostNL non-EU products.
PostNL calculates the surcharge based on their energy index, which is based on Diesel pump prices and average energy rates. The surcharge varies monthly; in July 2023 it was €0.06 per parcel, in August 2023, it was €0.00. Learn more about how PostNL calculates the Energy surcharge at the following PostNL page: Energy surcharge for parcels.
Incorrectly announced - EUR 1.09
PostNL charges a surcharge if the announcement of a parcel has not been done correctly.
There are several reasons why a parcel cannot be announced correctly. Some examples are:
- The parcel has not been handed over to PostNL within 7 days after the pre-notification
- The label is damaged
- The label is not easily readable
- The label is too close to one side
- Pre-notification does not match the data in the barcode
Surcharge nature of packaging
When a shipment meets one of the following criteria, PostNL will have to process the package manually. A surcharge is charged for this, with the designation NMG (Not Machine Suitable). The amount depends on the country you're shipping to. See the table below for pricing. You may also receive this surcharge if tape or a plastic sleeve is covering the shipping label, as this can cause glare, which prevents the label from being scanned properly.
Characteristics of the package
- Glassware, including bottles of wine (if not packaged in machine-suitable packaging) etc. or flowers.
- Laboratory samples or X-rays.
- Indications on the package mentioning 'fragile'.
- All tubes and other forms of packaging in which the label can not be processed horizontally.
- Addresses and bar codes not on the largest side of the package.
- Wood and metal, sealed packages and films (e.g. bubble wrap) or polystyrene foam.
- Two or more packages were combined into one package with tape or other binding material.
- Content is not fixed in the packaging (slides back and forth).
How can I prevent this surcharge?
- Do not use round tubes
- Avoid mentions on the package (e.g. 'fragile')
- Paste the label with the barcode in a horizontal way on the longest side of the box
- Do not attach packages to each other
- Make sure there is sufficient filling (inner packaging) so that the contents do not slide back and forth
This surcharge is one of the trickiest to avoid, as it depends on several factors. For packaging advice, feel free to reach out to our Customer Service.
Surcharge not suitable for machine / Manual processing
This surcharge applies to parcels that are too large or too small to fit through the sorting machines, requiring manual handling during the shipping process.
Dimensions
- Bigger than 100 x 70 x 58 cm but less than 175 x 78 x 58 cm
- Smaller than 10 x 10 x 1 cm
- From 23 KG up to 31.5 KG
Surcharge parcels >23kg
This surcharge applies to parcels weighing more than 23 kg but not exceeding 31.5 kg. Parcels in this weight category require additional care and handling during the shipping process.
Country of destination: | Benelux | Germany |
Sweden/ |
France | Rest of the world |
Surcharge: |
€5.15 |
€10.20 |
€13.70 |
€8.20 | €5.15 |
Exceeding maximum package dimensions - 83.88 EUR
If a parcel is too big and/or too heavy to be transported with the delivery van of the driver, it will be delivered through the Extra@Home network from PostNL.
A surcharge will be charged for this with the indication Surcharge for exceeding maximum dimensions.
Dimensions within EU
- Larger than 175 x 78 x 58 cm
- 31,5 KG
Dimensions outside EU
- Larger than 150 x 78 x 58 cm
- 30 KG or more
Dimensions Easy Return Service
- Larger than 150 x 70 x 50 cm
- 20 KG or more
How can I prevent this surcharge?
Make sure to stay well within the carrier's maximum dimensions. It can happen that part of the box sticks out or the box expands during transport, which could cause your shipment to exceed the allowed dimensions and result in a surcharge.
Additionally, it’s important to stay under the maximum dimensions, as PostNL typically does not reimburse this surcharge when shipping via Extra@Home. This is because larger and heavier parcels are handled with extra care within this network.
By staying within the size limits, you avoid unnecessary costs and ensure a more efficient shipping process.
Volumetric surcharge
Research by carriers shows that half of the parcels sent consist of air. As a result, unnecessary empty space is transported. That is why they are introducing a volumetric surcharge for packages larger than 50dm³. With this, PostNL wants to reduce the empty space and thus create extra logistics capacity and reduce CO2 emissions.
You can measure the volumetric weight as follows: L (dm) x H (dm) x W (dm)
Volumemetric surcharge | Netherlands Belgium Luxemburg | Other EU countries* |
50 - 100 dm³ | €0.85 | €0.64 |
100 - 200 dm³ | €2.70 | €1.83 |
200+ dm³ | €6.15 | €3.47 |
*List of other EU countries
BG, CY, DK, DE, EE, FI, FR, GR, HU, IE, IT, HR, LV, LT, LU, MT, AT, PL, PT, RO, SL, SK, ES, CZ, SE.
Return to Sender
When a shipment is returned to sender, the costs are for the account of the sender. These costs will only be charged if this concerns a refusal at the door, undeliverable, incorrect address details or when a package is not picked up at the depot/service point.
The return costs are the same amount as the initial shipping costs.
PostNL Standard Collection
In the Sendcloud platform you can choose from two shipping methods for PostNL Standard:
-
PostNL Standard
This is the correct method to select when you intend to hand your parcels over to a service point for delivery. -
PostNL Standard Collection
This is the shipping method that is selected when PostNL will collect parcels directly from you via a Sendcloud pickup.
PostNL have implemented this new surcharge due to the increasing number of PostNL standard Collection shipments which are incorrectly being handed in at service points or at PostNL depots.
Additional costs weight PostNL non-EU
- L x W x H / 7.500
Example: If the package weighs 10 kg and is 80 x 60 x 40 cm, the volumetric weight would be (80 x 60 x 40 / 7.500) 25,6 kg. In that case, the weight you use for the shipment should be 25,6 kg.
PostNL Mailbox dimensions/weight
This surcharge is 5 times the stamp price + EUR 0.20 and will be charged if you send Mailbox packages larger and/or heavier than allowed according to the shipping conditions.
Shipping conditions:
Dimensions: 38 x 26.5 x 3.2 cm
Weight: 2 kg
Please carefully read the shipping conditions to avoid the above surcharges. Make sure that you stay well within the permitted dimensions and ensure that the packaging meets the correct criteria.