Holiday shipping deadlines are closer than you think and there could be 'significant delays'
You should know about these dates if you're ordering gifts for Christmas! 📬
Canada Post mailboxes. Right: Purolator truck in Calgary.
There are a lot of holiday shipping deadlines to be aware of for 2025, whether you're sending or receiving packages.
One carrier is even warning of "significant delays" at the Canada-U.S. border.
Purolator, FedEx and other mail carriers have varying deadlines throughout December that might be earlier than you think.
If you're sending cards or packages this holiday season, these dates can help you make sure they get delivered by Christmas Eve.
Also, you can figure out the latest date you can order products online if you want them to arrive for the holidays.
Purolator said there are "continued significant delays" because of U.S. Customs.
"We advise all customers who are shipping across the U.S.-Canada border during the holidays to ship as early as possible," the carrier explained.
There's no guarantee that ship-by dates won't be impacted by the border clearance process.
Here are the holiday shipping deadlines if you're sending or receiving packages through Purolator:
- delivery to Africa, Eastern Europe, the Middle East and South Asia — December 11
- ground delivery to the U.S. — December 15
- delivery to East Asia (including China, Japan and Thailand) — December 17
- delivery to Australia, Caribbean, Mexico, South and Central America, and Western Europe (including the U.K., France and Germany) — December 18
- next-day delivery to Canada and the U.S., where available — December 23
For packages to arrive by December 24, FedEx has different deadlines depending on how you're shipping and where you're shipping to.
If you're shipping to most metropolitan areas in Canada, these are the deadlines:
- FedEx Ground — December 15 to December 23
- FedEx Economy — December 19
- FedEx 2Day — December 22
- FedEx Standard Overnight, FedEx Priority Overnight and FedEx First Overnight — December 23
If you're shipping from Canada to the U.S., these are the deadlines:
- FedEx International Ground — December 15 to December 23
- FedEx InternationalConnect Plus — December 18 to December 22
- FedEx International Economy — December 22
- FedEx International Priority — December 23
- FedEx International First — December 23
These are the last days to ship with UPS in Canada:
- ground delivery to the U.S. and extended areas — December 15
- domestic ground delivery across Canada — December 16
- international air delivery, including the U.S. — December 19
- air for delivery across Canada — December 23
Canada Post usually has a list of holiday shipping deadlines available online, but this year, there's only a "shipping delivery standards" calculator.
You have to enter the postal code you're shipping from and the postal code or province/territory you're shipping to, then you'll find out how long it will take to deliver your parcel.
This article's cover image was used for illustrative purposes only.