Canada Post to Eliminate Home Delivery for 485,000 More Addresses Amid Record Losses
Canada Post announced plans to convert 485,000 addresses across 37 communities in seven provinces to community mailboxes starting next year, the latest step in a sweeping restructuring effort driven by mounting financial losses.
The Scale of the Shift
The Crown corporation has set its sights on ultimately eliminating home delivery for 4 million addresses that currently receive mail at their door. Nearly three-quarters of Canadian homes already receive mail through community, apartment lobby, or post office mailboxes.
Canada Post framed the change as a security improvement, saying the move would place “nearly all mail and parcels delivered by Canada Post under lock and key.”
A Corporation in Financial Crisis
The announcement comes as Canada Post grapples with its worst financial performance on record. The corporation posted a $1.57 billion pre-tax loss in 2025 and has lost more than $3.8 billion before taxes since 2018, including nearly $1 billion in the first three quarters of 2025 alone.
By law, Canada Post is required to be financially self-sustaining. Instead, it has relied on $2 billion in federal loans over the past two years to remain operational.
Workers Push Back
The Canadian Union of Postal Workers (CUPW) has strongly opposed the transition, calling it “drastic” and warning it will harm both the public and postal workers.
“Canada Post calls this decision modernization,” the union wrote in a statement. “We fail to see how cutting services will help the Corporation compete against private couriers who deliver to the door.”
CUPW also argued that the switch will force Canadians to walk longer distances to retrieve their mail — a particular concern for elderly and mobility-limited residents.
Accommodations for Those Who Need Them
Canada Post said it maintains an accommodation program for people who have difficulty accessing community mailboxes. In some cases, weekly home delivery can still be arranged, the corporation said.
