SHOW MENUInland Registration Fees 1841-1993
Registration as commonly thought of – registering any letter on demand for an additional fee, with a certificate of posting provided – was introduced in 1841. (From c.1792 to 1840 "Money Letters" – i.e. those containing coin or jewellery, but not banknotes and the like – were registered free of charge as an internal measure to avoid losses in the post.)
There was no guaranteed compensation for losses until 1878. Additional insurance for inland registered letters was introduced in 1886, and subsequently extended on a number of occasions. Although generally speaking it was possible to register any item of mail, parcels could not be registered before 1891 or after 1972. Registration eventually merged with the Special Delivery system in 1993, as in practice the two systems had many similarities of handling.
Between 1876 and 1993, the registration fee on overseas letters was generally the same as the basic inland fee, with the exception of a few short periods (noted below for convenience). Prior to this, registration fees could vary quite considerably depending on destination. There were several differences between the two; in particular, the insurance arrangements for overseas registered letters followed an entirely separate system.
| Date | Fees and Cover | Notes | Date | Fees and Cover | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1841 (6 Jan) |
1s | Fee had to be paid in cash, postage could be paid either in cash or stamps | 1848 (28 Mar) |
6d |
Fee had to be paid in cash but postage now had to be paid in stamps Postmasters instructed to affix stamps to letter to denote fee from 1st June 1850 |
| 1862 (1 Aug) |
4d | Compulsory registration of coin letters introduced | 1878 (1 Jan) |
2d – £2 |
Compensation for loss up to £2 introduced Embossed stamp on QV PSRE (postal stationery registration envelopes) covered only the (basic) registration fee |
| 1886 (1 May) |
2d – £2 |
Additional insurance available for the following fees: 1d (total fee 3d) – £5 2d (total fee 4d) – £10 Additional 1d or 2d regarded as separate fees, paid by stamps attached to special certificate of posting, not to cover |
1887 (15 Dec) |
2d – £5 | 1d insurance fee abolished upon raising of basic compensation limit – additional 2d fee £10 cover as before |
| 1891 (1 Jun) |
2d – £5 3d – £10 4d – £15 5d – £20 6d – £25 |
Max fee 6d. Insurance fee now considered effectively a higher regn fee, paid by stamps attached to cover, fee paid marked on cover Registration of parcels introduced |
1892 (1 Dec) |
2d – £5 3d – £10 4d – £15 5d – £20 6d – £25 7d – £30 8d – £35 9d – £40 10d – £45 11d – £50 |
Max fee 11d |
| 1898 (1 May) |
2d – £5 3d – £10 4d – £20 5d – £30 6d – £40 7d – £50 8d – £60 9d – £70 10d – £80 11d – £90 1s – £100 1s 1d – £110 1s 2d – £120 |
Max fee 1s 2d Embossed stamp on PSRE covered basic regn fee + min letter rate postage from first EVII issue |
1906 (1 Jan) |
2d – £5 3d – £20 4d – £40 5d – £60 6d – £80 7d – £100 8d – £120 9d – £140 10d – £160 11d – £180 1s – £200 1s 1d – £220 Each addl. £20 up to £400 – 1d |
Max fee 1s 10d |
| 1921 (13 Jun) |
3d – £5 4d – £20 5d – £40 6d – £60 7d – £80 8d – £100 9d – £120 10d – £140 11d – £160 1s – £180 1s 1d – £200 1s 2d – £220 Each addl. £20 up to £400 – 1d |
Max fee 1s 11d | 1949 (1 May) |
4d – £5 5d – £20 6d – £40 7d – £60 8d – £80 9d – £100 10d – £120 11d – £140 1s – £160 1s 1d – £180 1s 2d – £200 1s 3d – £220 Each addl. £20 up to £400 – 1d |
Max fee 2s |
| 1952 (1 May) |
6d – £5 7d – £20 8d – £40 9d – £60 10d – £80 11d – £100 1s – £120 1s 1d – £140 1s 2d – £160 1s 3d – £180 1s 4d – £200 1s 5d – £220 Each addl. £20 up to £400 – 1d |
Max fee 2s 2d | 1956 (1 Jun) |
1s – £10 1s 1d – £20 1s 2d – £40 1s 3d – £60 1s 4d – £80 1s 5d – £100 1s 6d – £120 1s 7d – £140 1s 8d – £160 1s 9d – £180 1s 10d – £200 1s 11d – £220 Each addl. £20 up to £400 – 1d |
Max fee 2s 8d Registration fee on overseas mail remained 6d until 1st October 1957 |
| 1961 (1 Feb) |
1s 6d – £20 1s 7d – £40 1s 8d – £60 1s 9d – £80 1s 10d – £100 1s 11d – £120 2s – £140 2s 1d – £160 2s 2d – £180 2s 3d – £200 2s 4d – £220 2s 5d – £240 Each addl. £20 up to £400 – 1d |
Max fee 3s 1d Recorded Delivery service introduced |
1963 (29 Apr) |
1s 9d – £20 1s 10d – £40 1s 11d – £60 2s – £80 2s 1d – £100 2s 2d – £120 2s 3d – £140 2s 4d – £160 2s 5d – £180 2s 6d – £200 2s 7d – £220 2s 8d – £240 Each addl. £20 up to £400 – 1d |
Max fee 3s 4d Registration fee on overseas mail remained 1s 6d until 1st July 1963 |
| 1966 (3 Oct) |
3s – £100 3s 3d – £200 3s 6d – £300 3s 9d – £400 |
Max fee 3s 9d First Class postage required for registered letters on introduction of two-tier post on 16th September 1968 |
1971 (15 Feb) |
Letters: 20p – £150 22½p – £300 25p – £500 Parcels: 25p – £150 27½p – £300 30p – £500 |
Registration of parcels was abolished on 4th September 1972. Overseas registration fee remained at 15p (3s) until 1st July 1971. New registration fees not generally relevant until the end of the postal strike on 8th March |
| 1974 (24 Jun) |
25p – £150 30p – £300 35p – £500 |
1975 (17 Mar) |
35p – £150 40p – £300 45p – £500 |
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| 1975 (29 Sep) |
45p – £200 50p – £400 55p – £600 |
1977 (13 Jun) |
60p – £200 65p – £400 70p – £600 |
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| 1979 (20 Aug) |
65p – £250 70p – £750 |
Only two steps given in the postal rates leaflet | 1980 (4 Feb) |
75p – £300 80p – £800 |
Only two steps given in the postal rates leaflet |
| 1981 (26 Jan) |
90p – £500 95p – £750 £1.00 – £1000 |
1982 (1 Feb) |
£1.00 – £500 £1.05 – £1000 £1.10 – £1500 |
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| 1983 (5 Apr) |
£1.00 – £500 £1.10 – £1250 £1.20 – £1750 |
1984 (3 Sep) |
£1.10 – £600 £1.25 – £1250 £1.40 – £1750 |
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| 1986 (20 Oct) |
£1.20 – £650 £1.35 – £1350 £1.50 – £1850 |
From this point PSRE with new values not issued for each new rate – they bore a printed NVI stamp for basic regn fee + min first class postage | 1988 (5 Sep) |
£1.40 – £750 £1.55 – £1500 £1.70 – £2000 |
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| 1989 (2 Oct) |
£1.55 – £850 £1.70 – £1650 £1.85 – £2200 |
1990 (17 Sep) |
£1.75 – £950 £1.90 – £1850 £2.10 – £2200 |
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| 1991 (16 Sep) |
£1.90 – £950 £2.10 – £1850 £2.30 – £2200 |
1993 (27 Jun) |
Last date for separate registration service |
