The post office in Finland is respected by the local population due to its good service and social projects it implements. The company handles shipments within the country, and also carries out international postal exchange. In addition, Posti Finland, being part of the worldwide EMS cooperative, also delivers EMS items.
Posti Finland: what it is and how it works
The postal service in Finland was established at the beginning of the 17th century. Today the country ranks 5th among the states in which the post office works most efficiently.
Post offices in cities are more like shops: the windows display not only various types of packaging, postcards and souvenirs, but also the products of Finnish trade brands such as Marimeko, Littala, Fazer.
You can send anything by mail - from a small trifle to a bicycle. If you are sending a letter, it is better to stick the stamps yourself, otherwise the sending will cost you twice as much.
People living in Finland use mail not only for sending and receiving correspondence and parcels, they also receive notifications from medical institutions, bank statements, information from the tax authorities in the offices.
Today, many Russians order goods from Finnish online stores and receive them from post offices in Finland. As a rule, residents of Russia collect their parcels in the city of Lappeenranta, located 23 km from the checkpoint.
There are about 20 Posti Finland branches in this city, so when placing an order, you must indicate the postal code of the post office where you plan to pick up the shipment. Often, Russians receive their parcels in Imatra, Kotka and other cities in Finland.
To find out the addresses and postal codes of post offices, you need to go to the official website of Posti Finland: https://www.posti.fi. Here you can also see the rates and opening hours of all Finnish branches.
The maximum period for a parcel to be at the post office is 14 days. If the goods are not picked up during this time, they are sent back. Therefore, when placing an order, you should take this into account and correctly calculate the time of your arrival.
To receive an order in the city and branch you need, you must specify the following data:
- surname, first name (as they are indicated in the foreign passport);
- Poste restante ("on demand" - must be specified);
- postal code, city, country (for example, 55100 IMATRA, FINLAND).
After completing the application, the parcel is assigned an identification code consisting of letters and numbers. This combination can be used to track the movement of goods. As soon as the parcel arrives at the specified location, you need to arrive at the specified branch and, presenting your passport, receive the shipment addressed to you.
Sending goods through Finland is often practiced by sellers from China. This is especially true on holidays, when the volume of postage increases several times, and buyers want to receive their parcel as soon as possible.
Helsinki has a fairly large sorting center FIHELA, so international shipments are not delayed here for a long time. Thus, the parcel from the Middle Kingdom reaches the recipient in a matter of days, which is especially pleasing for Aliexpress customers.
In what time frame are parcels and correspondence delivered?
Delivery times are highly dependent on seasonal demands. Correspondence is usually delivered to Russia within 35 days. In fact, from the moment the parcels are handed over by the sellers for delivery to the post office in Finland and subsequent export, it takes from 5 to 15 days. Another 1-10 days pass between export and import, and then the parcels are sent to the country of destination, where everything depends on the customs and the city of destination. In total, it takes another couple of weeks.
What are the types of track numbers
Parcels and EMS shipments are always assigned a tracking number for tracking. Small packets may not be registered - in this case, they cannot be tracked. The number usually comes to the e-mail that was specified during the ordering process.
The international track number consists of letters and numbers:
- small bags up to 2 kg - Rx123456785FI;
- parcels weighing from 2 to 20 kg - Cx123456785FI;
- EMS shipments - Ex123456785FI.
The first letter means that the item was registered. The numbers are a unique parcel number. The last letters identify the state of the postal service from where the goods were sent.
Tracking procedure
The ability to track international shipments from Finland is a useful tool for tracking the movement of your goods. The postal status will tell you what stage the package is in.
Posti Finland international shipments go through the following stages:
- Sending a parcel at one of Posti Finland's branches.
- Processing and distribution to the sorting center.
- Arrival at the place of international postal exchange.
- Customs clearance in the country of the sender.
- Export.
- Import.
- Customs clearance in the recipient country.
- Sorting parcels in the country of destination.
- Handing over the goods to the recipient.
You can track the parcel directly on the official website of Posti Finland. Residents of Russia can use the services of special services, such as GdePosylka.
The main advantage of such sites is that the tracking takes place in Russian.
In order to find out information about a shipment on the official website of Posti Finland, you need to take two simple steps:
- Go to the official website.
- Enter the track number in the special window and click Find the item.
After that, information about the location of your shipment will appear on the screen.
How the statuses of "Finland Post" are translated
We figured out how to check the status of the parcel. However, to understand where your shipment is located, you need to know how the status names are translated.
| In English | In Russian |
|---|---|
| The item is not yet in Posti | Parcel information received |
| Item has arrived to warehouse Item received for transport | Package accepted |
| In transit Item has been registered Item in sorting The item is in transport | Package in transit |
| Item accepted from transport | On the way - Arrived at the waypoint |
| Item has departed from the warehouse | On the way - Left the waypoint |
| Item in process in office of exchange | The package is being prepared for shipment to the country of destination |
| The item is on its way to the destination country | Export from the country of departure |
| Item arrived in the destination country | Import to destination country |
| Item ready for pick up at a Post Office collection point against a notice of arrival or item code. Pick up from parcel point with locker code | Ready to receive at the post office |
| Item ready for pick up at the destination country place of collection | The parcel is ready for pickup |
| Item is in delivery transportation | Parcel issued for delivery |
| Item delivered to the recipient | Parcel delivered |
| Delivery of the item has failed. The item has been forwarded to Posti's Item Investigation Services | Parcel in storage |
Let's sum up
The Finnish postal service is considered one of the most efficient in the world. Even sellers from other countries, in particular from China, use its services for international shipments. Russians can receive their parcels directly in Finnish cities, especially when it comes to residents of St. Petersburg.
In order for your order to arrive in a place convenient for you in Finland, during the delivery process, you must indicate the post office index.
The address and zip code can be seen on the official Posti Finland website. Knowing the track number of your shipment, you can track the parcel, finding out its status on the mail web resource.
