USPS mailing date deadlines to know for the Christmas holiday

FOX 2 - When it comes to sending that perfect holiday gift through the mail, there are important dates to keep in mind.

"Start early because if you wait to the last minute you’re going to be in a little bit of trouble," said Chuck Tanghe, a USPS customer.

And there is a good reason for it due to the calendar this year, said Susan Wright of USPS.

"This year we had five less days between Thanksgiving and Christmas," she said. "Our deadlines are certainly approaching."

And that includes United States Postal Service deadlines that you need to meet.

"The first one is December 18th and that is for our ground advantage product which is a new product," Wright said. "It is a reliable, more affordable product if you make that Dec. 18th deadline."

December 18th is also the deadline for first-class mail.

"Things like your Christmas cards, the dreaded Christmas newsletter, any item that is up to 13 ounces," she said.

The next deadline you don’t want to miss is December 19th.

"December 19th is deadline for priority mail," Wright said. "And Dec. 21st is the deadline for our premiere product which is priority mail express so procrastinators will pay a premium price when shipping a package that late, but we do offer that."

And all the kids want to know if they still have time to mail a letter to Santa.

"December 9th is the deadline for letter writers to our Operation Santa program," she said.  "People can send in a letter to Santa using our Elf Road address and as long as there is a stamp and a return address, we post those letters. And letter adopters can look through letters and possibly fulfill a wish for someone in need.

"We have the capacity in the postal service processing up to 60 million pieces per day so we are prepared to deliver the holidays for our customers," she said.