An Announcement From Iceland Post Today (8-20-19)

[coastwatcher]

Dear Friends

Iceland Post, Stamp and Philatelic Department (Postphil) will be abolished at the end of this year after about 90 years in operation.

We still have two stamp issues left this year, on September 12th. and October 31st., but when they are done the department will be closed down for good and will stop serving stamp collectors, domestic and foreign, altogether.

The fact that the number of our philatelic customers have constantly been decreasing year after year has lead to years of deficit for Postphil.

Iceland Post has got a new CEO Mr. Birgir Jonsson, who is cutting down everything that is not profittable in this company, including Postphil, and that is due to the fact that Iceland Post currently has severe operating difficulties.

To-day, August 20 Iceland Post is laying off about 50 people throughout the company.

The current management of Iceland Post Ltd., prefers if possible to stop issuing new stamps altogether, but on the basis of current law, Iceland Post cannot unilaterally decide to do so.

However, there is some uncertainty as to how these matters will be handled in the future and the company is waiting for answers from it´s owner, the Icelandic state.

If the company must keep on issuing new stamps in 2020 and onward the number of new stamps will be very few each year and there will be no service for stamp collectors.

According to CEO Mr. Birgir Jonsson this task of producing and issuing new stamps could be given to outside contractors.

I will leave Iceland Post Ltd., in September after 20 years in charge of Postphil.

From October to December there will only be 3 people working at Postphil so operations will be at minimum

Kind regards,

VILHJALMUR SIGURDSSON

HEAD OF PHILATELY

POSTPHIL | ICELAND POST

TEL: [phone] | DIRECT: [phone] | MOBILE: [phone] | STAMPS.IS | facebook.com/icelandicstamps | [e-mail]

STORHOFDI 29 | 110 REYKJAVIK | ICELAND | TEL: [phone] | FAX: [phone] | POSTUR.IS |

[khj]

That is unfortunate. I'm an avid collector of Iceland, although I don't actively collect recent issues. Iceland had continued to produce quality stamps, including innovative production (example -- thermal ink on the glacier issue). It was one of the few countries that were on my short list of consideration for new issue subscription in the future. But I guess this automatically knocks it off the list.

Thanks for letting us know, coastwatcher. And please, let us know if Iceland Post changes their mind!!!

[janstamp]

I'm afraid other countries will follow.
In Belgium I saw the activity of the Philatelic departement decrease every year. New issues are no longer sold in post offices, only online or through subscription, the number and opening hours of the philatelic shops are going downwards, ...

[FairyFoot]

Norvic had this on his blog.

I do home they continue to produce new issues, if not that many. Their Europa ones are nice.

[jonesy]

Can something be done to purchase a few of the last of the stamps coming out of Iceland? Can any community assist with diverting tragedy? hmmmm ... I really do not like number crunchers!

[coastwatcher]

While I’ve collected Icelandic stamps off and on over the course of my collecting career, I have recently taken a renewed interest in them. Most of my collections end at or near 2000 but I have been considering collecting Iceland up to the present because of their conservative issuing policy. I actually found the announcement while searching for information about subscribing to their new issue service. I just hope that my Icelandic collection doesn’t end up with a definitive end date.

[mourningdoves]

Aug 21, 2019 3:34:38 GMT -5 janstamp said:

I'm afraid other countries will follow.
In Belgium I saw the activity of the Philatelic departement decrease every year. New issues are no longer sold in post offices, only online or through subscription, the number and opening hours of the philatelic shops are going downwards, ...

My Belgium collection has been dormant for a few years, but I've been working at making tags for Vario pages. That way, I'll be able to order everything the way I want - like the lovely 1957-58 World's Fair series, which Scott breaks up between regular issues and semi-postals, and so does Bill Steiner. I saw the Atomium when I was young, and I gotta say it rocked me!

Belgium has gone a little overboard with stamp issues in recent years, but I still like the new stamps. Does anybody use them for postage? Is it hard to get them online? Do they have a high minimum order? Are there any places where you can just walk in and buy new issues, like dealers who have a contract with the post?

That's a drag about Iceland. I noticed that Mr. Sigurdsson mentioned Mr. Birgir Jonsson by name, twice. Maybe he wouldn't mind it if all of us sent Mr. Jonsson rude letters?

Guatemala still issues stamps once in a while, I guess, though their post office apparently ceased functioning 3 or 4 years ago.

[janstamp]

To mourningdoves:

Adres and email of the Philately Departement of the Belgian Post:

Bpost - Philately & Stamps Printing
Egide Walschaertsstraat 1b

2800 Mechelen

email: [e-mail]


I have no idea if they deliver in US. Perhaps they can give you names of stampdealers.

[coastwatcher]

mourningdoves....Nordfrim, out of Denmark, is an official agent for Belgium Post and offers a subscription service for their stamps. They do deliver to the US as well as the rest of the world. Google them for their website as I can’t seem to be able to post a link.

[greaden]

I am looking at the bright side. I have been collecting Iceland through an undefined date in the early 1980s that I keep raising. If I can complete the country, I might as well continue up to the end.