Santa's Address UK 2026: Royal Mail Address, Stamp and Deadline

Santa's address in the UK is Santa/Father Christmas, Santa's Grotto, Reindeerland, XM4 5HQ. This is the official Royal Mail address, it needs a real stamp, and in 2026 the letter should be in the post by Wednesday 9 December. If your child writes their full name and address on the back of the envelope, Royal Mail's elves will try to send a reply.¹

Royal Mail has been handling Santa's post for a long time. The service goes back to 1963, and the letters are now answered by a team of elves at Royal Mail's Tallents House in Edinburgh, who spend about two months a year on the job.²³ Below you will find the address in English and Welsh, the stamp prices, the deadline, how to get a reply and the addresses Father Christmas uses in other countries.

Writing to Santa is one of the loveliest bits of a British Christmas. A child sits at the kitchen table with a pencil and a list, Mum or Dad helps with the envelope, and then comes the walk to the postbox. It is worth getting the details right so the magic actually arrives.

Santa's address UK: the official Royal Mail address

Royal Mail publishes one address for all children in Britain: Santa/Father Christmas, Santa's Grotto, Reindeerland, XM4 5HQ. It does not matter whether your family says Santa or Father Christmas, both are written on the first line.¹ The postcode XM4 5HQ is a cheeky nod to "Xmas", and it only works for this one address.

Santa's address in Welsh

Children who write in Welsh can address their envelope to Sion Corn. Royal Mail lists this version:¹

Is there a Father Christmas address in Lapland?

Yes, but it is a different service. Santa Claus' Main Post Office in Rovaniemi, Finland, receives around half a million letters a year from all over the world.⁵ A letter there is international post and needs an international stamp. For a reply in time for Christmas, the Royal Mail address is the simpler choice.

How to write a letter to Santa with Royal Mail

Royal Mail keeps the rules short. Here is everything in one checklist:¹

Santa's page also has a gentle reminder for Christmas Eve: leave out a mince pie for him and a carrot for Rudolph.¹ If your child wants to know which reindeer will be eating it, have a look at our guide to Santa's reindeer names.

Letter to Santa: Royal Mail stamp prices

Royal Mail asks for a real stamp, not a drawn one.¹ Stamp prices went up on 7 April 2026:⁶⁴

A 2nd Class stamp is perfectly fine as long as you post well before the deadline.

Royal Mail Santa letter deadline 2026

For 2026 Royal Mail asks children to post their letters by Wednesday 9 December.¹ In 2025 the deadline was Wednesday 10 December.³

Royal Mail's general Christmas last posting dates come later, but they are for cards and parcels, not for Santa's replies. In 2025 they were Wednesday 17 December for 2nd Class and Saturday 20 December for 1st Class.⁷ For a letter to Santa, the 9 December date is the one that counts.

Does Royal Mail reply to Santa letters?

Usually, yes. In Santa's own words on the Royal Mail page, he will "try and reply to as many of you as possible".¹ MoneySavingExpert also points out that a reply cannot be guaranteed.⁸ The most important thing is the return address: without your child's full name and address on the back, the elves have nowhere to send the card.

The scale is big. Royal Mail's elves deal with hundreds of thousands of letters each year, according to the Express & Star in 2025.³ The Stornoway Gazette describes Royal Mail as "managing Santa's mailbag since 1963".⁹ For the full numbers, see our article on how many letters Santa gets.

How it all started in 1963

On 12 December 1963 the Post Office issued a press release from Santa himself, saying he would reply to letters that included a return address. It expected around 5,000 replies and in the end sent 7,500, in envelopes with a special Reindeerland postmark.² Children in the early 1960s asked for bunk beds, skates, a post office set, a guitar and "lots of toys".²

Replies in braille, large print and BSL

Royal Mail offers accessible replies in braille and large print, and a British Sign Language version was added in 2025. Families can ask for these at [email protected].¹³

Santa's address in other countries

Families with relatives abroad, or children who simply want to write to more than one post office, can use these addresses. Canada Post answers letters from around the world and receives more than a million a year; within Canada no stamp is needed, and its 2026 deadline is 9 December.¹⁰ The Universal Postal Union counted around 20 postal services that answer letters to Santa.¹¹

In Ireland, An Post has used the address Santa Claus, North Pole,¹² and in 2024 it delivered more than 135,000 letters from Santa to Irish children.¹³

Still wondering whether he is a real person at all? Our parents' guide Is Father Christmas real? helps with that conversation, and Father Christmas vs Santa Claus explains the two names.

Santa's address UK: common questions

What is Santa's address in the UK?

Royal Mail's official address is: Santa/Father Christmas, Santa's Grotto, Reindeerland, XM4 5HQ. Welsh speakers can write to Sion Corn, Ogof Sion Corn, Gwlad Y Ceirw, XM4 5HQ. Both reach the same Royal Mail team.

Does a letter to Santa need a stamp?

Yes. Royal Mail asks for a real stamp. Since 7 April 2026 a 1st Class stamp costs £1.80 and a 2nd Class stamp 91p.

What is the Royal Mail Santa letter deadline for 2026?

Royal Mail asks children to post their letters by Wednesday 9 December 2026. Earlier is better, because the elves answer letters in the order they arrive.

Does Royal Mail reply to Santa letters?

Royal Mail's elves send replies to letters that include a full name and return address on the back. Santa says he will try to reply to as many children as possible, so a reply is likely but not guaranteed.

Is there a free way to write to Santa in the UK?

The reply from Royal Mail costs nothing, but your letter needs a stamp. If you want something free of postage, children can also write a letter and leave it by the fireplace on Christmas Eve. Father Christmas reads those too, of course.

Can I get a reply in Welsh, braille or BSL?

Yes. Letters to Sion Corn are answered in Welsh, and Royal Mail offers braille, large print and British Sign Language replies. Email [email protected] to ask for an accessible version.

Sources

1. 1Royal Mail: Letters to Santa (royalmail.com)
2. 2The Postal Museum: Santa's little helpers (postalmuseum.org)
3. 3Express & Star: Letters to Santa represent magic of Christmas, Royal Mail elves say (2025) (expressandstar.com)
4. 4Royal Mail: Price finder (royalmail.com)
5. 5Santa Claus Village: Santa Claus Main Post Office (santaclausvillage.info)
6. 6ChannelX: Royal Mail stamp prices to rise from April 2026 (channelx.world)
7. 7Royal Mail: Christmas last posting dates (royalmail.com)
8. 8MoneySavingExpert: Free Santa letters and videos (moneysavingexpert.com)
9. 9Stornoway Gazette: Write to Santa in plenty of time (stornowaygazette.co.uk)
10. 10Canada Post: Write a letter to Santa (canadapost-postescanada.ca)
11. 11Universal Postal Union: Santa to receive eight million letters this year (2013) (upu.int)
12. 12An Post: Letters to Santa, Christmas stamps and latest posting dates (anpost.com)
13. 13Kildare Now: Santa's message to the children of Ireland (2024) (kildarenow.com)