Founded 1996 | ||
Bhutan Postal Corporation Ltd., or Bhutan Post, is the company in Bhutan responsible for the operation of the postal system.
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History
Until 1996 the post in Bhutan was run by the Department of Posts and Telegraphs, part of the Ministry of Communications, but in line with the Government of Bhutan's policy of giving autonomy to organisations able to operate independently, Bhutan Post was created on 1 October 1996. Under the Bhutan Postal Corporation Act 1999 (BPCA), the Directors of the corporation are appointed by the Bhutan government and the Chairman is the relevant government minister. Bhutan has been a member of the Universal Postal Union (UPU) since 1969 and in 1983 they joined the Asian Pacific Postal Union.
Services
As at 1997, Bhutan Post operated 17 post offices and 2 general post offices. Bhutan Post offers normal letter post services as well as domestic and international express services and a philatelic service. A variety of financial services are provided including money orders and a Western Union service.
Bhutan Post also operates a transport network within the country which carries mail and passenger traffic.
Under the BPCA 1999, Bhutan Post have a monopoly on the handling of standard letters within the country.
Special stamp issues
Bhutan Post has a contract with the Inter-Governmental Philatelic Corporation to produce (as at 2004) ten special issues a year for sale in the international market for which they receive a royalty of US $0.110 million.
Postcodes
Bhutan Post announced in 2010 that they would introduce the country's first postcode system after receiving advice from the UPU.