When you need a package or mail delivered by a specific day, it’s worth checking out if there’s a holiday nearing.
If so, you may need to plan accordingly to ensure you will still get the package or mail when you need it.
That’s because the USPS doesn’t operate on a few holidays.
So, if you’re expecting something but it’s Thanksgiving, can you expect the USPS to deliver?
Does USPS Deliver On Thanksgiving?
No, USPS does not deliver on Thanksgiving.
Thanksgiving is a federal holiday and since the USPS is a federal business, it does not operate on Thanksgiving.
As such, you shouldn’t expect any mail or other deliveries from the USPS on Thanksgiving.
How To Get Your Mail On Thanksgiving
If you have important mail that’s supposed to arrive on Thanksgiving, is there any way you can still get it?
Here are a few things you should do to get your mail on, or just before, Thanksgiving.
1. Priority Mail Express
If you absolutely need your mail or a package on Thanksgiving, the best thing you can do is have the sender use Priority Mail Express.
It’s a far more expensive shipping option, but it unlocks the ability to have your item arrive on Sunday or on holidays.
That includes having your package arrive on Thanksgiving.
There may be some exceptions based on your local post office, but if the sender pays the extra fee to have it delivered on Thanksgiving, it should arrive by then.
If your sender doesn’t want to pay the extra fee, you can always offer to pay for the shipping yourself.
The great thing about Priority Mail Express is that if they can’t deliver the package to you on time, you get a refund.
You don’t have to pay for the delivery.
If you need your mail or package to arrive on Thanksgiving, the best way to ensure it arrives by then is to use Priority Mail Express.
2. Intercept A Package
Another thing you can do to try to get your mail delivered by Thanksgiving is to use the USPS’s Intercept a Package service.
When you choose to Intercept a Package, the USPS will put a hold on the package wherever it is at that time.
It takes a bit of planning and understanding of how long it takes for your mail to move through the system.
However, if you can time it right, you can have them hold your package at one of their facilities.
As long as the facility allows visitors, you can then go there yourself and pick up your mail or package.
Keep in mind though that these offices and centers won’t be open on Thanksgiving.
As such, you’ll need to use the Intercept a Package service before then.
This helps you get the package by Thanksgiving because it skips a step.
If you didn’t use Intercept a Package, it might take another day for the package or mail to make it to your local post office.
If that day is Thanksgiving, you’ll have to wait another day to get it.
If you use the Intercept a Package service, you can stop its progress and pick it up yourself.
This allows you to get it the day before Thanksgiving and avoid waiting an extra day for it to arrive.
You’ll need to do a bit of research to determine what distribution centers and post offices are around you.
You won’t be able to pick it up at a distribution center, but if you can intercept it while it’s moving through another post office, you can get your mail by Thanksgiving.
The Intercept a Package service is a great way to stop the progress of mail, so you can pick it up yourself and save time on its delivery.
3. Schedule A Redelivery
Another option to get your mail or package by Thanksgiving is to use the USPS’s Schedule a Redelivery service.
This is ideal if the USPS tried to deliver the package or mail to your home, but they couldn’t.
This usually happens when the package needs a signature.
Sometimes the USPS will also ask you to come to the post office when the package is too large to put on the truck.
The great thing about the Schedule a Redelivery service is that it allows you to request redelivery on the same day.
This is ideal if you just missed the package and the next day is Thanksgiving.
To ask for redelivery, all you need to do is go online and make an account with the USPS.
Then you’ll see an option to schedule a redelivery.
It will ask you for a few details about the package that you’re missing.
Then you can ask when you want the redelivery to occur.
As long as you submit the request by 3 AM EST, you should be able to get the USPS to deliver it again the same day as your request.
They’ll get the request, put the package on the truck, and attempt to deliver it again to your home.
This is a great last-minute way to get your mail or package before Thanksgiving if they already tried to deliver it to your home.
Using the Schedule a Redelivery service from the USPS, you can ensure that if you missed delivery from them, they can attempt to deliver the package to you again on the same day.
4. Hold Mail
When someone holds their mail from the USPS, it usually means they’re going on vacation.
They’re not going to be home to pick up their mail.
It allows them peace of mind knowing that they don’t have to worry about people going through their mail while they’re not at home or stealing their packages.
It’s also a useful tool for ensuring you get your mail or package by Thanksgiving.
When you request the office to hold your mail, it won’t go on the truck.
Instead, the post office will hold onto it until you either pick up your mail yourself or resume your delivery service.
The advantage of having the post office hold onto it for you is that you can rely on yourself to get the mail or package instead of hoping that the USPS worker has time to deliver everything.
The USPS is a busy institution.
While mail delivery workers do their best to get out all the mail each day, it isn’t always possible.
They might have to put it back on the truck and attempt to deliver once more tomorrow.
There’s a chance that your mail or package might not arrive the day before Thanksgiving because the USPS is too busy.
To get around this, you can request that the office holds your mail.
This then allows you to go to the office and pick up your mail or package yourself.
You don’t have to worry about it not showing up at your mailbox because the delivery worker is too busy to get to everyone or handle packages.
5. Redirecting A Package
A final method you can use to get your package or mail just before Thanksgiving is to redirect a package.
If you have a friend or family member who gets their mail a bit earlier than you do or lives closer to a distribution center, you might redirect your package to their address instead of yours.
By cutting out some of the miles that your package or mail needs to take, it can arrive a little bit sooner.
It all comes down to knowing where your package or mail is coming from.
Once you know where its start point is, you can trace the possible path it will take through USPS’s distribution and processing facilities.
In most cases, they’ll want to use as direct of a path as possible since it’s cheaper.
If you used ground shipping, you also know it’s all coming via the road.
If a friend or family member lives on that route and is closer than you to the starting point, you can redirect a package to that address instead.
USPS will then deliver the package to that address which could potentially cut a day or two from the delivery time.
This ensures that it gets delivered before Thanksgiving.
Then you can drive over either before or on Thanksgiving to pick it up from them.
Redirecting your package takes some research and planning, but it can be a way to have the USPS deliver your package earlier and get it before Thanksgiving.
How To Make Your Mail Or Packages Arrive Faster
A problem you can sometimes face with the USPS is that they won’t deliver mail or packages on federal holidays.
If you need a specific package or you need a specific letter, you may hope that it arrives before the holiday hits.
This might make you wonder if there is anything you can do to make your mail or package arrive faster.
Here are a few things you can do to help increase the speed of your delivery.
1. Choose Air Shipping
When you’re choosing a shipping method for your package, you can cut off some time from your delivery by choosing air shipping over ground shipping.
The seller might call it expedited shipping or express shipping.
It usually shaves a few days off from the estimated ground shipping time.
That’s because your package is going to take its journey on an airplane rather than a truck.
Airplanes can cross distances a lot faster than trucks or trains.
They have greater speeds, and they don’t have to worry about things like traffic.
The only delay that tends to plague planes is bad weather.
Even then, bad weather usually clears up in a few hours.
By choosing air shipping, you can speed up the process of your delivery and potentially get the package before Thanksgiving.
2. Priority Mail
Another way that you can speed up the delivery of your mail or package is to use Priority Mail.
When you’re sending something out or choosing a shipping method, you should sometimes see Priority Mail.
It tends to be a more expensive shipping method than standard shipping.
That’s because when you choose Priority Express or something similar, a lot of focus and attention goes to your package or mail.
The USPS makes it a priority and ensures that it’s quickly sorted and put on a truck.
Priority Express Mail usually only takes a day or two to arrive.
This makes it a great method for when you need a package before Thanksgiving arrives, and you only have a few days left before the holiday.
Although it will cost you more money, using Priority Mail is a great way to speed up your delivery.
3. No Signatures
One way to slow down your delivery is to require a signature.
While requiring a signature ensures your package arrives safely, it also means there’s a greater chance of missing your delivery.
You have to be home when the postal worker arrives to sign for the package.
If you’re not, they’ll take the package back with them.
If you’re lucky, you can maybe get to the post office before it closes to pick it up.
However, if you’re not, then you’re going to have to wait until the next day to try to sign for the package again.
This slows up the process because it can be difficult to coordinate with your local postal worker.
If you have to work outside of the home, you aren’t always there when they arrive.
By opting out of a signature, the postal worker can just leave the package at your home even if you’re not there.
This ensures there aren’t any delays.
You can also sometimes perform an online signature which also allows the postal worker to leave it at your home.
By eliminating the need for a signature, you can remove any potentially missed deliveries from happening and speed up the process.
Conclusion
The USPS doesn’t deliver on Thanksgiving because its offices aren’t open.
Thanksgiving is a federal holiday that the USPS recognizes.
Luckily, there are a few ways listed above that you can use to either speed up your delivery or ensure that you’re able to get it before or on Thanksgiving.
