General Information » Further Reading » Post & Courier Services

Emirates Post is the sole provider of postal services in the UAE (www.emiratespost.com). There is a central post office in Karama, as well as post office branches around Dubai, including branches in Rashidiya, Jumeira, Satwa, Deira and Jebel Ali. Apart from being able to send mail from the post office, they also offer some good supplementary services, such as money orders, international money transfers, bill payment and even air ticket booking (through Air Arabia). They also offer services such as Ezimail, where they pick up mail on arrangement by a resident and deliver it in a sealed satchel to the recipient's door at an agreed time, and Mumtaz Express, an express mail service.

Emirates Post has its own courier service, Empost, which operates much the same as international courier companies. Some of the international courier companies available here include Aramex, DHL and Fedex.

Post within the UAE takes two to three days to be delivered. Mail sent to USA, Europe, Australia and India is usually delivered within ten days. Airmail letters cost Dhs.3 – 6 to send, depending on weight, and postcards cost Dhs.1 – 2. Aerogrammes can be bought for Dhs.2 each from post offices and save the bother of buying a stamp before posting.

Stamps can be bought from post offices and certain shops – card shops often sell a limited range of stamps. Deira City Centre and Lamcy Plaza both have full postal facilities, and some Emarat petrol stations now have them too. Red post boxes for outbound mail are located at post offices and near shopping centres. Hotels will also handle your mail if you are a guest.

There’s no house address based postal service; all incoming mail is delivered to post office boxes at various central locations and has to be collected from there.