Map shows French post offices at risk of closure or change

A map of 471 post offices that a postal union says are due to close or “evolve” into municipal postal agencies or postal outlets operated by local businesses has been released by SUD-PTT.

The union says it obtained a list of traditional post offices set to “close” in 2026 through La Poste's social and economic committees (CSEs).

However, La Poste told The Connexion, that the document is “in no way a list of closures”.

It said the sites are instead those where it could begin discussions with local elected officials to identify the postal presence best suited to local needs.

It said these discussions reflect changing customer habits, with more than 80% of bank transfers now carried out online and letter volumes falling from 18 billion items in 2008 to about five billion in 2025.

Daily traffic at post offices has also fallen by almost two-thirds since 2008, from about two million customers a day to 741,000 in 2024, La Poste said.

The discussions come as La Poste restructures its services following a sharp fall in letter volumes, with proposed changes including slower deliveries, fewer postboxes and changes to the post office network.

Union warns of fewer services

SUD-PTT said the transformation of a full-service post office into a municipal agency or shop-based outlet would reduce the services available to residents.

“Barely 10 transactions will be possible in these substitutes, and nothing banking-related except for emergency cash transactions,” the union said.

It also said that the south-east regional CSE had voted for an expert assessment of the impact of the proposed changes on employment in 147 post offices.

Locations of reported La Poste closures

‘The question is what people need’

Nicolas Galepides, federal secretary of SUD-PTT, previously told The Connexion that the role of the postal network should not be measured only by the number of letters being handled.

“People open their doors to their postman or postwoman. This relationship is particularly important in rural areas and for vulnerable people.

“Even if there were zero letters to deliver, the presence of someone who is a trusted third party would still be essential,” he said.

Mr Galepides also said that the expansion of La Poste's commercial activities had been intended to help support its public-service role.

“The idea was that activities developed in competitive markets would help support the public service mission,” he said. “The question today is whether that balance is still being maintained.”

On the future of smaller post offices and local agencies, he said decisions should take into account the needs of residents as well as the company's finances.

“The question is not only what La Poste needs, but what people need,” he said.

Mayors challenge proposed changes

Local elected officials have also raised concerns about the possible changes.

Vincent Decorde, mayor of Roncherolles-sur-le-Vivier in Seine-Maritime, near Rouen, is campaigning against the threatened closure of the local postal agency.

“The state has asked La Poste to make €350million in savings on its presence across the country. La Poste is trying to turn [post offices] into all kinds of postal agencies, so that it can then say the agency is not profitable and close it,” he said to BFM TV.

“Residents in these areas feel they are being abandoned,” he said.

He has also launched an appeal to other municipalities affected by the plan and started a petition.

Another mayor, Régis Deliquaire of Souleuvre en Bocage in Calvados, told TF1 that the possible closure of a postal agency in his municipality was “unacceptable” and amounted to an “abandonment of public service”.

Some municipal agencies that have already replaced traditional post offices could themselves be affected by the changes, TF1 reported.