The year 2026 marks the beginning of the 15th Five-Year Plan period. To advance high-quality development in the postal and express delivery industry and provide robust service support for a strong start to the 15th Five-Year Plan, the State Post Bureau outlined at the National Postal Work Conference on January 7 that it will adhere to party-building leadership and drive industry growth through eight key focus areas.
The State Post Bureau will anchor its efforts to the strategic goals of building China into a country with strong transportation network, better plan and promote the postal sector's role within this framework, and steer the industry from large-scale to high-quality development. It will complete the high-quality formulation of the 15th Five-Year Plan for the postal industry, ensure its dissemination and implementation, deeply participate in the development of a comprehensive transportation system, strengthen the tracking and analysis of postal industry evaluation indicators for the transportation power initiative, and effectively implement specialized pilot projects while promoting their outcomes. The bureau will issue guidelines for the 15th Five-Year Plan postal industry standard system, advance international standardization work in the express delivery sector, implement value-added tax policies for express delivery services, and continuously unleash policy dividends.
To persistently enhance new momentum for industry development, the State Post Bureau will deepen the integration of "artificial intelligence + postal express," accelerate digital transformation, and introduce policy documents to speed up the application of unmanned delivery technologies while expanding pilot uses of unmanned vehicles and drones in the sector. It will promote automated facilities such as intelligent sorting, smart cloud warehouses, and intelligent security screening, and accelerate the adoption of advanced technologies like smart delivery dispatch and intelligent routing. The bureau will formulate the 15th Five-Year Plan guidelines for applied technology research and development in the postal industry, expedite the development of green postal services, promote circular packaging, new energy vehicles, and photovoltaic power generation technologies, and drive green, low-carbon development through intelligent route optimization and packing algorithms.
The postal and express delivery industry will focus on addressing bottlenecks and pain points in economic circulation, improve the modern logistics system for mail and parcels, and serve to strengthen the domestic economic cycle. It will enhance research on the spatial layout of national postal and express delivery hubs, promote the simultaneous installation of self-service terminals like parcel lockers and smart mailboxes during urban renewal projects and new residential developments, continuously deepen the construction of rural logistics systems for mail and parcels, strengthen capacity building, and improve service levels. The industry will continue to consolidate "free shipping" achievements in regions like Xinjiang and Tibet, expand the scope of universal postal services, and better leverage the postal network's foundational support role in rural areas of central and western China. It will accelerate the development of an international logistics system for mail and parcels to enhance global service capabilities.
Leveraging the postal and express delivery industry's unique advantages in connecting production with consumption and linking domestic trade with foreign trade, the State Post Bureau will empower modern industrial development through highly efficient circulation. It will focus on serving the development of distinctive rural industries, promote the integrated development model of "delivery + e-commerce + agriculture," and foster synergistic growth between rural e-commerce and express logistics. The bureau will expand integrated development models for express logistics and e-commerce industries, align express service layouts with industrial clusters to better serve the real economy, encourage companies to enhance their capabilities in serving global industrial and supply chains, and deepen integration between postal services and cultural tourism by promoting the sustainable development of themed post offices and guiding innovation in specialized services.
The State Post Bureau will strengthen supervision of universal postal services and continuously improve their inclusivity and equity. It will comprehensively address "internal-roll" competition, enhance source governance, urge delivery enterprises to improve compliance, optimize algorithms, balance interest distribution among headquarters, franchisees, and couriers, and protect workers' legitimate rights. The bureau will implement "penetrating" supervision to correct unreasonable corporate practices such as differentiated delivery fees and "penalty-upon-complaint" mechanisms, consolidate special campaigns against illegal charges for mail and parcel collection in rural areas, and resolutely safeguard public postal rights and maintain sound industry development order.
To further refine the industry governance system and comprehensively enhance governance capabilities for steady, high-quality development, the State Post Bureau will conduct industry-wide "Ninth Five-Year" legal education, strengthen professional training for enforcement teams, intensify supervision of administrative law enforcement, and fully elevate law-based governance and standardized enforcement. It will reinforce the development and standardized management of support systems at all levels, steadily advance the implementation of postal management responsibilities at the county level, actively participate in international organization work, engage deeply in global postal governance, and support the high-quality共建 "Belt and Road" initiative.
The State Post Bureau will leverage the inter-ministerial joint meeting mechanism for mail and parcel channel security management to strengthen comprehensive governance across the entire chain. It will deepen operational monitoring and command dispatch mechanisms to maintain the security and stability of the delivery network, continue specialized campaigns for real-name mail acceptance, and strengthen the implementation of the "three systems." The bureau will ensure the successful conclusion of the three-year campaign for fundamental improvements in workplace safety, promote the development of industry safety officer teams, and effectively disseminate and implement two mandatory national standards. It will persistently advance the application of privacy waybills, actively participate in emergency support for major national natural disasters and incidents, and enhance security and service capabilities for mail and parcel channels in key regions and during critical periods.
Centered on the dual tasks of ideological guidance and cohesive services, the State Post Bureau will motivate industry practitioners to become creators and guardians of better lives. It will strengthen party building within the industry, deepen and expand the achievements of the "two coverages," and establish direct channels for couriers to voice their concerns. The bureau will enhance party-building-led group efforts, promote couriers' participation in social governance, improve services and management for the courier community, strengthen talent development, advance vocational skill level recognition and professional title evaluations, and organize innovation competitions for the express industry. It will conduct national selections and commendations for outstanding postal industry collectives and individuals, promote "Top Ten Couriers" campaigns, and amplify the recognition of couriers' exemplary deeds.