You are leaving your home for a few weeks or a few months, but your administrative address remains the same. In the meantime, mail is arriving in a mailbox that no one is checking. Bills, tax notices, bank correspondence: everything piles up. Temporary address change and mail forwarding exist to avoid this situation, provided you choose the right option and follow a few specific steps.
Identity verification and fraud risk during forwarding
Before discussing rates or duration, one point deserves attention: the security of the request. La Poste has strengthened its identity verification procedures for forwarding, especially for online subscriptions. The reason is simple.
Fraudsters were using the service to redirect third-party mail to their own address. This allowed them to obtain bank statements, activation codes for SIM cards, or tax documents. The CNIL has documented this risk and recommended that postal operators apply enhanced checks.
Specifically, when you subscribe to a temporary forwarding online, La Poste may ask you to confirm your identity via a video check or at a post office. If you are in a hurry, be aware that this step can extend the implementation time. It’s better to take care of it at least a week before your departure.
Knowing how to make a temporary address change also involves anticipating this check; otherwise, the transfer will not start on the scheduled date.
Temporary forwarding, mail holding, or general delivery: which option to choose
La Poste offers three options to manage mail during an absence. They do not meet the same needs and are suitable for different durations. Here’s how to distinguish them.
- Temporary forwarding redirects each letter and small package to another address in France or abroad as they are received. It can last from a few weeks to a year depending on the chosen contract.
- Mail holding keeps your mail at the post office during your absence. Upon your return, you collect everything at once. This option is suitable for short absences (vacation, a few days’ trip).
- General delivery allows you to pick up your mail at the counter of a post office of your choice, even in another city. It is aimed at people without a temporary fixed address or those frequently on the move.
Are you going away for three months for an internship in another region with stable accommodation there? Temporary forwarding is the suitable option. Are you leaving your home for ten days for vacation? Mail holding is sufficient and costs less.
Digital mail: is forwarding still necessary in 2026
With FranceConnect, Ameli, impots.gouv.fr, online banks, and electronic billing, the share of paper mail received each month has significantly decreased. Before subscribing to forwarding, ask yourself: what physical mail do you still receive?
If all your administrative exchanges are done digitally, a mail holding of a few days may suffice where forwarding would have been essential ten years ago. However, some items remain exclusively paper: registered mail, court summons, notarial documents, bank cards.
For an absence of more than three weeks, check if you are expecting a delivery of this type. If so, temporary forwarding remains relevant. Otherwise, mail holding combined with a visit to the post office upon return will cover most cases.
Implementation times and pitfalls to avoid
La Poste indicates an implementation time of three business days after subscription. This short timeframe starts after identity verification, not after the online order. If the verification takes time, the transfer will start later than expected.
Another often overlooked point: one contract covers the entire household. You can add beneficiaries (spouse, roommate) at no extra cost. However, each beneficiary must be specifically named. Mail addressed to a name not included in the contract will not be forwarded and will remain in the original mailbox.
Finally, forwarding only applies to mail delivered by La Poste. Packages delivered by private carriers (Mondial Relay, Chronopost via third-party providers, Amazon Logistics) are not redirected. Remember to update your delivery address on e-commerce sites where you have ongoing orders.
Subscribing online or at the post office: concrete differences
Subscribing online on the La Poste website allows you to choose your dates, add beneficiaries, and pay by credit card. Identity verification is done via video or through a confirmation postal mailing.
At the post office, the process is similar in essence, but identity verification is done on-site, with a valid ID. The processing is often faster than online because the verification step is immediate.
For those who are not comfortable with digital processes, visiting the post office remains the simplest option. For others, online subscription offers the advantage of being able to extend the contract from your client space if your absence is prolonged.
A well-prepared temporary address change relies on three decisions: choosing the right option based on the duration of absence, anticipating the identity verification delay, and checking what physical mail you still receive. The rest is an administrative formality that takes less than fifteen minutes.