Two different things people call 'mail redirection'
- Royal Mail's redirection service - for individuals moving home or businesses moving offices. Royal Mail forwards your mail from the old address to your new one. Costs from around £36 for 3 months personal redirection.
- Business mail forwarding via a virtual office - a third-party provides a professional address (often London or city-centre) which receives your mail, scans or forwards it to you. Used by businesses that don't want to use a home address publicly.
If you're moving house, option 1. If you're a business needing an ongoing professional address, option 2.
Royal Mail redirection - the practical details
- Apply online at royalmail.com/redirection at least 5 working days before you want it to start
- Duration options - 3, 6 or 12 months (renewable up to 4 years total per address)
- Personal vs business - different price tiers, business is more expensive because of higher volumes
- Address proof required - Royal Mail verifies you actually live or operate at the old address before redirecting
- Redirected mail takes 1-2 extra days in transit - factor that into deadlines
When a virtual office makes more sense
For UK businesses, three common scenarios where virtual office beats Royal Mail redirection:
- Companies House registered office - your registered office address is publicly visible. Many directors prefer not to use a home address.
- Professional client-facing address - a London EC1 address signals scale; a residential address doesn't.
- Long-term operational stability - you don't have to renew every 12 months, and the address persists as your business grows.
Virtual office services typically cost £20-40/month for address-only and £40-100/month for full mail handling and scanning.