Colourful envelope with stamps to post to Norway today.

Today's offering is a large and very colourful envelope which is all ready to be dispatched off to Norway by registered mail from Cyprus.

We always try to use stamps to the value of the cost of the registered item rather than just sticking the barcode on it from the post office.

This way, our Cyprus Stamps collectors also get a selection of Used Cyprus stamps too!

This envelope has a full sheet of €0.22c Cyprus Red Cross stamps (issued January 2013), Cyprus 2012 Europa stamp ("Visit....."), Cyprus' silver medal winner from the 2012 Olympics (Pavlos Kontides) plus a few others and of course, the obligatory Cyprus Refugee stamp.

I hope you enjoy looking and I hope the recipient is pleased with it too!

Cyprus 2013 Refugee Tax Fund stamp

Did I forget to show you the new Cyprus Refugee Stamp issued on 30 January 2013?

Ooops!

Well, here it is:

It looks a little similar to the 2010 issue but when you get them side by side, the colours are actually quite different.

2013 Cyprus Refugee Tax Fund stamp

2010 Cyprus Refugee Tax Fund stamp

You can find a full range of Cyprus Refugee stamps issued between 1974 to present date on Cyprus Stamps website.

Cyprus stamps 2013 issues list - a small delay

Usually around this time of year we're eagerly awaiting the list of Cyprus stamps issues from the Philatelic Department but at the moment, it seems there isn't one - just yet.....

I checked my dates at the weekend and my records indicate we published the preliminary list of stamp issues for Cyprus in 2012 in the early part of February, just after the January 2012 stamp release.

However, after a phone call to the postal services office yesterday it seems nothing is forthcoming in the immediate future.

"Why is this?" I hear you all screaming at this point.....

Well, if you recall back to November 2011 we were promised there was to be a release of the Definitive stamps of Cyprus around the same time as the Christmas stamp issue - but it never happened.

Neither did it happen at the end of 2012 either :-(

Hmmmmm, so what is afoot we ask ourselves?

All kinds of thought were going around in our heads but there is a perfectly simple explanation....

Did you get it yet?

Yep, the price of mail in Cyprus will be increased sooner or later which means the price of Cyprus postage stamps will be on the up. At the moment, it appears the Government/Postal Services departments have not yet figured out what the new prices are going to be - so watch this space....

And, remember where you heard it first!

P.S. Don't forget the new Cyprus stamp issues will be released on 30 January 2013 and we're wondering what the new reprint of the Cyprus Refugee Fund stamp will look like. 
Will it be the same but a different colour again as in the past?

2012 Cyprus Refugee Fund stamp

2011 Cyprus Refugee Fund stamp

2010 Cyprus Refugee Fund stamp

Further examples of the Cyprus Refugee Fund stamps from previous years can be found on our website.