How a Tracked Item Moves Through the Post
Each Pakistan Post update shows the item moving from one place to another, such as a sorting office, a mail van or the postman’s round. Private couriers often scan parcels many times. The post office mostly records when an item passes from one office to the next.
Knowing what each status means tells you if your item is still travelling, waiting to be sorted or out with your postman.
Comprehensive Milestone Directory
Item Booked
Booking PhaseThe item was taken in at a post office counter, weighed and paid for, and entered into the computer. It got a barcode label. It is now at the booking post office, waiting to be put in a mail bag.
Item Bagged / Bag Despatched
Sorting PhaseYour item has been put in a sealed mail bag with other items going the same way. The bag has been scanned and sent from the first office towards a sorting centre or a Railway Mail Service (RMS) point.
In Transit / RMS
Transit PhaseThe mail bag is travelling between cities by post office van, road transport or Railway Mail Service train. Items are not scanned on the way. The next scan comes when the bag reaches the next sorting office.
Received at Destination Office
Destination ArrivalThe mail bag has reached the GPO or post office that delivers to your area. The bag has been opened and your item scanned in, ready to be sorted for the postman’s round.
Sent to Delivery / Out for Delivery
Final MileYour item is with the postman who covers your address. The postman will try to deliver it on their round that working day.
Delivered / Handed Over
CompletedThe item was handed to you or someone at your address. For registered mail and UMS, someone signed the postman’s delivery slip. This is the last step.
Intimation Slip / Notice Left
Action RequiredThe postman tried to deliver but nobody was in, the place was closed, or money was due (such as customs duty or a COD amount). The postman left a paper notice asking you to collect the item from your local post office.
Returned to Sender and Collecting at the Counter
Sometimes the status shows that an item is going back to the sender, or is waiting at the post office for you to collect:
Returned to Sender (RTO)
If an item cannot be delivered, for example because the address is wrong or incomplete, it was refused, or nobody collected it after a notice, it is sent back. It goes back to the post office where it was booked and returned to the sender, who may have to pay return postage.
Pakistan Post's own official FAQ says that an item with an incomplete or wrong address is kept at the Returned Letter Office for seven days before it goes back to the sender. “RTO” is our own short name for this, not a Pakistan Post term.
Window Delivery Collection
Heavy parcels, valuable insured items and items with customs duty are often kept at the post office instead of going out with the postman. The postman leaves a notice, and you collect the item at the GPO counter with the notice and your ID.
This service is described in Pakistan Post’s official FAQ, which says counter delivery is free in areas without post boxes for people who ask for it in writing.
What to Do If You Get a Notice or a Failed Delivery
If tracking says a notice was left, or delivery failed, do not just wait for another try. Check with your local post office.
Go to the post office named on the notice. Take your CNIC and the tracking number. The staff will find your item and hand it over after checking your ID.