How to calculate how much time I have to send a letter?

How to calculate how much time I have to send a letter?

Usually, there is a time limit in advance for you to send a letter disagreeing with the decision in your case (e.g. an appeal). This is usually 7 or 14 days.  Generally, if you send your letter after this period, it will not be dealt with and your case will be regarded as closed. In order to accurately determine when the last day to send a letter is, you must know with 100% certainty when you were served with the letter.

The letter may have been handed to you at the Office (if you have signed for it) or it may have been delivered by post – in that case the day on which you collected it from the office clerk, postman or at the post office counter is the actual day of delivery. However, sometimes the postman leaves the letter with another adult who lives with you, then the day they collect the letter is the day of delivery. 

Once we know the exact day of delivery and the length of the period (7 or 14 days or some other period) we can go further: add this number of days to the day of collection but start counting from the day after collection. In other words, if you received the letter on Wednesday 2 March and you have a 14 day deadline to send your appeal, you skip that first Wednesday and count 14 days from 3 March. Then the last day is Wednesday 16 March and you have until this day inclusive to send your letter either at the post office or at the delivery office (remember to request a confirmation of posting). Do not worry about holidays – they are counted just like any other with one exception: if it turns out that your last day for sending a letter is a Saturday, Sunday or a holiday, you can still send the letter on the first working day afterwards. Obviously this makes sense – you cannot be expected to send a letter on a day when most post offices are closed.