I’m very lucky it was only £14 and not much more but still quite annoyed they didn’t give a reason other than ‘we’ve looked over them and they are invalid.’
Invalid for swap are the special issue/commemoratives. Exception - in the celebrating the nations series, in the miniature sheet there are country definitives and these are among the stamps getting the chop.
E.g.
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I’m getting low on stamps (and don’t have any money to buy new ones at the moment) so I took a chance on some dastardly Universal Mail stamps that I bought a while ago before I realised they were total rubbish.
One got ripped up by something stuck to it, so off that went to the bin and the other one is on a postcard on its way to Austria. Let’s see how long it takes to get there! 
GB-1610984
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For postcrossers posting internationally from the UK, how much does it cost, and what’s the best / cheapest stamp to use please. Is one 1st class large letter stamp suitable to cover the postage costs? Thank you😊
Hello Manon,
Welcome to the forum! 
Please have a look at this post for postage costs: Prices of stamps for postcards in all countries/territories (wiki)
Hope it helps!
Sorry, no. A first class large letter is £1.45. A worldwide postcard is £1.85
I use 2 x first class (normal size) and overpay £0.05, but that is because most commemorative stamps don’t have the £1.85 option.
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Yep!! £1.85 and I also use two 1st class stamps but if you go to www.philatelink.co.uk you can buy discounted stamps. A 1st class costs about 73pence. As they are older commemorative stamps they won’t go out of date (it’s only the small Queen’s head stamps that need barcodes). I’ve been using this stamp seller for about a year now and they are BRILLIANT!!
It’s a bit cheaper so sending multiple cards is a little more affordable. AND… you get some really cool stamps!!! Winner!!!
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I have 2 or 3 of those I bought in the National Gallery unaware of the issues. They are still sitting in my 
I need to stock up on stamps, and am going to philatelink to get them. Philatelink says:
CUSTOMER NOTICE: The older non-barcoded definitive stamps can now be used without surcharge until 31ST JULY 2023. Royal Mail are implementing a six month grace period starting on 1st February 2023.
So, am I understanding correctly that I can just continue to use non-barcoded definitives with no problem until 31st July?
Yes
After 31 January 2023, regular stamps without a barcode will no longer technically be valid for postage. So Royal Mail is encouraging people to use them up before then, or swap them for the new barcoded ones.
However, the good news is that after that date, for the first six months, mail posted with the “retired” stamps will be delivered as normal. “After this six-month grace period, an item with a non-barcoded stamp would be treated as if there is insufficient postage. Any item that has insufficient postage is subject to a surcharge.
Article from The Guardian
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@elmani although be mindful that Special Handstamp teams will no longer accept Non-Barcoded definitives.
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Was re-reading the Norvic Philatelics Blog and discovered they created a list of what is no longer valid and what is safe
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There is an update on the Norvic Philatelics Blog…
On the other hand the Royal Mail Special Handstamp Centres will not accept items for postmarking with a date after 31 January which have non-barcoded definitives on.
UPDATE 31 January. As the official validity date of non-barcode Machin and Country Definitives is now the 31st July 2023, we can confirm that these stamps will continue to be accepted by our Special Handstamp Centres until that date.
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Commonwealth Stamps Opinion has released pictures of 5 of the X-Men stamps due to be released on the 16th of February.
I don’t really know the X-Men characters so I don’t know if these are a good selection of designs. I like that there’s lots of 2nd Class designs though, that doesn’t happen very often!
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Here we go again… another day of strike action at Royal Mail.
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Oh wow, all 1st and 2nd class and only one £1.85. I’m going to be buying a lot of make up value stamps 
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Strikes “postponed” due to court action… But expect more dates if talks fail.
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RM announcement tomorrow concerning definitives. I guess they will not be Machins.
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