On July 11, 2025, China Post announced at a press conference that it would solicit from the public the designs of the zodiac stamps entitled Bingwu Year for 2026, the Year of the Horse. This is the first time since it began issuing zodiac stamps in 1980 that China Post has broken professional restrictions and invited the general public to submit zodiac stamp designs, indicating a historic breakthrough in the design approach of zodiac stamps.

Zodiac stamps are special stamps China Post issues every January to reflect Chinese zodiac culture. The special stamps Bingwu Year to be issued in 2026 are zodiac Horse stamps in the fourth cycle of special stamps showcasing the 12 zodiac animals. Since the debut of the 1980 Gengshen Year stamp (also known as the Golden Monkey), the zodiac stamps have been issued for 46 consecutive years, and become one of the most socially anticipated and iconic stamp themes in the history of Chinese stamps. The event of soliciting Bingwu Year zodiac stamp designs is conducted based on the principle of “public participation and open sharing”, and has genuinely broken through the barrier to public participation in stamp design.

The upcoming Bingwu Year stamps consist of a set of two pieces. The design requirements are as follows: The first stamp should feature the image of a single horse against a colored background, and embody auspicious meanings such as perseverance, courage, enterprise and relentless self-improvement. The second stamp should feature the image of two or more horses against a white background, and convey positive implications such as unity, harmony, loyalty, fraternity, freedom and prosperity. During the solicitation period, contributors can submit their designs by logging onto the official website of China Post’s postal services (https://mall.11185.cn/portal/#/index) or by scanning the QR code on the designated mobile app. China Post will officially unveil the final stamp designs to the public in mid-to-late October.