If you send a parcel via courier to Australia in the future, the price of a thank you note might go up if Australia Post gets its way.

The government-owned postal service has asked the competition watchdog for the right to raise prices for standard letters by 9 per cent to 60c.

Australia Post is requesting the price change for the second time, having failed when it applied to do the same thing last year.

The organisation made a loss of $67m in 2009 and expects letter volumes to fall by 5.8 per cent this financial year and a further 4.3 per cent each year to 2012.