A method and a device for generating postal items with: a linearly formed first feed channel for feeding first documents of a postal item, with a first transport device, which transports the first documents in a first transport direction along a first straight transport line; an identification device for identifying the first documents; a second feed channel for feeding second documents of a postal item; an identification device for identifying the second documents; a collecting channel arranged downstream of the first feed channel and downstream of the second feed channel, for receiving first documents or groups of first documents from the first feed channel and/or of second documents or groups of second documents from the second feed channel, wherein the documents received in the collecting channel are collected as document group, wherein each document group forms the content of a postal item; and an envelope stuffing device arranged downstream of the collecting channel, in which the document groups coming from the collecting channel are inserted into an envelope. To achieve a higher throughput of postal items generated, the second transport device deflects the second documents, without stopping the documents, from a second transport direction along a second straight transport line into a third transport direction along a third straight transport line.