Prohibited Shipping Items
Welcome to SFL Worldwide’s Resource page – an informative guide for shipping basics, processes, documentation, prohibited items, and more.
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Not sure if you can ship something internationally? There are some items we cannot legally ship due to customs laws and delivery carrier or airline restrictions. Banned items can vary depending on which country you’re shipping the items to but in general you cannot ship the following internationally from the USA.
Make sure your cargo follows the TSA, Customs and FMC regulations. Adhering to the TSA and customs guideline is critical for any shipping, so make sure your cargo doesn’t contain any of the items that are strictly prohibited, as detailed below.
- Prescription medications, including dental & veterinary
- Prescription medical devices
- Medical devices not FDA-approved
- Prohormones, Human Growth Hormones, stem cell treatments, steroids or synthetic versions
- The following items that are not labeled in English, or without FDA-approved labeling requirements:
- Non-prescription medications
- Dietary supplements
- Cosmetics
- Food
- Any food, supplement, drug or cosmetic that has been issued a Consumer Safety Advisory Warning
- Perishable products of any kind
- Lab reagents, biologics, cultures, medical specimens
- Poisonous substances
- Toxic substances, including inhalation hazards
- Infectious substances
- Explosives, fireworks, gun powder, flares or matches
- Gasoline, diesel or other fuels
- Lighters containing fuel
- Meals Ready to Eat (MRE)
- Pesticides, herbicides, fungicides
- Radioactive elements or products
- Self-balancing boards (hoverboards)
- Damaged batteries
- Any dual-use or commercial article controlled under the Commerce Control List (CCL) as defined under the Export Administration Regulations, where the control status requires a Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) approved export license
- Counterfeit products
- Contraband or illegal substances
- Lottery tickets
- Gambling devices & accessories
- Lock picking devices
- Rough diamonds
- Live or dead animals or insects
- Human remains
- Coral
- Brazilian rosewood
- Skin or leather of snakes, alligators, crocodiles, stingrays, and other reptiles or amphibians
- Skin, fur or leather of nearly all animals, but especially wolves, bears, elephants, rhinos and certain deer and foxes
- Sturgeon or Beluga caviar
- Agricultural products, including certain seeds, live or dead plants, unfinished or untreated wood & soil
- Items containing animal products controlled under the Endangered Species Act, Marine Mammal Protection Act, or requiring a permit under CITES
- Any unidentifiable material, substance or chemical
- Oxidizing agents
- Fire extinguishers
- Firearms, guns & accessories, including replicas
- BB/pellet/airsoft/paintball guns, parts and projectiles
- Ammunition, magazines & bayonets
- Stun guns & tasers
- Tear gas, mace & pepper spray
- Gas masks & gas mask filters
- Law enforcement striking weapons, including saps, batons & billy clubs
- Handcuffs of any material, including plastic zip tie restraints & straitjackets
- Body armor, helmets or personal protection articles with kevlar or ballistic ratings
- Military/tactical/police shields
- Government, police or military uniforms, IDs and Badges (real or replica)
- Military training equipment
- Military and/or dual-use flight helmets and flight jumpsuits
- Military and law enforcement equipment
- Thermal imaging, InfraRed or other night vision devices
- Rifle scopes, laser pointing & aiming devices for firearms
- Defense articles controlled under the US Munitions List as defined under the International Traffic in Arms Regulations
- Self-propelled vehicles
If you are not sure about an item, please contact our offices at 972-255-7447 or Click Here to confirm. It is the customer’s responsibility to make sure they ask our representative before booking a shipment. If an item in the shipment is confiscated by our office or by Indian Customs because it is a prohibited item then, SFL Worldwide does not take any liability or be held at fault. Additional charges will be applied to dispose or return shipment to origin.
The information contained on this website is only exemplary. It is not a substitute for consulting with the export regulations of the United States and the import regulations into the destination country. We constantly update this list owing to the ever-changing nature of customs regulations and guidelines. An item/article not on this list can be considered prohibited.
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