Prohibited and Restricted Items
Last updated: 30 July 2026
Prohibited and Restricted Items
International express services carry restrictions that apply to every shipment. Some items cannot be sent at all. Others can travel, but only on particular services, with the correct declarations, packaging and documentation.
The lists below are a guide, not a complete legal list. Each courier publishes its own prohibited and restricted items list, and every destination country applies its own import rules. Both take precedence over this page.
Generally prohibited
- Cash, bank notes, bullion and negotiable instruments in bearer form
- Illegal drugs and narcotics
- Weapons, ammunition, explosives and their component parts
- Counterfeit or pirated goods
- Human and animal remains
- Live animals
- Pornographic material and any item that is illegal in the origin or destination country
Restricted — individual review required
- Lithium batteries, whether loose, packed with equipment or contained in equipment
- Liquids, aerosols, paints, perfumes and alcohol
- Flammable, corrosive, toxic or otherwise classified dangerous goods
- Medicines, medical devices, supplements and cosmetics
- Foodstuffs, plants, seeds and agricultural products
- Tobacco, e-cigarettes and vaping products
- Jewellery, watches, precious metals and precious stones
- Mobile phones, laptops, power banks and other battery-powered electronics
- Branded goods requiring proof of authenticity or authorisation
- Artwork, antiques and other high-value or fragile items
Batteries and liquids
Lithium batteries and liquids are the two most common reasons a shipment is held. The quote form asks about both. Please answer accurately: whether an item can travel depends on the battery type, its watt-hours, whether it is loose or inside equipment, and the service being used.
What happens if a shipment contains something it should not
Couriers and customs authorities may refuse, hold, return, seize or dispose of shipments containing prohibited items. Any charges arising, including return, storage and disposal costs, are the sender’s responsibility, and the shipment may not be covered for loss or damage.
If you are not sure
Describe the contents in the shipping quote form, including anything unusual, and the shipment can be reviewed before anything is booked. It is always quicker to check first than to have a shipment stopped in transit.
Company details
This website is operated by RTCB INTERNATIONAL LTD, a company registered in England and Wales under company number 16101290, trading as APL Shippers. Registered office: 128 City Road, London, United Kingdom, EC1V 2NX.
Questions about this policy can be raised through the shipping quote form, noting the page it relates to.