There are some items you're not able to ship with UPS—no exceptions!
UPS List of Prohibited Items
The items that UPS prohibits includes but isn't limited to:
Shipments prohibited by law
Bank bills, notes or currency
Common fireworks
Hazardous waste or hazardous waste service
Human remains, fetal remains, human body parts, human embryos, or components thereof
Ivory
Marijuana, including marijuana intended for medicinal use
Postage stamps
Shark fins
Tobacco
Vape products within, to, or from the U.S.
UPS also prohibits:
Goods moving under ATA Carnet and all temporary exports and imports; goods moving under FCR, FCT and CAD (Cash Against Document); shipments with inherent vice, which by their nature are likely to soil, impair or damage persons, merchandise, or equipment; goods, the carriage of which is prohibited by law in the country of origin, transit, or destination (such as ivory); goods which attract excise duty, or which require special facilities, safety precautions or permits.
To learn more about what UPS prohibits, visit the UPS website.
Items Prohibited with UPS on Pirate Ship
Due to our contract with UPS, there are also a number of items that you can't use Pirate Ship to purchase labels for. These are items you technically can send with UPS outside of our contract with them, but doing so on Pirate Ship may get your account restricted 🙈
The items that fall into that category are as follows:
Aerosols
Alcohol, including beer, wine, and spirits
Ammo/ammunition
Compressed or Decompressed Oxygen
Dry Ice*
Guns or firearms of any kind & any firearm parts/accessories besides a scope (see the UPS website for additional details)
Hemp & CBD products
Isopropyl alcohol
Live animals
Perfume
Plants
Prescription drugs
Uranium Ore
If you need to send one of the above items, we recommend creating an account with UPS and contacting them in regards to any special handling your shipment may require 👍
*Shipping Dry Ice with UPS
Dry ice is okay to send with UPS on Pirate Ship only for domestic shipments in the following situations:
UPS Ground: there are no regulations, but the package must be under 150 lbs
Air shipments (non-medical) can only contain up to 5.5 lbs of dry ice, and packages must be marked with the following info on the outside of the box:
The words “Dry Ice” or “Carbon Dioxide, Solid”
The weight of the dry ice
What is being cooled (ex. Seaweed, Ice Cream, Food)
Air shipments (medical) can only contain up to 5.5 lbs of dry ice, and packages must be marked with the following info on the outside of the box:
The words “Dry Ice” or “Carbon Dioxide, Solid”
A medical statement (for example, “For medical purposes” or “For diagnostic purposes”)
The net weight of the dry ice
Any questions? Click the blue button to chat with our Support Crew - we're happy to lend a hook any way we can!