Prohibited items are forbidden and must not be sent.
Restricted items are allowed under certain conditions.

Prohibitions and restrictions vary from country to country and can sometimes apply to items which you may think are ordinary so please check the criteria carefully. 

Please ensure that you follow the below guidelines before sending your items to the United Arab Emirates

• Royal Mail prohibits and restricts certain categories of items, please click here to check that your item is allowed within our network. 
• Each post around the world must follow the Universal Postal Union (UPU) rules applicable to letter post and postal parcels regarding prohibited and restricted items. To identify whether your item is allowed, please visit Article 19 which contains a detailed list of items that are not admitted in the International mail flow here.
• The destination country also set their own rules around which items are prohibited and/or restricted. To check that your item is allowed to be sent to the United Arab Emirates please visit the UPU Country specific list here and scroll down to the United Arab Emirates.
• You can also use the UPU CDS search function here.  

Please note: Specific Country restrictions and changes may be enforced at short notice, so for any clarification please contact the destination country’s trade, postal and customs authorities as appropriate. Royal Mail have no control over UPU and Country specific restrictions regarding prohibited and restricted items and it is your responsibility to check whether your items are allowed.

 
Delivery in the UAE is conditional to strict addressing criteria being met, i.e., a complete and full address including a local mobile number and recipient email. Please note, as there is zero de minimis on VAT, contact with the recipients is generally completed using SMS, phone call or WhatsApp hence a local mobile number is key. Please see the information below around the process for delivery and examples of what is required:

• Full name, including given and family names of the recipient.
• Full address of the recipient, either name of town, building number, street and zone number, or P.O Box number and post office name as applicable followed by 'United Arab Emirates' in both cases.
• Mobile phone number and email address of the recipient.

 
Delivery Process

• Most services go to a post office locally for collection.
• Emirates Post will contact the recipient locally via phone to notify them their parcel has arrived.
• If no local phone number is present, the recipient will not be informed the item has arrived however it will show on local tracking. 
• During the phone call from Emirates Post the recipient can request delivery to their door for a fee of 30 Dirhams

Please note, any non-compliant items may be subject to non-delivery, delay, and return.

You’ll need to apply a customs declaration form to your package. 

If you buy postage online with Click & Drop the label will be generated automatically, and we will also send customs data in advance of your parcel. 

Alternatively, customs declaration labels are available online or in a Post Office® branch. 

• For items with a value up to £270, you will need customs form CN22 (pdf, 394.05 KB). 
• For items with a value over £270, you will need customs form CN23 (pdf, 227.98 KB) and clear plastic wallet SP 126, also available at any Post Office® branch. 

Help with customs and sending items abroad

As of 29 February 2024, the UAE National Advance Information Centre (NAIC) requires 6-digit HS codes on all goods being imported into the United Arab Emirates. Please note, any non-compliant items may be subject to delay and return.