Shipments Into and Within Europe

Published: September 12, 2026    Legislation and Regulations, Wiki Home

Contents

Statement of Purpose

This page discusses shipments into and within Europe, including the European Union (EU) and Switzerland, Norway, and Iceland as Schengen Area Members. For more general information about shipping natural history collections, see Shipping Natural History Specimens.

Contributors

Dirk Neumann, Jeremy Kisala, Peter Giere, Stephanie Carson, Jacqueline Miller, Benjamin Hess, Breda Zimkus

Disclaimer

Regulations constantly change, so always consult the current versions and contact the relevant authorities for clarification. The information provided below should not be considered comprehensive and may be out of date. It is recommended that shippers confer with colleagues in the destination country since they would be most familiar with the requirements.

Introduction

EU regulations are implemented at the national level, and implementation can vary between member states. Conflicting language between regulations can lead to delays, damages, or losses of material. For some countries, such as Spain, imports aren’t feasible with certain carriers. For Italy, virtually no imports are possible.

Imports from countries outside the EU, UK, and Switzerland that cannot ensure proper animal health measures, or are imported from risk areas, require import permission. Preserved animal materials (i.e., preserved in media such as ethanol or formalin, embedded completely in a microslide, or processed DNA samples) are exempt from regulation EC 1069/2009, which deals with health rules regarding animal by-products and derivatives.

Import Permission

Prior import permission is required for:

  • Food or food by-products imported for analysis
  • Aamples or objects imported for testing or display (e.g., hides, trophies)
  • Any animal material imported for scientific research or diagnosis (e.g., scientific or research samples)

No import permission is required for:

  • DNA and RNA samples isolated from animals
  • Some cell-culture lines, if at least in the second generation from original
  • Ultra-clean proteins and monoclonal antibodies, free of plasma or serum
  • In-vitro diagnostics
  • Fixed material, if treated with either:
    • alcohol/ethanol (96%)
    • formaldehyde (10%)
    • paraformaldehyde (4%)
    • glutaraldehyde (1%)
    • a mixture of 2% paraformaldehyde and 0.1% glutaraldehyde
    • AVL-Buffer, Qiagen

It is essential to explain what you are shipping and why (e.g., morphological, molecular, biodiversity research), reference the pertinent legislation, and include relevant contact details.

Value

As of July 2021, value-added tax (VAT) will be charged on all commercial imports regardless of value. “Commercial value” refers to the price when selling the goods and may be assessed as zero if the goods are not traded. “Declared value” is the value placed upon imported goods for clearance through customs house; this value should ideally range between 1-10 €/U$ but should never be 0. Additions like “no commercial value, not for resale” are recommended.

Shipping Recommendations

As of June 2025, new EU regulation (EU) 2019/880 on the introduction and import of cultural goods entered fully into force. As a result:

  • Avoid sending materials through national postal services and instead use FedEx, US or DHL Express
  • Continue to use HS 9705 and choose the correct subchapters for your materials (check PDF-page 632 in the EU customs codex (EU) No 861/2010)
  • Make sure you have a proper customs declaration attached to the outside of the consignment (no proforma invoices etc.)
  • Add the following statements to your shipping doc templates:

“This package contains dead museum specimens (preserved dried insects; paratypes of xxx xxx; holotype of xxx xxx) for scientific research, which are exclusively exchanged between museums acc. point (5) (b) in the Annex of Commission Regulation (EU) 2020/762 amending (EU) No 142/2011. The material was originally fixed with ethyl acetate and/or has been treated with pure ethanol (> 96 %) for preservation. These specimens are non-infectious, non-contagious, non-venomous and unfit for human consumption. Preservation agrees with requirements for SAFE TREATMENT laid down in Point (8) (a) (d) in the ANNEX to the Commission Regulation (EU) No 294/2013, amending Commission Regulation (EU) No 142/2011, ANNEX XIII, CHAPTER VI. The package does not contain endangered species or listed cultural goods that require an import or export permission acc. to Art. 4 in regulation (EU) No 2019/880. The specimens packed were on loan to the xxx Institute/Museum for biodiversity (morphological / taxonomical) research and are legally owned by the Institute/Museum (Country of Origin: xxx); they are non-infectious, non-contagious, non-venomous, unfit for human consumption, no traded goods, have no commercial value and are not for resale.

HS-Code: 9705 29 00 (Collections of zoological / botanical / mineralogical / paleontological interest, not extinct or endangered, no regulated cultural goods)

Declared value:  1.00 €

These specimens do not contravene the UNESCO 1970 Convention or Art. 4 in regulation (EU) No 2019/880 on the means of prohibiting and preventing the illicit import, export and transfer of Ownership of cultural property.“