USPS Adjusts Hazardous Material Handling Rules, Compliance Threshold for Cross-Border Small Packages Raised
The United States Postal Service (USPS) has significantly tightened rules for handling hazardous materials. Sellers shipping products containing batteries or liquids must strictly declare and pay additional fees. Non-compliance could result in hefty fines and return risks, prompting sellers to assess switching to commercial carriers like FedEx or UPS.
What are the key facts?
- 1Effective date: July 12, 2026
- 2Restricted items: essential oils, perfumes, hand sanitizers, inks, electronic products with lithium batteries, etc.
- 3Processing fee: $7.5 additional per item
- 4Non-compliance fine: up to $50 per item
What happened?
USPS has classified essential oils, perfumes, electronic products with lithium batteries, etc., as restricted items, requiring senders to pay a processing fee of $7.5 and comply with declarations. Additionally, USPS has raised base shipping rates for small packages and canceled ounce-based pricing for some services, with further price increases expected before the holiday season.
What does this mean for cross-border sellers?
Sellers in home goods, beauty, and electronics should immediately verify SKU compliance, update shipping systems to account for additional fee costs, and consider diversifying logistics channels to avoid delays caused by USPS policy changes.