Principal prohibited items

Mail items must be securely packaged so that other mail cannot get lost in it. Packaging must be adapted to the form, content, and transport conditions.
La Poste prohibits mail with unsanitary, dangerous, or banned content.
For air traffic safety reasons, certain commonly used items such as aerosol products and perfumes are banned from air transport.

Various types of prohibitions apply to items sent by La Poste: universal bans (see below), country-specific bans (which stem from national import regulations), and bans enforced by national postal operators (applying to merchandise that is legally authorised for import but banned by postal regulations).
A partial list of these items is included in the “Prohibited items” section of the country database.
The sender is held responsible for noncompliant mail even if La Poste accepts it. The items listed below are prohibited regardless of the chosen destination. La Poste is not responsible for misinformation or omissions as this list of merchandise is subject to great variation.

• Perishable biological materials, infectious or non-infectious
• Items that due to their nature or packaging are hazardous to postal workers or may soil or damage other mail or postal facilities
• Illegal drugs and psychotropic substances
• Live animals; however, bees, leeches, and silkworms may, under strict packaging conditions, be sent from France by La Poste if they are authorised by the postal regulations of the country of destination
• Obscene or immoral items
• Counterfeit goods
• Explosives, inflammable products (alcohol, perfume, etc.) or other dangerous materials such as compressed gas (aerosol products, etc.), radioactive materials, and corrosive liquids
• Jewels, precious metals, banknotes, bearer securities, money, and other items of value (unless they are sent by registered mail with declared value).

Sales carried out through a “snowball” procedure, or any other similar process consisting in offering merchandise to the public by suggesting the prospect of receiving products either for free or in exchange for a sum that is inferior to their real value. These sales require the presentation of vouchers or tickets to third parties, membership, or subscriptions.

Senders are held fully responsible for imprecise customs declarations and failure to respect any customs bans or restrictions. They are thus urged to seek information from relevant organisations (Chambers of Commerce and Industry, embassies, consulates, foreign country trade missions in France).