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What We Do Not Ship
Most cargo moves without any of this mattering. But some goods we won't touch at any price, some we will move only at a separate price, and some we can only accept once a permit is in hand. Military and security items, camouflage clothing included, sit firmly in the first group. Here is the list. Ask us before you book rather than after.
There are three different answers hiding behind "can you ship this?", and they are worth keeping apart. One is never. One is yes, but not at the published rate. One is yes, once you have the paperwork.
1. Never, on any service, at any price
We won't accept these, and no rate exists for them:
- Military and security items of every kind, including camouflage clothing, uniform and handheld radios. Read the full list below
- Narcotics and controlled substances of any kind
- Counterfeit goods and anything infringing a trademark or copyright
- Wildlife products, including ivory, horn, skins and anything covered by CITES
- Currency, bearer instruments, bullion, loose precious stones
- Human remains or body parts
- Pornographic material
- Goods subject to international sanctions, or destined for a sanctioned party
- Anything you are unwilling to describe accurately on the invoice and packing list
South Sudan's import licensing framework, including the treatment of restricted goods, sits under the Imports and Exports Act. Where a category is prohibited by law we have no discretion, and asking us to move it anyway will end the conversation.
Military and security items
This is the hardest no on the page and the only one where we would rather lose the customer than find a way through. It reaches a good deal further than weapons:
- Weapons of any type, ammunition, magazines, gun parts and spent cartridge cases
- Explosives, detonators, percussion caps, signalling flares and blasting accessories
- Camouflage clothing and camouflage fabric in any pattern, including fashion, workwear and children's versions
- Military, police and security service uniform, or any part of one: boots, webbing, load bearing vests, berets, rank slides, insignia, patches and badges
- Body armour, ballistic plates and ballistic helmets
- Handheld two way radios and walkie talkies, repeaters, scanners, signal jammers and encrypted radio sets
- Night vision, thermal imaging, laser sights, rifle scopes and range finders
- Handcuffs, restraints, batons, riot shields, teargas and pepper spray
- Drones, armoured vehicles and parts for armoured vehicles
- Replica, deactivated, airsoft, paintball and toy versions of anything above
The replica rule is not us being difficult. The restricted list that governs the Kenyan side of the journey reaches gun parts made of base metal or of plastics, telescopic sights presented on their own rather than with the firearm they belong to, and articles bearing the coat of arms of a member state. An officer opening a carton is reading the shape of the thing, not your invoice.
Camouflage is treated as a security item in South Sudan rather than as cloth. It does not become ordinary clothing because it was bought in a boutique, because it is a jacket rather than a uniform, or because it is sized for a child. That is our policy rather than our reading of the law, and we will not test the distinction with your cargo in the middle of it. If you need the legal position on a specific product, put the question to the authority, not to us.
What happens if we find it
Where a carton does not match its description by weight, shape or feel, we open it. If military or security items turn up in a consignment we are already carrying:
- The consignment stops moving, wherever it has got to.
- We report it to the authorities immediately. We do not call you first, and we do not quietly hand it back.
- The goods are surrendered. They are not returned, not forwarded and not refunded.
- We stop working with the shipper.
What follows is for the authorities and the courts rather than for us, and it is worth knowing what that looks like. Under South Sudan's Customs Service Act, prohibited and restricted goods are forfeited to customs once condemned, forfeited arms, ammunition and explosives are delivered to the nearest army depot, and importing prohibited or restricted goods carries up to seven years imprisonment, a fine, or both.
The part that should concern everyone else in the container. Forfeiture under that Act does not necessarily stop at the offending carton. It can extend to the package, the container and the vehicle carrying it, along with goods inside them. One person hiding uniforms in a groupage load is gambling with cargo belonging to people who have never met them. That is why this section is written the way it is.
Radio equipment, and where the line actually sits
We do move telecoms and network equipment, including base station radios, remote radio units and microwave links, and we handle type approval as part of that work. The difference is not the technology. It is that the operator holds a licence, the frequencies are authorised, the equipment is declared and the installation site is known. Handheld sets moving to an unnamed recipient are a different proposition, and we refuse them.
Live animals
We carry veterinary medicines, vaccines and animal health supplies, and we are glad to. See the veterinary page. We do not carry the animals themselves. Live animal movement is a specialism with its own welfare rules, permits and inspection regime, and doing it occasionally and badly is worse than not doing it.
2. Not at the published rates, quoted separately
We may well be able to move these. They sit outside the published tariff, because they need different handling, different packing, different documentation or a different vehicle:
| Category | Why it is priced separately |
|---|---|
| Dangerous goods of any IATA or IMDG class | Declaration, packing and handling requirements |
| Lithium batteries, including batteries built into equipment | Regulated for transport even inside ordinary products |
| Chemicals, aerosols, flammables, paints, pressurised items | Classified as dangerous goods |
| Pharmaceuticals and temperature controlled cargo | Cold chain and sector approvals |
| Perishables | Cold chain, and transit risk |
| Vehicles, motorcycles and heavy plant | Different equipment and different clearance |
| Oversized, abnormal and project cargo | Lowbeds, cranes, route permits |
| High value and branded goods | Security, and proof of authorisation |
Batteries are the one that catches people out. A consignment of cordless tools, phones, power banks, laptops or solar equipment is a lithium battery shipment, whatever the invoice calls it. Tell us, and we will handle it properly. Don't tell us, and a shared load can be offloaded with your cargo in it.
3. Yes, once the permission is in hand
These move on normal service, but only after the right approval exists. We cannot accept them on the promise that the paperwork will follow:
- Medicines, medical devices and diagnostics, regulated under the Drug and Food Control Authority Act . We move these regularly and handle the compliance: see medicine and medical equipment
- Food, beverages and consumables, which carry food control requirements and conformity certification where in scope
- Agricultural products, seeds and plant material, needing phytosanitary and fumigation certificates
- Electrical and electronic goods, needing safety and conformity certification
- Anything within the scope of South Sudan's pre-export verification of conformity programme. The Certificate of Conformity is obtained in the country of export, before shipment, and cannot be arranged afterwards.
Certificate of Conformity explained · South Sudan import documents
Why we are strict about this
It isn't caution for its own sake. On this corridor, three things make a misdeclared consignment everyone's problem:
Groupage is shared. Your cargo travels with other people's. An undeclared aerosol or a hidden battery doesn't just put your shipment at risk. It puts the whole load at risk, and the other consignees have no way to protect themselves from it.
Transit cargo moves under bond. A consignment that doesn't match its declaration can put the transit bond at risk, and an undischarged bond is a live liability long after the goods have been delivered.
A DDP rate depends on the goods being what the paperwork says. On our China to Juba service we pay the duty ourselves, assessed on the goods as declared. A misdescription breaks that price and the consignment with it.
None of this is about catching you out. It is about the fact that the cheapest moment to solve a cargo problem is before the cargo moves.
If you're not sure, ask
Describe what you are shipping: the material, what it does, and whether it contains a battery, a liquid, a powder or an aerosol. We will tell you which of the three answers above applies, and if it is the second or third, what it will take.
A clear description costs you nothing. A wrong one costs you the shipment.
Get a quotation
Tell us what you are shipping
Send us the cargo description, weight or volume, and the pickup and delivery addresses. We reply with a written rate, the transit time and the documents you will need.
Questions
Frequently asked questions
Can you ship laptops, phones or power banks?
These contain lithium batteries, which are regulated for transport even when they are built into an ordinary product. We can often move them, but not at the published rates. They are quoted separately and must be declared. Tell us what the items are and we will price it.
Can you ship medicines or food?
Yes, once the right approvals are in place. Medicines, medical devices and food are regulated at destination and the permissions have to exist before the goods move, not after they arrive. Start that process at the same time as you place the order.
What happens if I do not declare something?
At best the consignment is held and reclassified at your cost. At worst a shared load is offloaded, a transit bond is put at risk, or a misdeclaration becomes a customs offence rather than a commercial dispute. There is no version of this that is cheaper than telling us up front.
Can you carry camouflage clothing if it is just fashion or workwear?
No. We do not carry camouflage clothing or camouflage fabric in any pattern, for any buyer, at any price, and that includes fashion items, workwear and children's sizes. In South Sudan camouflage is treated as a security item rather than as cloth, and the distinction between a boutique jacket and a uniform is not one we are willing to argue at a border with a loaded truck behind us.
What about a two way radio or walkie talkie for my farm, shop or guards?
We refuse handheld radio sets. It is a flat policy and it is not about the price of the item. We do move licensed network equipment, including base station radios and microwave links, where the operator holds a licence, the frequencies are authorised and the site is known, and we handle type approval as part of that work. Handheld sets going to a private recipient are a different thing entirely.
What happens if military items are found in my consignment?
The consignment stops moving, we report it to the authorities immediately, and the goods are surrendered rather than returned or forwarded. There is no refund and we stop working with the shipper. What happens to the goods after that is decided by the authorities, not by us. Under South Sudan's Customs Service Act, prohibited and restricted goods are forfeited once condemned and importing them carries up to seven years imprisonment, a fine, or both. Forfeiture can also extend beyond the offending carton to the container and the vehicle, which is why a shared load makes this everyone's problem.
My supplier says it is fine to ship. Is it?
Suppliers are describing what is normal in their own market, not what South Sudan or the carriers allow. Send us the product details and we will check it against the requirements that actually apply to your shipment.