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Shipping to Tanzania: what is not allowed

Tanzania follows East African customs law, so gifts are dutiable and there is no duty-free threshold. Plastic carrier bags of any thickness have been banned on the mainland since 2019.

Not accepted for Tanzania

  • Plastic carrier and packing bags of any thickness (mainland)
  • Soaps and cosmetics containing mercury
  • Counterfeit goods, narcotics and pornography
  • Seditious material and tear gas
  • Matches made with white phosphorus

Allowed, with conditions

  • Medicines and medical devices — TMDA import permit
  • Plants, live animals and ivory — permits

Duty 0–35% under the EAC tariff (medicines 0%), VAT 18% on the mainland and 15% in Zanzibar, a 2% railway development levy and 0.6% customs processing fee.

No duty-free threshold for parcels. Clearance goes through a licensed agent on TANCIS; the recipient pays before release.

Quick answers: shipping from India to Tanzania

What can I not send from India to Tanzania?

Tanzania does not accept: plastic carrier and packing bags of any thickness (mainland); soaps and cosmetics containing mercury; counterfeit goods, narcotics and pornography; seditious material and tear gas; matches made with white phosphorus. On every route, we also cannot carry anything with a battery, mobile phones and laptops, real gold, silver or diamond jewellery, or anything flammable or pressurised such as perfume, aerosols and nail polish.

Can I send medicines from India to Tanzania?

Yes, within limits: medicines and medical devices — TMDA import permit. Controlled and psychotropic medicines need clearance first, so ask us before you order them.

How long does a parcel from India to Tanzania take?

Normal transit on this route is 4 to 6 business days from our warehouse in Kerala.

Will I pay customs duty or tax in Tanzania?

Duty 0–35% under the EAC tariff (medicines 0%), VAT 18% on the mainland and 15% in Zanzibar, a 2% railway development levy and 0.6% customs processing fee. No duty-free threshold for parcels. Clearance goes through a licensed agent on TANCIS; the recipient pays before release.

Never accepted, wherever you are

These are refused by the airlines, by Indian export rules or by us, so they cannot leave our warehouse for any destination.

Prohibited, restricted and dangerous goods, in one line each. Prohibited means it cannot be sent at all. Restricted means it can travel, but only under conditions your country sets, such as a personal quantity, a prescription or a declaration; those are listed under each destination. Dangerous goods are what airlines treat as a hazard on board: anything flammable, corrosive or pressurised. We also cannot ship anything with a battery, or anything that burns, such as agarbatti and camphor.

  • Cash, currency, cheques, bullion, and loose precious stones
  • Narcotics, illegal drugs, and psychotropic substances
  • Firearms, ammunition, explosives, fireworks, and weapons (including replicas)
  • Anything with a battery, including power banks, battery-operated toys and watches
  • Mobile phones and laptops
  • Real gold, silver and diamond jewellery
  • Flammable, corrosive, or pressurised goods — perfumes/deodorant sprays, aerosols, nail polish and remover, paints, thinners, fuel, gas cylinders, lighters, and matches
  • Anything that burns: agarbatti (incense sticks), dhoop, camphor, sambrani and candles
  • Live animals, plants, seeds, soil, and products of endangered species (CITES)
  • Pornographic, obscene, or seditious material
  • Counterfeit goods and pirated media
  • Human remains, biological samples, and infectious substances
  • Radioactive and toxic substances

Medicines and supplements are the one thing to check before you order. They are not banned — almost every destination lets a personal quantity through in its original packaging with a copy of the prescription. What changes from country to country is how much counts as personal, whose name the prescription has to be in, and which ingredients need clearance from that country's health authority first.

The rule for Tanzania is under Allowed, with conditions above. Controlled and psychotropic medicines are a separate case: several countries want their own health authority to clear the parcel first, so check with us before you order rather than after it arrives with us.

If you are not sure about something, ask on WhatsApp before you order it.

The same list, talked through

Three and a half minutes on what cannot leave India, what your own country will not let in, and the things that travel perfectly well once the paperwork is right.

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