News
24 November 2003
Prior notice of shipment required for shipments of food to US
The Assistant Postmaster General (Postal), Mr. Y. F. CHAN, announced today that as advised by the United States Postal Service, due to new regulations issued by the Food and Drug Administration under the Public Health Security and Bioterrorism Preparedness and Response Act of 2002, effective 12 December 2003, all shipments of articles of food to the United States must be preceded by Prior Notice of shipment. This includes articles shipped for commercial purposes or as gifts. Articles of food include (but are not limited to): food for man or animals, dietary supplements, nutritional supplements, vitamins, food and colour additives. Articles of food which are non-commercially prepared by an individual in his own residence and sent to another individual as a (non-commercial) gift are exempt from submission of Prior Notice.
Prior Notice can be submitted, and a Prior Notice Confirmation Number obtained via the Internet at: https://www.access.fda.gov/index.html#prior
Customers wishing to mail articles of food to the United States are advised to observe the above requirement and ensure that the respective Prior Notice Confirmation Number is entered on the customs declaration. Any mail items containing articles of food for which a Prior Notice Confirmation is not entered on the customs declaration may be returned to sender, or (if no return address is included) destroyed by the US Postal Service.
For information on what must be submitted in a Prior Notice, customers can visit the FDA website at: http://www.cfsan.fda.gov/~dms/fsbtac13.html