Prohibited Items of Interest in Italy

There are some particularly interesting items on the postal restrictions list of many countries across the world, with some more bizarre than others. This week we take a look at some of the prohibited items you might not to expect in preparation for your trips abroad.

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Losing an item to customs can be a real bother, so it’s important to know what you can and can’t take to certain countries. Today we’re focusing on Italy, a hugely popular holiday destination.

There are some notable items present on Italy’s postal restrictions list, whilst some are both puzzling and intriguing. Clocks and any clock supplies cannot be posted to Italy, so be careful when sending an antique clock to Italy as a gift.

There are many other unusual products included, such as any kind of footwear, musical instruments, leather goods and even toys that aren’t completely made from wood. If you’re planning on sending pictures, photographs or albums of images to a relative in Italy, don’t do it by post! All of those items are prohibited and won’t be allowed into the country.

If you are concerned about what can and can’t be sent to Italy, take a look at our shipping restrictions page for Italy to learn more about their restrictions.

Interesting Italian Postal Restrictions

For such a laid back country, you might not expect Italy to have so many restrictions on the items you can send to it. However, on top of the usual items which we hope you wouldn’t dream of sending internationally (illegal substances, weaponry etc.), there are lots of other surprising products on the list that will not be allowed into the country through its postal system.

If you have relatives or friends in Italy and you’re thinking about sending Christmas presents to Italy, you might need to get a bit creative, especially where children are involved. You can’t send toys unless they are made entirely of wood, and you can’t send any type of footwear, along with a wide range of haberdashery and sewn articles. The golden rule, as always, is when it doubt, leave it out.

Perfumed goods apart from soap are also not allowed, and while we’re on the topic of scented items, nutmeg, vanilla and saffron should also be left out of your package. You can’t send clocks or clock parts, artificial flowers, leather goods, playing cards or, bizarrely, ribbons for typewriters. There are many other prohibited items for Italy, so make sure you check an official Italian postal service source before you send anything.