Consult Mail Services on Shipping Hazardous Materials

Mail Services is not equipped to provide shipping services for hazardous (chemical, biological, or radioactive) materials. Please contact the Environment, Health and Safety (EHS) Office at 617-452-3477 or submit a request through environment@mit.edu if you need to ship a hazardous material or are planning to send research material to another country.

The governments of the United States and other nations have stringent requirements for shipping biological, chemical, and radioactive materials. Governments consider many research materials dangerous to transport and classify them as hazardous materials for shipping purposes. In addition, materials not considered hazardous in the U.S., such as recombinant DNA, may be classified as hazardous in other countries.

Packaging and paperwork requirements for shipping hazardous materials are not optional. The Institute is liable for all costs, plus fines of up to $25,000 per day, if materials are shipped without meeting Department of Transportation or Environmental Protection Agency requirements. In addition, individual researchers and shippers also are subject to fines.

For more information on determining whether your shipment is considered hazardous material or requires further review for an international destination, please contact the EHS Office. If the EHS Office determines that your shipment is not considered hazardous material or does not require special paperwork to be filed with a foreign state, then you may proceed to ship your materials through the Mail Services offices at Buildings E19 or 32 (Stata Center).