What you can and cannot send from Nigeria to the UK

We publish this because getting it wrong is expensive and nobody else on this route sets it out properly. If an item on your list is a problem, we would far rather tell you before you pay us than have your cargo destroyed at the border.

Banned Do not send these

• Meat and meat products

  Includes: suya, kilishi, ponmo, dried meat, meat pies, sausage rolls

  Banned from every country outside the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland, Liechtenstein, the Faroe Islands and Greenland. There is no personal allowance. This is the single most common reason cargo from Nigeria is seized.

• Milk and milk-based products

  Includes: powdered milk, yoghurt drinks, cheese

  Banned, with one narrow exception: powdered infant milk, infant food and special food needed for medical reasons, up to 2kg per person, unrefrigerated and in branded unopened packaging.

• Most fresh fruit and vegetables

  Includes: fresh yam, fresh pepper, ugu, bitter leaf, okra, fresh tomatoes

  Cannot be brought in from outside the EU without a phytosanitary (plant health) certificate issued by the plant health authority in Nigeria. A short list of fruits is exempt — see below.

Capped Allowed, up to a limit

Every limit below is per person.

• Fish and fish products — up to 20kg per person

  Includes: dried fish, stockfish, crayfish, smoked fish, prawns

  The 20kg total covers fresh fish (must be gutted), fish products, and processed fish that is dried, cooked, cured or smoked, plus lobsters and prawns. This is the allowance most Nigerian food parcels actually rely on.

• Honey — up to 2kg per person

  Part of a 2kg per-person cap shared with several other animal products.

• Powdered infant milk, infant food, special medical food — up to 2kg

  Must not need refrigeration before use, and must be in branded, unopened packaging unless in current use.

• Live mussels and oysters, preserved or shelled snails, prepared frog legs, insect protein — up to 2kg

  Includes: snails (igbin, congo meat)

  Snails must be preserved or shelled. Frog legs must be hind parts only and prepared.

Allowed No restriction

• Processed and packaged plant products

  Includes: garri, egusi, ogbono, dried pepper, packaged soups and spice mixes

  Listed by GOV.UK as allowed from any country. The words that matter are "processed and packaged" — loose, fresh or home-bagged produce is treated differently.

• Peeled and processed nuts, and nut butters

  Includes: groundnuts, kuli kuli

  Allowed without a plant health certificate.

• Banana and plantain, mango, coconut, citrus, guava, pineapple, dates, passion fruit

  These are the named exceptions to the fresh fruit restriction — no phytosanitary certificate needed. Also on the list: kiwi, kumquat, persimmon, durian and curry leaves.

• Certain grains, such as rice

  Named by GOV.UK as allowed.

• Bread, biscuits, cakes without fresh cream

  Allowed — but not sandwiches filled with meat or dairy, and not cakes with fresh cream.

• Chocolate and confectionery

  Allowed, except items made with a lot of unprocessed dairy ingredients.

• Pasta and noodles

  Allowed, but not if mixed or filled with meat or meat products.

• Packaged soup, stocks and flavourings

  Includes: seasoning cubes

  Allowed from any country.

• Food supplements containing small amounts of animal product

  For example fish oil capsules.

Endangered species and CITES

Anything covered by CITES, the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species, needs a permit. Caviar is the example GOV.UK names, but the convention also covers certain woods, skins, ivory and animal parts. If an item came from a wild animal or a protected tree, ask before you pack it.

If you get it wrong

• If you declare banned food at customs, Border Force will take it away and destroy it.
• If you do not declare it, you can be fined up to £5,000 in England, or prosecuted.
• Border Force can seize goods brought in illegally, or where too much of a restricted product has been sent.
• Cross-contamination is seized too — if blood from meat has contaminated clothing or the bag an item is in, that is destroyed as well.
• You can appeal a seizure, and may receive compensation if the appeal succeeds.

Two things people misunderstand

The limits are per person, not per box. Sending 20kg of dried fish to one relative is within the allowance. Splitting 60kg across three boxes to the same person is not, and consolidating it does not change that.

Sending to sell is a different regime entirely. This guidance covers goods sent for someone's own use. Commercial imports for resale need export health certificates, advance notification and entry through a Border Control Post. If you are shipping stock for a shop or a market stall, tell us, and take your own advice before you ship.

On the Nigeria side

Nigerian export rules apply too, and the NDLEA inspects outbound cargo. Anything you cannot account for should not be in your shipment. We log what goes into every consolidated consignment, which protects you as much as it protects us.

Common questions

Can I send dried fish from Nigeria to the UK?

Yes. Fish is one of the few animal products with a real allowance: up to 20kg per person, covering processed fish that is dried, cooked, cured or smoked. Dried fish, stockfish and crayfish all sit inside that allowance.

Can I send meat from Nigeria to the UK?

No. Meat and meat products are banned from every country outside the EU, with no personal allowance. That includes suya, kilishi, ponmo and dried meat. It is the most common reason cargo from Nigeria is seized.

Can I send garri, egusi and ogbono to the UK?

Generally yes. GOV.UK lists processed and packaged plant products as allowed from any country. The important words are "processed and packaged" — keep items in sealed, labelled packaging rather than loose bags.

Can I send fresh yam or vegetables?

Not without a phytosanitary certificate from the plant health authority in Nigeria. Most fresh fruit and vegetables from outside the EU need one. Plantain, banana, mango, coconut, citrus and guava are named exceptions and do not.

What happens if something is not allowed?

Border Force takes it and destroys it. If it was not declared, there is a fine of up to £5,000 in England, or prosecution. Contamination spreads the damage — if blood from meat has touched clothing or the bag, that is destroyed too. Rules checked 14 September 2026.

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