What you cannot ship to Ghana: banned and restricted items
The goods Ghana bans outright, the ones that need a permit, the used appliances you cannot bring in, and what airlines refuse to fly.
By the Landed team · · 5 min read
Most things can be shipped to Ghana. A short list is banned outright, a longer list needs a permit from a government agency before customs will release it, and used fridges, freezers and air conditioners are banned. On top of Ghana's own rules, airlines and couriers refuse some things, such as loose lithium batteries, whatever country the box is going to.
Here is what each list covers, so nothing you send gets seized at Tema or Kotoka.
What Ghana bans outright
The Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) calls these "absolute import prohibitions". Customs will not release them whatever paperwork you bring:
- Animals or carcasses infected with disease
- Food declared unfit to eat by a health officer
- Counterfeit money and coins that are not genuine currency
- Indecent or obscene pictures, films, books and other articles
- Printed matter the GRA judges defamatory or scandalous
- Knuckle dusters, flick knives and other knives the police treat as dangerous weapons
- Beads made of flammable celluloid
- Raw coffee coming in overland
- Anything else that another Ghana law forbids
That last line matters: the GRA list is not the only one. Other agencies, such as the Energy Commission and the Food and Drugs Authority, add bans of their own, covered below.
What needs a permit first
The GRA calls these "conditional prohibitions". They can come in, but only with a licence or permit from the right agency, arranged before the goods arrive.
| Item | Who issues the permit |
|---|---|
| Guns, ammunition, explosives, handcuffs, key-cutting machines | Ministry of the Interior |
| Plants, seeds, soil and manure | Ministry of Food and Agriculture |
| Gambling machines | Gaming Commission |
| Rough diamonds | The mines ministry (a Kimberley Process certificate) |
| Mercury | The mines ministry |
| Bank notes, coins, travellers' cheques and securities sent as goods | Bank of Ghana |
| Goods printed to look like money | Ministry of Finance |
Some spirits are also restricted: brandy, rum and whisky must have been aged in wood for at least three years, and very strong spirits need a licence. Milk powder and evaporated milk with too little milk fat are refused, unless clearly marked as skimmed. These rarely trouble anyone sending gifts, but they explain why a box of drinks or tins sometimes gets held for inspection.
Used fridges, freezers and air conditioners
This is the rule that catches most people sending things home. A 2008 regulation called L.I. 1932 bans importing or selling used fridges, freezers and air conditioners, because old units use far more electricity. It has been enforced since 2013, and the Energy Commission says about 6.6 million used fridges were stopped between 2013 and 2022.
The list has grown. Regulations that came into force in November 2022 set standards for many more appliances, including washing machines, microwaves, televisions, fans, kettles, rice cookers, computers and solar panels, and cover used ones as well as new ones that fall short. Regulated models also have to be registered.
In practice: buy new from a known brand and keep the receipt. A second-hand fridge from a garage sale in Houston or Leeds is not worth the risk, because it can be seized at the port.
Food, medicine and cosmetics
The Food and Drugs Authority (FDA) controls food, medicines and cosmetics coming into Ghana. Under its personal-effects guideline in force since July 2025, anyone bringing these in as personal effects must register with the FDA as an importer and get an electronic permit, called an eMDA, through the customs system. A personal-effects shipment can weigh up to 2 tonnes net per person, food must have at least two-thirds of its shelf life left when it is cleared, and cosmetics can be held back for testing for hydroquinone, a skin-lightening chemical. Registered companies cannot use the personal-effects route at all.
What this means for a family parcel:
- Small amounts for the family's own use are what the personal-effects rules are written for. Personal effects must not be sold, so many boxes of the same cream or supplement can be treated as stock for a shop.
- Prescription medicine should travel with a copy of the prescription.
- Home-cooked or fresh food is the riskiest thing to post. Packaged, sealed food with a label travels better than anything homemade.
Rules on quantities change, so check the FDA's current personal effects guideline before you send a large amount.
Batteries, perfume and aerosols: what airlines refuse
Some goods are legal in Ghana but hard to fly. The US Federal Aviation Administration says spare lithium batteries, including power banks, must travel in a passenger's carry-on bag, never in checked luggage, and are limited to 100 watt hours each without airline approval. Cargo and courier rules are stricter still, which is why a box of loose power banks, spray deodorants or large bottles of perfume can be refused for air freight or held back for special handling.
Batteries fitted inside a phone, laptop or watch are normally fine, because the device protects them. It is the loose spares that cause trouble.
Allowed, but you pay duty
Everything else is allowed, but allowed is not the same as free. New goods pay Ghana's import duty and taxes on arrival, whether they come in a barrel, a parcel or a container.
- By post: customs at the post office opens the parcel with the recipient, works out the duty, and uses the postage paid as the freight value. Parcels not collected within three months are confiscated and auctioned.
- In your luggage: you may bring in up to 375ml of spirits, 750ml of wine and 0.5kg of tobacco free of duty. Electrical goods only count as your own personal effects if you have used them for at least six months.
- Moving home for good: Ghanaians who have lived abroad for more than 12 months in a row and are moving back can bring their used household goods in free of tax, as "removal articles". Cars, guns and ammunition are excluded.
For how duty is worked out and what affects the cost, see our guide to shipping from the USA to Ghana.
What Landed can and cannot bring in
We buy new goods from stores in the USA and factories in China and bring them to Accra, cleared through customs, for one price agreed before you pay. Because we buy new, the used-appliance ban does not touch our orders: a fridge or air conditioner we bring in comes new, sealed and with its receipt.
We cannot bring in weapons, drugs, hazardous chemicals or anything Ghana Customs bans. Loose lithium batteries and liquids need special handling, so we tell you before you pay if something has to travel by sea or cannot travel at all.
- Shop new fridges, freezers and air conditioners, phones and power banks and perfume and skincare.
- Not sure whether something is allowed? Paste the link and get a price. We check it before you pay anything.
