How to send a VR Headset Overseas
This summer we were tasked with a job of sending a lot of VR headsets from the UK to the US, South Africa, Canada, Japan and Europe.
On the surface sending a parcel overseas seems quite straight forward, however when it comes to posting packages with lithium batteries, it can start to get a bit complicated.
We wanted to share with you some quick tips with you so you don’t have to go through anything scary , including the important description of contents, commodity codes and advice for packing.
Open a business account:
If you are operating as a business, open a business account with your chosen shipping company and get an account manager. It’s very important that they are aware of what you are sending and they can help you. (For transparency we use DHL and our account manager is excellent).
Make sure to tell them if your headset contains lithium batteries and loose batteries (like the AA batteries that go in the Oculus controllers).
Because we had AA batteries, we had to go find the specification sheet for our specific battery type and provide this to DHL’s safety team.
Note: we could not find a specification sheet for the standard batteries that come with Oculus Quest 1 but we found a declaration saying their batteries were safe for transport and this was enough for DHL to allow us to ship.
Description of contents
Your parcels may go through an x-ray machine so it’s important to state what is in the box. If you have an account manager, speak to them to ensure your description is clear and gives the service depot the required information.
For shipping Oculus Quests with DHL, we had to write; vr headsets — not restricted as per SP A123
Stickers on packaging: we were overprepared.
Who knew that being overprepared can be a bad thing? Knowing that our packages had lithium batteries in them, we read up that we should be placing lithium battery warning stickers on the boxes.
After speaking with our account manager, we had to take the stickers off the boxes. The stickers meant the packages were classed as ‘dangerous goods’ which we would not be allowed to send. Taking the stickers off and having the correct contents meant they were allowed to be shipped.
Check your commodity codes
Commodity codes are globally accepted customs classifications for goods being shipped. If you’re in the UK, you can look up commodity codes on the Gov.uk website: https://www.trade-tariff.service.gov.uk/sections
You can google search “VR headset commodity code” to find examples of previous import/exports between countries which can help you to figure out the right one for your specific device.
For UK readers, if you are stuck you can use the “Ask HMRC for help classifying your goods” service.
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/ask-hmrc-for-advice-on-classifying-your-goods
Also, wired headsets and standalone headsets will have different commodity codes so take this into account.
When we shipped the Oculus Quest across the world, we used this commodity code: 9504500000
We hope that these tips have been useful, if you want to know more feel free to get in touch. Or if you have some additional tips you think would be helpful for others let us know.
For UK readers if your shipping in 2021 there may be further changes due to Brexit so again make sure you ask your account manager.
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