Postal Restrictions of Saliva in the UK & Éire Hello all, I've just been reading the comments within DNA-R1B1C7 Digest, Vol 7, Issue 471 & 472 regarding postal/mailing restrictions of saliva in the UK and Ireland/Éire. Also at: http://archiver.rootsweb.ancestry.com/th/read/DNA-R1B1C7/2013-11/1385580419 http://archiver.rootsweb.ancestry.com/th/read/DNA-R1B1C7/2013-11/1385582364 It seems as though there could be some misunderstanding of what can and cannot be posted within these postal services and somehow people might be getting a wrong impression. If you check the websites of both the UK (Royal Mail) and Ireland (Post) postal services at the links below, then I think you will find that saliva samples are, technically speaking, not banned and neither are “DNA samples”, which is what these packages could be labelled if you wish to avoid potential complications. UK Royal Mail: www.royalmail.com/personal/help-and-support/Tell-me-about-Restricted-Goods-overseas & UKRM PDF download: www.royalmail.com/sites/default/files/DangerousGoods_Leaflet_July2013.pdf Ireland Post: www.anpost.ie/AnPost/MainContent/Business+Customers/International+Mail & Post PDF download: www.anpost.ie/NR/rdonlyres/CF938A05-FDB6-4DCD-AFE9-5979C3947391/0/AnPostGuidetoPostalServices08.pdf Please correct me if I have missed anything, but after browsing the above sites and their accompanying PDF downloads I could not find any specific restrictions as mentioned in the posts. I am no biologist, so I checked to see what saliva actually is and it seems that: “Saliva is an exocrine secretion produced by 3 pairs of major glands and numerous minor glands located throughout the oral mucosa.” this is the definition of saliva according to: www.medscape.com/viewarticle/774239. Using this as the benchmark, technically I cannot find any restriction for saliva nor DNA when it is sent by a public non-commercial user! ~ For commercial users this could well be a totally different matter, as the rules/T&C's would be completely different and probably encompass “Health & Safety” issues, amongst others. There are one or two general exclusions for certain biological materials, but nothing specific for saliva or DNA samples. I would consider that it's possibly interpretation which is the main issue here because I live in the UK and have sent several “DNA samples” to international destinations and have never been challenged by anyone to date. Also, I would suggest that our very close neighbour, Ireland, would be very similar to the UK in this respect. If in doubt, and you are very concerned about this issue, then I consider the best way is to ask your local postal/mailing service provider directly. If you get a negative response then try an alternative office to see if they agree with the other's answer. Whenever I send such items I always label them as “DNA SAMPLES” that way you are covered and are being totally honest. So, I do not see how you can be challenged if you are 100% truthful? If this is not acceptable to the provider then try somewhere else, but please don't give up just because someone has said it cannot be done somewhere on a WWW message board! It's a good idea to always ask the local service provider in your country, state, county or town as they are ultimately the judge of such matters, general comments obtained from any Internet site can be misleading or generate ambiguity. The Internet is a superb tool, but it's sources are not always 100% correct! ~ Much better to always double, or even triple, check to be sure! Regards, Stephen. England.