Your fragrance samples fly declared, not rejected.
Fragrance oils, perfumes, flavors and extracts, from your lab to your client’s. We read the safety data sheet and the destination rules before pickup, so the sample is packed and declared right the first time.
Three of the five failures hit fragrance samples first.
We plan against all five before pickup. These are the ones we flag first in this sector.
Refused
Alcohol-based fragrances and many extracts are flammable liquids. Even a small vial is dangerous goods for air.
We confirm the classification before booking, then pack and declare to match.Held
“Oil” or “sample” alone gets the box held. Some destinations treat a flavor as food.
We prepare the invoice and contents list with you and check food rules at destination.Spoiled
How we plan for it
A vial that leaks taints every sample in the box.
Vials are sealed and cushioned inside a sturdy outer pack.Late
Your client evaluates on a set date.
We plan the route back from that date and tell you early if it is at risk.Orphaned
How we plan for it
One evaluation set, many vials, several handoffs.
One Samplify team owns the set until your client confirms receipt.How we handle it, in detail
The flammable vial.
Alcohol-based fragrances and many flavor extracts are flammable liquids. Even a small vial is dangerous goods for air, and an undeclared or loosely packed box is turned away. We confirm the classification with you before booking, then pack and declare the shipment to match. We do not treat a sample as too small to count.
The flavor that counts as food.
Some destinations treat a food flavor as food, with advance import notice required even for R&D and QC samples. We check whether the destination treats your flavor as food and file what is required before the sample leaves.
The safety data sheet.
An SDS that is missing, outdated or written for ground transport can say “not regulated” when the sample is regulated for air. We ask for the SDS before pickup and review the transport section and flash point with you, not just the summary line.
The compliance documents.
Receivers and customs may ask for IFRA conformity or an allergen declaration, and the two are often mixed up. We tell you which documents the receiver and destination expect and travel them with the shipment.
The clear description.
The tariff code depends on use and alcohol content. “Oil” or “sample” alone gets the box held. We prepare the invoice and contents list with you: what it is, what it is for, alcohol content where relevant, sample for testing, realistic value.
What we move: fragrance oils and compounds, fine fragrance and testers, essential oils, flavors and extracts, finished scented products.
Five lines. The safety data sheet sets the route.
The five lines
- Origin and destination
- What it is: oil, perfume, flavor or extract, and alcohol content
- How much: vials and volume per vial
- Date it must land (we plan back from it)
- Safety data sheet, with the transport section and flash point
- Condition
- Ambient
- DG
- Flammable liquid, declared
- Date it must land
- [your date]
- Owner
- One named Samplify team
- Commercial invoice
- Safety data sheet
- DG declaration
- IFRA conformity or allergen declaration, if asked
- Five details received
- Planned back from your date
- Route plan sent to you
- Pickup
- Receiver confirms
Example only. Not a real shipment or client.
Over 80% of dangerous goods occurrences reported to the air cargo industry body (January to June 2025) involved undeclared dangerous goods. Perfumes and aerosols are named among the main items.
Industry data, not a Samplify result. Source: Air cargo industry association, white paper on cargo supply chain safety
What a shipment like this involves.
Read the case and what has to be right
A fragrance house sends a set of new compound samples in small vials to a client’s evaluation lab abroad. A flavor extract for a beverage brief goes in the same request.
What has to be right:
- The fragrances are classified from the SDS. Alcohol-based compounds are flammable and travel as dangerous goods by air, however small the vial.
- The SDS covers air transport, not just ground, and matches the batch.
- Vials are sealed and cushioned inside a sturdy outer pack, marked and declared for what they are.
- The flavor is checked against the destination’s food import rules, and any advance notice is filed before it leaves.
- The invoice says what each item is, what it is for and its alcohol content where relevant, with a realistic value.
- IFRA conformity or allergen information travels when the receiver asks for it.
What goes wrong when it is not: boxes refused at acceptance, held at customs or returned, and an evaluation that starts late.
How it gets solved: read the SDS and the destination rules first, then pack, document and route to match.
Based on public lab guides and regulator pages. Not a Samplify client case.
Services used for fragrance and flavor samples: Dangerous goods, Documentation and permits, Packaging, kitting and labeling, International logistics. Shipping from or to: see coverage.
Short answers before you ship.
Is a fragrance sample dangerous goods?
Often. Alcohol-based fragrances and many extracts are flammable liquids, and even a small vial is dangerous goods for air.
Why do you need the SDS?
We review the transport section and flash point with you, not just the summary line, before pickup.
Can a flavor be treated as food?
Some destinations treat a food flavor as food. We check this and file what is required before the sample leaves.
Do you handle IFRA or allergen documents?
We tell you which documents the receiver and destination expect and travel them with the shipment.
How should I describe the sample?
Say what it is, what it is for and its alcohol content where relevant. “Oil” or “sample” alone gets the box held.
Related guides: Why does my courier ask for a safety data sheet? and How do I ship a sample that is dangerous goods?