Selling internationally, used
A phone somebody carried for two years and is now shipping to a buyer abroad falls into the prohibited category on USPS's own reading of the rule. That is worth knowing before a listing promises worldwide shipping.
Electronics
Shipping an iPhone out of the country has one rule most sellers miss
It is not the battery watt-hours that trips people up — a phone battery clears those with room to spare. It is condition: USPS's international packaging rule for lithium batteries permits a device with its battery installed only when the device is new in its original box or a manufacturer-certified refurbished unit. A used iPhone, sold as-is, is generally prohibited from that same international mail lane. Read from USPS's own instruction on 2026-08-22.
USPS international rule, quotedRead 2026-08-22Domestic leg, live rates
New in box clears the border
Used and refurbished-but-not-certified are the two categories that get held up.
What USPS's international instruction actually says
USPS Packaging Instruction 9E, the international counterpart to its domestic battery rules, was read on 2026-08-22. On installed batteries it states: “Lithium metal and lithium-ion cells and batteries installed in the equipment they are intended to operate (UN3091 and UN3481) are mailable.” Then the exception that matters most for a resold phone: “Used, damaged, and defective electronic devices (excluding devices that are new in original packaging, and manufacturer-certified new or refurbished devices) containing lithium batteries are prohibited.”
The instruction adds a second gate on top of condition: “Lithium batteries must also be accepted by the destination country as designated by the Individual Country Listing in the IMM.” Passing the condition test does not automatically clear the country test — the two are checked separately, per destination.
| Device condition | International mailability | Marking |
|---|---|---|
| New, in original packaging | Mailable, subject to the destination country's listing | No lithium battery marking permitted |
| Manufacturer-certified new or refurbished | Mailable, subject to the destination country's listing | No lithium battery marking permitted |
| Used, sold as-is | Prohibited | N/A |
| Damaged or defective | Prohibited | N/A |
Packaging Instruction 9E sets its own quantity ceiling rather than borrowing the domestic one: a maximum of four lithium-ion cells or two lithium-ion batteries per mailpiece — either four cells or two batteries, not both — at 20 watt-hours per cell and 100 watt-hours per battery. A single handset stays well inside all of that. The instruction then caps the whole consignment at two mailpieces for any international or APO/FPO/DPO mailing, which is the line a seller clearing out four or five phones at once actually hits.
One service is closed off entirely, and it is the one a seller in a hurry reaches for. The last line of the instruction reads: “Shipments containing lithium batteries are not permitted in Global Express Guaranteed mailpieces.” A phone that passes the condition test and the country test still cannot go by that service at any price.
What that means for a resold phone specifically
Selling internationally, new
A phone still sealed in its retail box, or a manufacturer-certified refurbished unit with the paperwork to prove it, clears the condition test. The destination country's own listing is the remaining check.
The country test runs separately
Even a new phone can be turned back if the destination's Individual Country Listing excludes lithium batteries entirely. That listing is set per country and changes without notice, so it has to be checked for the specific destination, not assumed from a neighboring country's rule.
A live domestic-leg quote: iPhone 15 in original box
Captured 2026-08-22 through the SMKlog calculator: “iPhone 15 in original box”, Berkeley Heights, NJ 07922 to Buffalo, NY 14201 — a border-gateway city standing in for the domestic leg of an international shipment. The border crossing itself is priced by a person in freight review once the destination country's battery and customs rules are confirmed.
Packed box
7 × 4 × 2 in
1.0 lb
Domestic leg
Berkeley Heights, NJ
to Buffalo, NY
Declared as
New in original box
Required for the international leg to be mailable at all
| Carrier | Service | Price | Transit |
|---|---|---|---|
| USPS | Ground Advantage | $9.18 | 1 business day |
| UPS | Ground | $9.59 | 3-4 business days |
| USPS | Priority Mail | $11.59 | 1 business day |
| UPS | 3 Day Select | $13.96 | 2-3 business days |
| UPS | 2nd Day Air | $14.12 | 2-3 business days |
A short domestic hop like this one prices low regardless of carrier; the number that actually decides whether the phone lands is the destination country's own battery and customs listing, not the postage.
Where these rules come from
- USPS, Publication 52, Packaging Instruction 9E — international mailability of installed lithium batteries, the new/refurbished-only exception for used devices, the watt-hour and count limits, the two-mailpiece consignment cap, the Global Express Guaranteed exclusion, and the destination-country listing requirement. Read 2026-08-22.
USPS revises Publication 52 and its country listings without notice, and other carriers set their own international battery and dangerous-goods rules independently. Confirm both the condition test and the destination country's listing before a phone actually ships.
Common questions
Can a used iPhone be mailed internationally?
Generally no through USPS. Its international packaging instruction for lithium batteries prohibits used, damaged and defective electronic devices containing a lithium battery, with an exception carved out only for devices that are new in original packaging or manufacturer-certified new or refurbished.
Can a brand-new iPhone still in the box ship overseas?
Yes, subject to watt-hour and count limits and to the destination country actually accepting lithium batteries by mail. USPS caps an internationally mailed installed battery at 20 watt-hours per cell and 100 watt-hours per battery, four cells or two batteries per mailpiece, and requires no lithium battery marking on the package.
Does every country accept a phone with a battery inside?
Not automatically. USPS's own instruction says the battery must also be accepted by the destination country as designated by its Individual Country Listing. A country that excludes lithium batteries from its listing blocks the shipment regardless of the device's condition.
What does the customs form need to say?
A specific description and value, not a vague one. "Smartphone" with the model and an honest declared value clears review faster than "electronics" or "gift," and a resale-value declaration protects you if the parcel is lost rather than inflating what a claim would pay.
Should the domestic leg and the international leg be quoted separately?
Through SMKlog, yes for now. The calculator prices the parcel across USPS, UPS and FedEx for US routes; an actual cross-border phone shipment is reviewed by a person so the destination country's battery and customs rules are checked before it ships.