I want to know if there are any Customs issues I should know about concerning mailing dried herbs and spices in sealed plastic packaging from Thailand to the USA.  I plan to send by FedEx. 

 

Well vetted information (not guesses or off-topic advice) would be appreciated.  And yes, I already tried getting this information from US Customs and it was only vague and seemed to be about "live" vegetation only . 

 

I want to be as sure as possible because I will be sending relatively large quantities of each item (10 packages of each item)

 

Items consist of: 

• Lemon grass dried
• Dried Kaffir Lime leaves
• Dried Galangal Root
• Thai Whole Chilies

They are all in sealed plastic packages like this:

 

Those herbs don't sound too expensive or special.... I bet the Fedex is Way more expensive than the herbs......Has the recipient heard of E-bay or Amazon? 

Sorry that I cant answer you question, because I dont know,

But I can tell you this if you don't already know. 

All these things can easily be found in the US.

When my wife first got to the US she used to stuff her suitcases with stuff like that until we discovered that a few miles away from our house there was a Cambodian Asian market that had all these and more , very cheap and fresh.

If you dont have a Asian market near you, There are many Thai FB groups, where the Thai ladies network and trade, you can have anything Thai shipped to you. 

In our Florida Home we had a bunch of Papaya plans that produced more than we can ever eat Papayas, My wife was for ever shipping them to people she knew from FB only for the cost of shipping, she was always stuffing other Thai things in with the Papayas   

6 minutes ago, sirineou said:

Sorry that I cant answer you question, because I dont know,

But I can tell you this if you don't already know. 

All these things can easily be found in the US.

When my wife first got to the US she used to stuff her suitcases with stuff like that until we discovered that a few miles away from our house there was a Cambodian Asian market that had all these and more , very cheap and fresh.

If you dont have a Asian market near you, There are many Thai FB groups, where the Thai ladies network and trade, you can have anything Thai shipped to you. 

In our Florida Home we had a bunch of Papaya plans that produced more than we can ever eat Papayas, My wife was for ever shipping them to people she knew from FB only for the cost of shipping, she was always stuffing other Thai things in with the Papayas   

 

9 minutes ago, redwood1 said:

Those herbs don't sound too expensive or special.... I bet the Fedex is Way more expensive than the herbs......Has the recipient heard of E-bay or Amazon? 

I recognize that shipping will be far more than the cost of those items but I am including them with other holiday gifts.  My concerns is that if those herbs and spices were banned, the entire shipment of gifts worth several hundred dollars would be jeopardized.  I had that happen once before and Customs will seize everything in the box even if only one items is on a banned list.  SOunds ridiculous but that is their policy.

 

As for availability of those spices and herbs, I know most are available in the US but as a gift, knowing it actually came directly from a local night market would please her.

4 minutes ago, WaveHunter said:

 

I recognize that shipping will be far more than the cost of those items but I am including them with other holiday gifts.  My concerns is that if those herbs and spices were banned, the entire shipment of gifts worth several hundred dollars would be jeopardized.  I had that happen once before and Customs will seize everything in the box even if only one items is on a banned list.  SOunds ridiculous but that is their policy.

 

As for availability of those spices and herbs, I know most are available in the US but as a gift, knowing it actually came directly from a local night market would please her.

That makes  sense ????

Following with interest.  

Seems to be very quiet at Asean Now 

Since there are no other replies ,this what I found during a search 

 

"Most dried spices can be imported except for orange, lemon, lime, and other citrus leaves and seeds, and many vegetable and fruit seeds. While not explicitly prohibited, we also advise against bringing lemongrass that is not part of a commercially packaged product into the United States. Lemongrass needs to be inspected for plant rusts, which could lead to Customs delays and possible seizure. "

https://www.aphis.usda.gov/aphis/resources/traveler/intl-travel/coffee-tea-honey-nuts-spices/coffee-tea-honey-nuts-spices

Interested in this one as we are preparing to move to AZ for at least three months/year and I have a goodly supply of spices and dried herbs which will otherwise probably get binned. I loathe that kind of waste. Thinking about repacking in heat seal bags and sending maybe one kilo worth. Probably better to put in checked baggage? Just wondering if that would perturb the customs folks. Any experiences appreciated. 
I was excited about the above “aphis” link, but unable to connect.🥴

My wife takes cooked food along with dried spices and other condiments to our kids in California every time we go. With the amount you have and it being vacuum sealed I can say with confidence you wont have a problem.

11 hours ago, Kwaibill said:

I was excited about the above “aphis” link, but unable to connect.

 

I think this is the current page:

 

https://www.aphis.usda.gov/traveling-with-ag-products/coffee-tea-honey-nuts-spices

 

generally sending plant material outside Thailand requires a phytosanitary certificate to ensure it is not infected/carrying anything untoward, when my wife sends seeds to the US and elsewhere a phyto is needed or they are returned/destroyed