If you touch a shipping label, you have a legal responsibility to understand the basics. Respect the DGR—it might just save a life. Need a quick reference? Always remember the "Shipper’s Declaration" form is required for fully regulated dangerous goods. For "Excepted Quantities" (small amounts), you only need a document stating "Dangerous Goods in Excepted Quantities."
The International Air Transport Association (IATA) represents nearly 300 airlines. While the United Nations creates the model rules (the "Orange Book"), and ICAO sets the global standards, that airlines actually enforce.
Here is everything you need to know about the industry’s "must-have" guide for air transport.
The DGR is updated every single year (January 1st). If you are using a version from 2023 in 2025, your shipments are technically non-compliant.
Many shippers assume that if an item isn't radioactive or explosive, it’s fine. The biggest fines often come from forgotten items—like a laptop battery left in checked luggage being shipped as cargo, or a bottle of wine packed without proper absorbent material.
A single undeclared dangerous good can bring down an aircraft. That is not hyperbole; it has happened. The IATA DGR exists to prevent that.
But for many, it remains a daunting, 1,000+ page manual filled with obscure codes, UN numbers, and packing instructions. Ignoring it isn’t just risky—it is illegal and extremely dangerous.