International Shipping & Customs Guide

This page explains where EL.V. Life Sciences ships monobenzone, which carriers we use, what documentation travels with every package, what to expect at customs, and what we do if something goes wrong.

If you have a country-specific question that isn’t covered here, send us a message on WhatsApp (+91 8890309463) or email us. We respond within one business day.

Countries we ship to

We currently dispatch monobenzone cream orders against valid prescriptions to:

North America
– 🇺🇸 United States
– 🇨🇦 Canada

Europe
– 🇬🇧 United Kingdom
– 🇮🇪 Ireland
– 🇩🇪 Germany
– 🇫🇷 France
– 🇮🇹 Italy
– 🇪🇸 Spain
– 🇳🇱 Netherlands
– 🇸🇪 Sweden
– 🇩🇰 Denmark
– 🇳🇴 Norway
– 🇨🇭 Switzerland
– Other EU members on request

Middle East
– 🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates
– 🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia
– 🇶🇦 Qatar
– 🇰🇼 Kuwait
– 🇴🇲 Oman
– 🇧🇭 Bahrain

Africa
– 🇳🇬 Nigeria
– 🇰🇪 Kenya
– 🇿🇦 South Africa
– 🇿🇼 Zimbabwe
– 🇧🇯 Benin
– 🇬🇭 Ghana
– 🇪🇬 Egypt
– Other African destinations on request

Asia-Pacific
– 🇵🇭 Philippines
– 🇧🇩 Bangladesh
– 🇲🇾 Malaysia
– 🇸🇬 Singapore
– 🇹🇭 Thailand
– 🇮🇩 Indonesia
– 🇦🇺 Australia (with import permit)
– 🇳🇿 New Zealand (with import permit)

Latin America
– 🇲🇽 Mexico
– 🇧🇷 Brazil
– 🇦🇷 Argentina
– 🇨🇱 Chile
– Other destinations on request

If your country is not listed, ask us. The list above reflects established export routes; we can quote new destinations on a case-by-case basis.

We do not ship to countries where monobenzone is specifically prohibited or where our existing carrier partners have declined to handle pharmaceutical shipments. We will tell you upfront if we cannot serve your country.

Shipping carriers and transit times

We dispatch through three carriers depending on destination, urgency and the patient’s preference:

Quoted transit times do not include customs delays at the destination. Most shipments clear customs in 1–3 business days; a small minority are held for additional documentation. We discuss customs scenarios below.

For most international orders, the shipping cost is paid by the patient on top of the medication price. We are transparent in our quote — there is no hidden surcharge — and we can recommend the carrier that gives the best price-to-speed ratio for your country.

What ships in the package

Every shipment contains:

1. The medication in its original sealed laminated tube (or sealed jar for 100 g packs), with batch number and expiry date printed by the manufacturer
2. Certificate of Analysis (COA) — a printed laboratory document showing the batch’s identity, purity and assay against USP specifications
3. Commercial invoice — itemised invoice in your name, showing the product, quantity, unit price and declared value for customs
4. Prescription cover letter — a one-page letter referencing the prescription you uploaded, the prescribing physician’s name and contact details, and a statement that the medication is for personal use
5. EL.V. Life Sciences manufacturer letter — confirming the medication is dispatched from a WHO-GMP certified facility in Baddi, Himachal Pradesh, India
6. Customer-care card — phone, email and WhatsApp contacts for any post-delivery questions

If your country requires additional paperwork (some Middle East destinations require notarised import letters; Australia and New Zealand require a TGA / Medsafe personal-import declaration), we prepare it and include it in the package or send it ahead by courier as appropriate.

What to expect at customs

For most patients in most countries, customs clearance is unremarkable. The package arrives at the destination port, customs reviews the declared contents and accompanying paperwork, and releases it for final-mile delivery. The patient does nothing.

However, customs can hold a shipment for additional review. This typically happens for one of a few reasons:

• The declared value is significantly higher than typical personal-use shipments
• The destination country has tightened personal-import enforcement temporarily
• A specific batch has been flagged for random review
• The paperwork is incomplete or unclear

If a hold occurs, customs will contact the addressee (you), the carrier, or both — usually with a request for additional documentation. Most commonly:

• A copy of the original prescription (in addition to the cover letter)
• A signed personal-use affirmation from the patient
• Confirmation of identity (passport or national ID copy)
• The prescribing physician’s licence number

We provide all of these on request. We have a standard customs-response pack we can email you within hours. Most holds are resolved within 3–5 business days once the additional paperwork is in.

A small fraction of shipments are not released — typically because the destination authority requires an import permit that wasn’t applied for in advance, or because the recipient’s documentation cannot be verified. We discuss our refund policy for these cases below.

Country-specific guidance

United States. The FDA personal-importation policy explicitly accommodates personal supplies of unapproved drugs for serious conditions, up to roughly a 90-day supply, with a prescription and a written personal-use affirmation. Most shipments to US patients clear without incident. For full detail, read our FDA personal-importation guide.

United Kingdom. MHRA permits import of a personal-use supply (typically up to 3 months) of a prescribed medication. Border Force occasionally requests prescription documentation. Bringing your prescription forward at the point of order is the simplest way to pre-empt any delay.

EU member states. Rules vary by country but most permit a personal supply with a prescription. Germany, France, Netherlands and Italy have been straightforward export destinations historically. Some EU customs will charge VAT and a small clearance fee on the declared value — we declare honestly so this is correctly calculated.

UAE / Saudi Arabia. Both require advance import permits for many prescription medications. We have helped patients in both countries through the import-permit process; budget an extra 2–3 weeks if you are ordering for the first time.

Australia / New Zealand. Both countries operate strict personal-import schemes (TGA Personal Importation Scheme in Australia; Medsafe in NZ) that explicitly permit small personal supplies of prescribed medication. We provide the documentation each scheme requires.

Africa. Established export routes to Nigeria, Kenya, Zimbabwe, Benin, Ghana, South Africa and Egypt. Customs handling in different African markets varies sharply; our experience helps us pick the right carrier and paperwork for each.

Insurance and lost packages

DHL and FedEx shipments are insured for the declared value at no additional cost to you. India Post Speed Post shipments include limited insurance; if you want full insurance on a Speed Post shipment, we add it at cost.

If a tracked shipment fails to arrive within 30 days of dispatch and is confirmed lost by the carrier, we reship at no additional cost. We do not require you to chase the carrier — we handle the carrier claim and the reshipment in parallel.

Refund policy

We refund or reship in the following cases:

• Lost in transit (carrier-confirmed loss). Free reshipment, no questions.
• Damaged in transit (visible damage on receipt, photographed within 48 hours). Free reshipment.
• Wrong product or wrong strength dispatched on our end. Free reshipment plus the cost of the original shipping refunded.
• Customs seizure where we failed to provide documentation we said we would provide. Full refund of medication and shipping.

We do not refund in the following cases:

• Customs seizure where the patient was unable to provide the documentation customs requested
• Patient changed mind after dispatch
• Patient ordered the wrong strength against the prescription’s actual instructions
• Personal-import restrictions that the patient was responsible for verifying (e.g. an Australian patient who did not apply for a TGA import permit when one was required, and we had advised it)

For ambiguous cases, we err toward the patient. If you believe a refund is owed and the policy above doesn’t make it clear, email us and explain — we’ll respond within two business days.

Returns

Pharmaceutical products in their original sealed packaging may be returned within 14 days of receipt for refund minus shipping, provided the original tamper-evident seal is intact. Once a tube is opened, we cannot accept a return — for obvious medication-safety reasons.

We pay return shipping only for damaged or wrong-product shipments.

How to track your order

When your shipment dispatches, you receive an email containing:

• The carrier name and tracking number
• A link to the carrier’s tracking page
• Our internal order reference
• A copy of all the documentation included in the package

You can also send your order reference on WhatsApp at any time and we’ll give you a status update.

This policy is reviewed quarterly. Last updated 29 May 2026.
See also: Prescription policy · Monobenzone landing page · Privacy policy.