IATA DGR 67th Edition: What Changed for 2026

The 67th Edition of the IATA Dangerous Goods Regulations went into effect January 1, 2026. Compared to the 2025 overhaul, this year is mostly cleanup and clarification. But there’s one change that will bite you if you’re not paying attention.

Lithium Battery State of Charge Is Now Mandatory

This is the one that matters most. The 30% state of charge limit that was a recommendation in the 66th Edition is now a hard requirement.

Two UN numbers are affected:

UN 3481: Lithium-ion batteries packed with equipment (cells/batteries >2.7 Wh)
UN 3556: Lithium-ion battery-powered vehicles (battery >100 Wh)

These must be offered for transport at no more than 30% of rated design capacity (or indicated battery capacity not exceeding 25%). Want to ship above 30%? You need written approval from the state of origin and the operator’s state. That means permits.

If you ship electronics, power tools, e-bikes, or anything with a lithium-ion battery above those thresholds and you’ve been treating the SoC limit as a suggestion, it’s not anymore.

Hybrid Vehicles Get New Entries

Two new proper shipping names under UN 3166:

Vehicle, flammable gas powered, hybrid
Vehicle, flammable liquid powered, hybrid

Worth noting: “hybrid” is descriptive text, not part of the formal shipping name. IATA is clarifying that hybrids get classified by fuel source, not as battery-powered vehicles.

Four new Cargo IMP codes came with this:

RVB: Vehicle, battery powered
RVF: Vehicle, flammable, gas or liquid powered (including fuel cells)
RVH: Vehicle, hybrid
VRO: Vehicle, other

Operator Variations Finally Use Consistent Language

Anyone who’s checked operator variations across carriers knows the frustration of five airlines saying the same thing five different ways. IATA standardized the wording for the most common restrictions:

Airmail with DG, Class 1 explosives (except 1.4S), salvage packagings, fissile material, liquids in plastic drums/jerricans, chemical oxygen generators, dry ice, excepted/limited quantities, hazardous waste, high-consequence DG, and self-balancing vehicles.

Same rules. Same words now. This is more helpful than it sounds if you’ve ever had a shipment rejected over an ambiguity.

Trivial Rejection Guidance

IATA followed up on their 2025 memo about cargo getting rejected for minor formatting issues on the Dangerous Goods Declaration. Note 4 to paragraph 9.1.3 has been amended, and they’ve committed to publishing additional guidance on what’s actually a valid reason for rejection.

Passenger Power Bank Rules

Passengers can no longer charge power banks from in-seat outlets during taxi, takeoff, and landing. Power banks go under the seat or in the seatback pocket, not overhead bins. This came after cabin incidents with thermal runaway while crew were seated.

Not a direct shipper obligation, but it shows where regulator attention is pointed. Lithium batteries continue to be the main area of tightening.

State Variation Updates

Thailand added as a variation state (code THG), requiring English package markings and a 24-hour emergency contact
France dropped FRG-03 (certain radioactive restrictions) and added FRG-09 (lithium batteries not certified under UN 38.3)
Brazil now prohibits electronic smoking devices
UK variations updated

Carrier-Specific Changes

UPS won’t accept UN 3551 (sodium-ion batteries) to, from, or within Europe
DHL updated DG contact info
Korean Airlines now requires shippers and forwarders to certify shipments were prepared in secure premises and protected against unlawful interference
New operators added: China Xiamen Airlines, Salam Air, Sichuan Airlines

Special Provisions

A1: Removed unnecessary note about the IATA hand symbol
A199: Deleted confusing sentence about nickel hydride batteries being “only regulated for sea transport”
A226: Removed entirely. Electronic detonators are no longer regulated after 2025.

Documentation Changes

Air Waybill (paragraph 8.2.3): For low-risk shipments (dry ice, low-powered lithium batteries) where a full Shipper’s Declaration isn’t required, the AWB must now include all information required by other applicable parts of the regulations. Not just the basics.

New margin symbols for battery and infectious substance sections, making it easier to navigate the manual.

Safety Data Sheets now defined in the glossary (Appendix A). Appendix B.4 expanded with GHS info, including how to tell GHS hazard symbols from DG labels.

What’s Coming in 2027

New Appendix H previews changes expected in the 68th Edition based on UN Model Regulations Rev. 24:

UN 3563 (lithium metal batteries) and UN 3564 (sodium-ion batteries) installed in cargo transport units
Classification guidance for hybrid batteries (lithium-ion + sodium-ion)
Updated explosive segregation rules
SP A236 for MRI equipment
Blood and blood component transport exemptions
New chlorophenol entries (UN 3561, 3562)

2027 will be a bigger year since the ICAO Technical Instructions update on a two-year cycle.

Addendum I

Already published. Includes corrections for spare lithium battery subsections, added entries for electric detonators (UN 0030, UN 0255, UN 0456), corrected references in SP A116, and amended marking rules for sodium-ion cells and batteries (UN 3551). No core technical changes.

Bottom Line

The theme is the same as the last few years: battery regulations are getting tighter, documentation expectations are getting clearer, and the number of carrier and country-specific rules keeps growing. Managing hazmat compliance manually across multiple carriers and destinations is getting harder every year.

That’s one of the reasons we built hazmat segregation into StoaPack. It handles DG classification and segregation rules at the packing stage so problems get caught before they reach the shipping dock.

Have questions about how these changes affect your shipping operations? Get in touch.