The U.S. Postal service follows Department of Transportation guidelines for shipping diagnostic samples and bio-hazardous materials through the U.S. mail.  These same guidelines should be used for shipping on other courier services: 

• Primary packing should consist of:
   

•       A watertight primary receptacle.
   

•       A watertight secondary packing.
   

•       An absorbent packing material must be placed between the primary receptacle and the secondary packing.  If more than one primary receptacle is placed in the secondary packing, each receptacle must be wrapped with enough absorbent material to ensure that contact is prevented and that the absorbent material can absorb the entire contents of all primary receptacles.
   

•       Samples in syringes should be transferred to a sterile vial or tube. Needles and syringes should not be shipped as they can come open in shipment.
   

•       Screw-cap and snap top closures must be reinforced with tape.
   

•       Formalin containers should be placed in a second sealed container to catch any leakage.  Specific hazard labels are required on formalin jars.  Label can be obtained from the supplier of your formalin.