UN 38.3 for floor-care and vacuum shipments: the four steps that keep lithium containers moving
Every cordless platform in a modern floor-care line rides on a lithium pack — and every lithium pack rides on one document: the UN 38.3 test summary from the UN Manual of Tests and Criteria, Section 38.3 (UNECE). Since 2015, lithium-ion batteries shipped alone by air must travel at no more than 30% state of charge (IATA Guidance Document) — and from 1 January 2026 that cap extends to batteries packed with and contained in equipment. Four steps keep your containers moving.
BUYER GUIDE · SHIPPING COMPLIANCE · UPDATED 2026-10-17 · FREE TO CIRCULATE
What you need before you start
Three items keep a lithium container uneventful — the compliment in dangerous-goods shipping:
- The UN 38.3 test summary for the exact battery pack in the machine, issued by the battery manufacturer — identity, pack configuration, watt-hour rating, test results
- The freight route named: sea (IMDG) or air (IATA), because the packing and state-of-charge rules differ
- The machine's file family confirmed — on this line every lithium platform carries UN 38.3 inside CE / GS / EMC / RoHS / CB (the FW and pressure families add it to the same pack), so the summary travels with the quotation
Step 1 — Match the test summary to the exact pack
Action: check the UN 38.3 summary names the battery model, watt-hour rating and manufacturer, and that they match the machine you are buying — not a similar pack. Criteria: identity, watt-hours and configuration identical to the shipped unit. Guardrail: a summary that arrives without the quotation, or for a different pack, is the earliest reliable signal that the programme has never shipped your market — the certificate verification guide shows how to read the rest of the file against it.
Step 2 — Know the 30% state-of-charge rule and its 2026 extension
Action: plan the battery state of charge by route. Criteria: batteries shipped alone (UN 3480, packing instruction PI 965) must travel by cargo aircraft at ≤30% state of charge — mandatory since 2015 (IATA Guidance Document); and from 1 January 2026, the same ≤30% cap extends to batteries packed with and contained in equipment (UN 3481, PI 966/967) on air routes (CargoTrans; Jauch, 2026). Guardrail: full-container sea programmes are not affected by the cap — one more reason the mixed sea container is the private-label default.
Step 3 — Confirm the packing and labelling layer for the route
Action: confirm the carton-level lithium marking, the packing instruction applied to your configuration, and who signs the dangerous-goods declaration where the route requires one. Criteria: the packing instruction number (PI 965/966/967 for air configurations; IMDG packing for sea) appears in the shipping documents, and the machine's manual carries the battery warnings the pack requires. Guardrail: the packing & logistics programme ships loading photographs and the document route with every container — ask for the same on lithium orders as a standing condition.
Step 4 — Keep the file in the reorder folder, not just the first shipment
Action: store the UN 38.3 summary with the machine's file family (CE / GS / EMC / RoHS / CB) and require it again — refreshed if the pack changes — on every reorder. Criteria: the summary on reorder two matches the pack in reorder two; battery suppliers change. Guardrail: a changed battery with an unchanged summary is the classic audit finding — one question at reorder time closes it.
The 3 mistakes that stall lithium containers
Assuming sea freight needs nothing. IMDG assumes the UN 38.3 test was passed; a pack that was never tested is not a discount, it is a container the carrier refuses to load.
Air-freighting the hero SKU fully charged. The 30% SoC cap on air is mandatory — a fully charged lithium shipment is a rejected shipment, and in the peak season the rejection is the season.
Accepting a summary for "a similar pack". The watt-hour rating and configuration must match the machine. The certificate conversation is where the compliance file separates programmes that ship from programmes that promise.
A worked example
| Step | Checked | What the file shows | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 · Summary match | Pack identity + watt-hours | UN 38.3 summary names the platform's battery pack and manufacturer | Pass |
| 2 · Route rule | Sea container planned | IMDG packing; no air SoC cap applies to the sea leg | Pass |
| 3 · Packing layer | Lithium marking + declaration responsibility named | Carton lithium mark and PI reference in the shipping documents | Pass |
| 4 · Reorder file | Summary archived with the file family | CE / GS / EMC / RoHS / CB / UN 38.3 archived per model | Pass |
Regulatory references: UN Manual of Tests and Criteria, Section 38.3 (UNECE); IATA Lithium Battery Guidance Document; PHMSA Lithium Battery Guide for Shippers (2024). File families from the Cliia 49-model specification ledger (2026).
Print this checklist
- UN 38.3 summary matching the exact pack, received with the quotation
- Route named: sea (IMDG) or air — the 30% SoC cap mapped to your configuration
- Packing instruction and lithium carton marking confirmed in the shipping documents
- File family (CE / GS / EMC / RoHS / CB / UN 38.3) archived per model in the reorder folder
- Reorder rule: new summary if the battery pack changed
Ask for the UN 38.3 summary with your quotation — if it arrives inside 24 working hours and matches the pack, your lithium containers will move as quietly as the corded ones.
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