Nihon Chomiryo Tabi
The short version
- The EU bans meat and dairy outright from non-EU countries. There is no small-quantity allowance, unlike most other rules you will meet.
- Soy sauce, miso, vinegar, salt and oil contain neither, so they are not caught by the ban.
- Fishery products are capped at 20kg, which no katsuobushi you can carry will approach.
- The penalty language is heavier than elsewhere: confiscation, fines, and possible criminal prosecution.
The EU rule is simpler than the American one, and stricter in a particular way. Two categories are banned outright, everything else is broadly fine, and the seasonings you are likely to be carrying sit outside both categories.
This page was written in September 2026 and links to the official sources throughout. Rules change, so check the source before you fly. Nothing here is legal advice, and the officer at the border makes the final decision.
Meat and dairy: banned, with no small-quantity exception
Most customs rules have a personal allowance. A small amount is fine, a large amount is commercial. The EU meat and dairy rule does not work that way:
If you travel to the EU from a non-EU country, you are not allowed to bring any meat or dairy products with you. — Your Europe, European Commission
Any means any. There is no 100g version of this that slips through. The European Commission's own page on personal imports says the same, with narrow exceptions for the Faeroe Islands and Greenland that do not help anyone flying from Japan (Personal imports, European Commission).
The reason this matters for seasonings is that some of them are quietly built on meat. A ramen soup base made with pork extract is a meat product. A blended seasoning with milk powder in it is a dairy product. Neither looks like meat or dairy on the shelf.
Why most seasonings are not caught
Read the ban closely and you can see what it does not cover. Soy sauce is soybeans, wheat, salt and koji. Miso is soybeans or barley, rice, salt and koji. Rice vinegar is rice. Sea salt is seawater. None of these contain meat or dairy, so the rule that stops most travellers does not reach them.
| What you bought | Where it sits |
|---|---|
| Soy sauce (shoyu) | No meat, no dairy |
| Miso (plain) | No meat, no dairy |
| Rice vinegar, kurozu | No meat, no dairy |
| Sea salt | No meat, no dairy |
| Sesame oil, rapeseed oil | Plant oil |
| Shichimi, sansho, yuzu kosho | Spice |
| Dashi with bonito | Fishery product, see below |
| Anything with pork or beef extract | Caught by the ban |
Fish is a separate category, with a generous limit
Dashi is where travellers hesitate, because katsuobushi is an animal product and the ban is about animal products. But fish is handled separately from meat, and the allowance is large:
Eviscerated fresh fishery products, or prepared or processed fishery products: 20 kg or 1 fish (whichever weighs most) — Your Europe, European Commission
Twenty kilograms of katsuobushi is not a suitcase, it is a pallet. In practice this limit does not constrain a traveller at all. Dried bonito, niboshi, and a miso with bonito dashi blended into it are all comfortably inside it.
So the question to ask of a dashi product is the same one as in the US: which animal. Fish has a 20kg allowance. Pork and beef have none.
The penalty language is worth reading
Most countries describe a fine. The EU guidance goes further, noting that undeclared meat or dairy faces confiscation, destruction, fines, and possible criminal prosecution.
That is not a reason to panic about a bottle of soy sauce, which is not meat or dairy and not the target. It is a reason not to guess about a mixed seasoning whose label you cannot read. Declaring costs nothing.
Honey and a few other things at 2kg
One smaller limit worth knowing, because it catches people who shop well. Honey, and several other animal products that are neither meat nor fish, sit at a 2kg allowance. If you have been buying honey alongside the seasonings, that is the number.
Fruit, vegetables and eggs are allowed in limited quantities too, which mostly matters if you were thinking of carrying fresh yuzu. Buy the yuzu kosho instead. It travels better and it is a spice rather than fresh produce.
A short checklist
- Meat and dairy stay in Japan. No exception, no small amount
- Read blended labels for 豚 (pork), 牛 (beef), 鶏 (chicken) and milk powder. Plain soy sauce and plain miso are fine
- Fish is fine and the 20kg limit will not trouble you
- Keep everything sealed in its original labelled packaging
- Declare anything you are unsure about. The downside of declaring is a short conversation
Going somewhere else
The rules differ by destination, sometimes sharply. The other guides in this series cover the USA, Australia, Taiwan and Hong Kong.
Where to check before you fly
- Your Europe: Taking animal products, food or plants with you: the traveller-facing summary, and the clearest statement of the ban
- European Commission: Personal imports: the detailed limits, including the 20kg and 2kg figures
- European Commission: EU entry conditions: the wider framework, if you need it
Individual member states can add their own requirements on top of the EU baseline, so if you are landing somewhere with a reputation for strictness, the national customs site is worth a look as well.
Frequently asked questions
Can I bring soy sauce into the EU from Japan?
Soy sauce is made from soybeans, wheat, salt and koji. It contains no meat and no dairy, so the EU ban that catches most travellers does not apply to it. Keep it sealed in its original labelled packaging and pack anything over 100ml in checked baggage for the flight itself.
Is miso allowed into the EU?
Plain miso is soybeans, rice or barley, salt and koji, with neither meat nor dairy in it. The point to check is the label, because some miso has dashi blended in. Bonito is a fishery product and travellers may bring up to 20kg of those, which no tub of miso approaches. Anything with pork or beef extract runs into the meat ban instead.
What is banned outright when entering the EU?
Meat and dairy, from any non-EU country. The EU guidance states you are not allowed to bring any meat or dairy products with you, and unlike most customs rules there is no small-quantity exception to fall back on. A seasoning built on pork extract or containing milk powder is caught by this.
How much dried fish or katsuobushi can I bring into the EU?
Travellers may bring fishery products up to 20 kilograms, or the weight of one fish if that is heavier. Katsuobushi, niboshi and dried fish for dashi fall under this, and the limit is far above anything a traveller would realistically carry.
What happens if I do not declare food at an EU border?
The EU is explicit that undeclared meat or dairy faces confiscation and destruction, potential fines, and possible criminal prosecution. That is stronger language than most countries use. If you are carrying something you are unsure about, declaring it costs nothing.