Uzbekistan Customs Rules: What You Can Bring In and Take Out
Currency declaration thresholds, the certificate you need for anything over 50 years old, medication rules and drones. What to do before you buy a carpet.
Uzbekistan's customs procedures used to be famously heavy. They have been simplified a great deal, and most visitors now walk through the green channel without speaking to anybody.
Three things still catch people out: cash over the declaration threshold, antiques bought in a bazaar, and medication. This guide covers those, with the important caveat that rules change and the authoritative source is the State Customs Committee and your own embassy, not a travel blog. Check before you fly (last checked: July 2026).
Money: what has to be declared
Foreign currency can be brought in without limit, but above a threshold it must be declared on the customs form, and the figure usually cited is the equivalent of 2,000 US dollars.
Practical points:
- Declare if in doubt. The declaration is free, takes a few minutes and protects you on the way out.
- Keep your copy. The stamped form is what proves you brought the money in, which matters if you leave with a large amount.
- Taking out more than you brought in without documentation is the problem scenario. Bank and exchange receipts help.
- Local currency has its own limits on import and export, tied to the minimum wage figure, so do not plan on taking a pile of som home.
- Declaration covers more than notes: travellers' cheques and certain monetary instruments count too.
Most travellers never come close to the threshold, since ATMs work and cards are accepted for larger bills; our money guide covers the day-to-day side.
Antiques, carpets and cultural property
This is the rule that surprises people, and it is the one worth taking seriously.
Items of cultural value, and in practice anything more than fifty years old, cannot be exported without an expert assessment and permission connected to the Ministry of Culture. That covers carpets, suzani, jewellery, manuscripts, coins, ceramics, musical instruments, religious objects and paintings.
Mass-produced modern souvenirs and machine-made textiles are not restricted. The grey area is the handmade modern piece that looks old, and the genuinely old piece sold to you as modern.
What to do:
- Ask the seller for documentation before you pay. Reputable shops know exactly what is required and can arrange the assessment.
- Keep the receipt with the item's description and date, and carry it with the piece.
- Be sceptical of "genuine antique" claims at bazaar prices. Either the claim is false, which means you are overpaying, or it is true, which means you have an export problem.
- Budget time. An assessment is not something to arrange on the morning of your flight.
- Declare it at the airport rather than hoping. Confiscation and a fine is the downside.
Our suzani guide and carpet guide both cover the buying side, and the short version is that modern hand-made work is the sensible purchase for almost everyone.
Medication
Uzbekistan controls a broader range of medicines than many countries, and some drugs that are routine at home are restricted here, particularly strong painkillers, sedatives, psychiatric medication and anything containing codeine.
The safe approach:
Carry medicines in their original packaging with the pharmacy label. Bring a doctor's letter or a copy of the prescription, ideally translated into Russian, listing the drug, the dose and the condition. Bring only the quantity you need for the trip plus a small margin. Declare anything controlled rather than assuming nobody will look.
Check the current list with an Uzbek embassy or consulate before travelling if you take anything in these categories. Our health guide covers pharmacies and medical care once you are in the country.
How the antique assessment works
Since this is the rule that most often turns into a problem at the airport, it is worth knowing what the process actually involves.
An item you want to export is examined by an authorised expert, who assesses its age and whether it counts as cultural property. If it is modern, you get documentation saying so, which is what you show at customs. If it is genuinely old and significant, permission to export may be refused outright, and no amount of paperwork changes that.
Established shops in Bukhara, Samarkand and Tashkent deal with this routinely and will organise it for you, usually within a few days and for a modest fee. Bazaar sellers generally will not, which is a practical reason to buy anything substantial from a shop rather than a stall.
Where visitors go wrong is buying an appealing old-looking piece on the last afternoon of a trip. Either you leave without it, or you gamble at the airport. If you want something old, look for it early in your trip and let the seller do the paperwork while you travel on.
It is also worth knowing why the rule exists. Central Asian antiquities have been trafficked steadily for decades, and several countries, including the United States, have imposed import restrictions on Uzbek archaeological and ethnological material. The controls are not a bureaucratic relic; they are an active heritage-protection measure.
Other restrictions
| Item | Position |
|---|---|
| Drones | Restricted; permission required and often refused. Do not bring one on spec |
| Satellite phones and radio equipment | Restricted; prior permission needed |
| Alcohol and tobacco | Personal allowances apply, as elsewhere |
| Printed and recorded material | Material judged extremist or pornographic is prohibited |
| Weapons, ammunition, drugs | Prohibited, with serious penalties |
| Plants, seeds, raw animal products | Subject to quarantine rules in both directions |
| Fresh fruit out of the country | Usually restricted by the destination country rather than Uzbekistan; dried fruit is fine |
Photography restrictions are not a customs matter but belong in the same mental category: do not photograph military installations, border facilities, the Afghan frontier at Termez, or inside metro stations where signs prohibit it.
At the airport
Arrival is usually quick: passport control, baggage, and a green or red channel. Take the red channel if you are carrying cash above the threshold or anything restricted.
Departure involves security screening before check-in as well as after, which surprises people and means arriving early. Antiques, large textiles and musical instruments may be looked at; have your paperwork accessible rather than buried in a bag.
Registration slips from hotels, which used to be checked rigorously, are no longer the ordeal they were, but keeping them costs nothing. Our Tashkent airport guide covers arrival and departure procedures in detail, and our visa guide covers entry requirements.
What you can safely buy and take
Rather than a list of prohibitions, here is the positive version: the things visitors buy most, none of which cause any trouble at the airport.
Modern hand-made textiles. Suzani, ikat fabric, scarves and cushion covers made recently. Light, flat and unrestricted.
Ceramics. Rishtan and Gijduvan plates and bowls from working workshops. Wrap them well and put them in hand luggage.
Dried fruit, nuts and spices. Excellent value and generally permitted, though your own country's import rules apply, so check before buying five kilos of apricots.
Doppi caps, knives and metalwork. Note that knives go in checked luggage, not hand luggage, which is obvious and still catches people out at security.
Paper from the Samarkand mill, silk, tea, and small musical instruments of modern make.
Our carpet and textile guide covers prices and quality for the bigger purchases.
Registration, and why people still worry about it
Older guidebooks devote pages to registration slips, and it is worth explaining what changed.
Foreign visitors staying in Uzbekistan must be registered at their place of stay within a few days of arrival. Hotels and licensed guesthouses do this automatically and hand you a small slip for each night; there is nothing for you to do beyond keeping them.
Historically, missing slips could mean fines or a difficult conversation on departure, which is why the subject looms so large in old accounts. Enforcement has relaxed considerably and departing travellers are rarely asked for the full set now.
The complication arises if you stay somewhere unregistered: with friends, in a homestay that is not licensed, or camping in the desert for several nights. The current system allows online registration for such stays, and a good tour operator will handle it. If you are travelling independently and sleeping outside the hotel system, ask a local contact how to register rather than assuming nobody cares.
Keep the slips in your passport. They weigh nothing, and the one time an official asks, you will be glad to have them.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need to declare my cash?
If you are carrying foreign currency above the equivalent of about 2,000 US dollars, yes, on the customs form at arrival. Keep the stamped copy, since it is your evidence on departure. Declaring is free and avoids any question later.
Can I take a carpet or suzani home?
Modern machine-made and mass-produced pieces, yes, without formality. Anything over fifty years old, or judged to be of cultural value, needs an expert assessment and permission linked to the Ministry of Culture. Ask the seller to arrange the paperwork before you pay.
Are drones allowed?
Treat the answer as no unless you have obtained written permission in advance. Drones are regularly confiscated at the airport, and flying one near monuments, government buildings or borders will cause you real problems.
What about my prescription medication?
Bring it in original packaging with a doctor's letter, preferably translated into Russian, and only in the quantity you need. Check in advance with an Uzbek embassy if you take controlled drugs such as strong painkillers or psychiatric medication.
Are customs officials difficult?
Far less so than the country's old reputation suggests. Procedures have been simplified and most visitors pass through quickly. Being polite, declaring what should be declared and having paperwork for anything unusual resolves nearly every situation.
Featured image: BeshevI (CC BY-SA 4.0) via Wikimedia Commons.