UN 38.3 test summary

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49 CFR

Title 49 of the US Code of Federal Regulations, whose Hazardous Materials Regulations, issued by PHMSA, govern shipping batteries within and from the United States. Section 173.185 covers lithium cells and batteries: every design must pass UN 38.3, small cells and batteries get lighter rules, and damaged or recalled ones may travel only by road, rail or vessel.

IATA Dangerous Goods Regulations

The airline industry’s manual for shipping dangerous goods by air, built on the ICAO Technical Instructions and reissued every year. Lithium batteries fall under packing instructions 965–967 for lithium-ion — alone, packed with or inside equipment — and 968–970 for lithium metal. Lithium-ion batteries shipped alone must be at no more than 30 % state of charge; from 2026 so must those packed with equipment above 2.7 Wh.

UN 38.3

The United Nations test sequence that every lithium cell and battery must pass before it can be shipped: altitude, thermal cycling, vibration, shock, external short, impact or crush, overcharge and forced discharge. Air shipment of cells also caps state of charge at 30 %.

UN Model Regulations and Manual of Tests and Criteria

The two UN documents on which every dangerous-goods rule is built. The Model Regulations, the ‘Orange Book’, classify goods and set packing, marking and documentation, revised every two years; the Manual of Tests and Criteria gives the test methods, including sub-section 38.3 for lithium and sodium-ion batteries. Air, sea, road and rail rules all adopt them.

References & further reading

Further reading on this topic

These sources provide broader context; they are not presented as citations for every statement in this entry.

1. UN Manual of Tests and Criteria, Revision 8

   United Nations Economic Commission for Europe · 2023

   Topic background · Dangerous-goods classification tests; subsection 38.3 concerns battery transport testing.

2. Manual of Tests and Criteria, Revision 8, Amendment 1

   United Nations Economic Commission for Europe · 2025

   Topic background · Amendments to Revision 8, including changes to battery testing in subsection 38.3.