Can you bring laundry detergent on a plane?

Detergent and bleach on flights in and from Japan

On a domestic flight only the quantity limits apply. On an international flight the liquid rule comes on top.

Domestic flights in Japan

The 100ml liquid limit does not apply.

International flights from Japan

Each container 100ml or less, all of them inside one transparent re-sealable bag of 1 litre or less, one bag per person.

• Carry-on liquid limits: exemptions, connections and the rule in each country

Laundry liquid, powder and bleach: where each list draws the line

The same shelf holds products that fly and products that never do. The lists separate them by form and by what the label says.

Counted with toiletries, not on its own

Japan's list files household detergent in its toiletries table, beside hair spray and mouthwash. The limits of 0.5 L or 0.5 kg per container and 2 L or 2 kg per person are therefore shared. A bottle of detergent counts against the same 2 L or 2 kg that the passenger's toiletries, medicines and spray cans draw on.

The label words that ground a bottle

The detergent row leaves out bleach and mould remover and adds a label test: a detergent marked 「塩素系」 (chlorine-based) or 「混ぜるな危険」 (do not mix, danger) can be neither carried on nor checked. Bleach and strong mould remover appear again as a row of their own among the dangerous liquids, marked × and ×.

More cleaners on the Japanese liquids list

For the cabin on international flights, Japan's liquids list goes beyond laundry and dishwashing detergent. The Japanese version also names delicates detergent, stain remover, ironing finish, cleaners for the house, toilet, bath and glass, and carpet cleaner. Each follows the 100 ml container rule, and a product with the chlorine or do-not-mix label stays banned whatever its size.

Powder is measured differently in the US and Australia

The TSA has a separate entry, Detergent (powder or pellet): Yes for carry-on and Yes for checked bags, with powders above 12 oz. / 350 mL placed in a separate bin for X-ray. Australia's Home Affairs names powdered detergent as an inorganic powder. On international flights each container must be 350 mL or 350 g or less, and so must the total per person.

Bleach at the TSA, in Hong Kong, Korea and Australia

Liquid Bleach is No for carry-on and No for checked bags at the TSA, and so is Chlorine for Pools and Spas. Hong Kong's CAD gives bleach as its example of an oxidizer, forbidden in both bags, and Korea's aviation security portal lists bleach among oxidizing dangerous goods. CASA puts bleach and drain cleaner under Item Not Permitted, yet its laundry detergent entry covers detergents containing an oxygen whitening product.

• Glue and adhesives
• Paint and thinner

Detergent and bleach: the rule country by country

The carry-on answer for detergent and bleach is the same in all 4 other places we checked. The limits themselves are not identical, so read the row for the country you fly from.

Each row comes from that authority's own page. Airlines can be stricter, and the screening officer has the final say.

If security in Japan will not let detergent and bleach through

What to do

Move detergent and bleach to the bag you check in before you reach security, within the checked-baggage limits above. Narita Airport states that anything given up at the checkpoint is discarded and cannot be returned.

Buying detergent and bleach in Japan

Where to buy

Supermarkets, drugstores, hundred-yen shops.

Related items

• Umbrellas
• Backpacks and rucksacks
• Earplugs and eye masks
• Zip-lock bags for liquids
• Disposable hand warmers
• Refillable hand warmers (fuel type)