Limited and excepted quantities: LQ and EQ in practice

Paint, adhesives, cleaning products, aerosols: a lot of dangerous goods travel in small packagings, and ADR makes that easier. Chapter 3.4 covers limited quantities (LQ) and Chapter 3.5 covers excepted quantities (EQ). This guide explains the limits, how packages are marked, and when the vehicle itself has to carry a mark.

Limited quantities: what you're exempt from

Column (7a) of Table A in Chapter 3.2 gives the maximum quantity per inner packaging for each entry, for example 1 L or 5 kg. A "0" there means the goods can't be carried as LQ (3.4.1).

When a consignment meets Chapter 3.4, most of ADR no longer applies. What remains is listed in 3.4.1, including training under Chapter 1.3, the mixed loading ban with explosives (7.5.2.4) and the tunnel rules in 8.6.3.3 and 8.6.4. You don't need a transport document under 5.4.1, orange plates or an ADR driver training certificate. Awareness training under 8.2.3 is enough.

LQ goods also don't count towards the 1000-point threshold in 1.1.3.6 (1.1.3.6.5).

Packaging and package marks

• Always combination packaging: inner packagings in a suitable outer packaging, up to 30 kg gross per package (3.4.2).
• Shrink-wrapped or stretch-wrapped trays: allowed as outer packaging, but then 20 kg gross at most (3.4.3).
• LQ mark: a square set at 45°, with black top and bottom sections and border and a white or contrasting centre. At least 100 × 100 mm, border at least 2 mm wide (3.4.7.1). If the package is small, it can shrink to 50 × 50 mm as long as it stays clearly visible (3.4.7.2).
• Mark with a "Y": used for consignments under the ICAO rules for air transport. ADR accepts it (3.4.8).
• Overpack: if the package marks can't be seen, the outside gets the LQ mark and the word "OVERPACK" in letters at least 12 mm high (3.4.11).

Before the journey, the consignor has to tell the carrier the total gross mass of the LQ goods in a traceable form (3.4.12). That's how the carrier knows whether the vehicle needs a mark.

When the vehicle needs the LQ mark

This is the part examiners like most. The rules from 3.4.13 to 3.4.15:

Case	What applies
up to 12 t	a transport unit with a maximum mass of 12 tonnes or less needs no LQ mark, however much LQ it carries
over 12 t	mark front and rear when the LQ packages weigh more than 8 tonnes gross in total
up to 8 t of LQ	no mark needed (3.4.14)
container	a container with LQ on a unit over 12 t is marked on all four sides; the 8-tonne threshold applies per transport unit
with orange plates	if other goods in the load need orange plates, the plates are enough; showing both is also allowed

The vehicle mark is at least 250 × 250 mm. When there's no LQ on board, it has to be removed or covered (3.4.15).

Excepted quantities: even smaller packagings

Excepted quantities are very small amounts, such as laboratory samples. The code is in column (7b) of Table A (3.5.1.2):

Code	Inner packaging	Outer packaging
E0	not permitted as an excepted quantity
E1	30 g or 30 mL	1000 g or 1000 mL
E2	30 g or 30 mL	500 g or 500 mL
E3	30 g or 30 mL	300 g or 300 mL
E4	1 g or 1 mL	500 g or 500 mL
E5	1 g or 1 mL	300 g or 300 mL

The exemption goes further than for LQ. Only training under Chapter 1.3, classification under Part 2 and some general packaging rules apply (3.5.1.1). The package has to pass a 1.8 m drop test and a 24-hour stacking test (3.5.3).

• EQ mark: a square with a hatched border in black or red, at least 100 × 100 mm. Inside go the label number and, if not shown elsewhere on the package, the consignor's or consignee's name (3.5.4).
• Limit per vehicle: no more than 1000 EQ packages per vehicle or container (3.5.5).
• Paperwork: if a document travels with the goods, such as a CMR note, it must say "Dangerous Goods in Excepted Quantities" and give the number of packages (3.5.6).

LQ and EQ side by side

Feature	LQ (3.4)	EQ (3.5)
Limit	column (7a), e.g. 1 L	column (7b), codes E1 to E5
Package	up to 30 kg gross	by code, e.g. 1000 mL for E1
Mark	black and white diamond	hatched square
Vehicle	LQ mark over 12 t and 8 t of LQ	no mark, up to 1000 packages
Tunnels	marked unit: not through E	no restriction

Practise it now

The 8 and 12 tonne limits, mark sizes and the LQ/EQ difference turn up again and again in the exam. Our free test uses real exam-style questions with explanations. The app has the full syllabus.

Sources

ADR 2025 (UNECE English text): 1.1.3.6.5, 1.9.5.3.6, 3.4.1 to 3.4.15, 3.5.1 to 3.5.6, 7.5.2.4, 8.2.3, 8.6.4 and columns (7a) and (7b) of Table A in Chapter 3.2. This guide explains the basics. When preparing a consignment, the wording of ADR applies.