Original Phytosanitary Certificates Required for Plant Commodities
By NNR USA In USA Trade Alerts On 16th December 2021
**Updated Feb 24, 2022**
Starting October 1, 2022, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) and U.S. Customs & Border Protection will accept only original phytosanitary certificates and forms for plant commodities.
Phytosanitary certificates issued through the ePhyto system - a government-to-government sharing of electronic phytosanitary certificates, will continue to be accepted. Here is a list of participating ePhyto countries.
Acceptable phytosanitary certificates include:
- Certificates created through a participating country’s ePhyto system, or signed paper forms.
- Acceptable foreign site certificates of inspection and/or treatment include signed paper forms, signed copies of the master PPQ Form 203, and digitally signed electronic PPQ Form 203s.
During the pandemic, APHIS allowed importers of plant commodities to upload copies of phytosanitary certificates and forms.