Canada to Stop Accepting Phytosanitary Certificates from China for Wood Packaging Material from Sept. 1, 2009
Canada Border Services Agency has issued Customs Notice CN09-002 to inform importers about a change to the Canadian Food Inspection Agency's (CFIA's) wood packaging policy. Starting September 1, 2009, phytosanitary certificates from China for wood packaging material (WPM) will no longer be an accepted treatment certification method in Canada.
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Only IPPC Mark Will be Acceptable for China WPM Effective September 1, 2009
Starting September 1, 2009, a valid International Plant Protection Convention (IPPC) mark will be the only accepted treatment certification method for WPM from China.
Ending Practice of Allowing Both Types of Certification for China Due to Fraud
Though CFIA regulations1 allow phtyosanitary certificates to be used as an alternative to the valid IPPC mark, CBSA sources state it will no longer allow this alternative for China due to the number of fraudulent Chinese phytosanitary certificates.
(Note that according to APHIS sources, the U.S. only accepts the IPPC mark.)
Verified Chinese Phytosanitary Certificates Accepted from June 1 - Aug. 31, 2009
From June 1 - August 31, 2009, importers will be granted a grace period whereby WPM accompanied by a Chinese phytosanitary certificate in lieu of an IPPC mark will be allowed to enter Canada, subject to a verification of the certificate's authenticity by Canada's CFIA and China's General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine.
CBSA to Fully Enforce Policy/Refuse Entry Without IPPC Mark, Sept. 1, 2009
CBSA states that starting September 1, 2009, the new policy change will be fully enforced, and it will refuse the entry of any wood packaging material certified with a Chinese phytosanitary certificate in lieu of a valid IPPC mark.
1Canada's entry requirements for WPM (except for WPM produced in the continental U.S. - for which Canada and the U.S. have established bilateral phytosanitary measures) are laid out in D-98-08 (dated 11/03/08), which is available at http://www.inspection.gc.ca/english/plaveg/protect/dir/d-98-08e.shtml.
CBSA Customs Notice (No. CN09-002, dated 03/04/09) available at http://www.cbsa.gc.ca/publications/cn-ad/cn09-002-eng.html