Update on APHIS Enforcement for Lacey Act Declaration for Imported Plants/Products
Issue 18, February 4, 2009
The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) has published a notice announcing revisions to its enforcement phase-in plan for the Lacey Act Amendment declaration requirement for imported plants and plant products.
Phased-in enforcement of the declaration requirement begins on April 1, 2009, unless the implementation date must be delayed for technical reasons.
The length of each phase has been extended to six months (originally set for three months). APHIS has provided a revised list of products that fall within each of the listed phases of declaration requirement enforcement and has included notations of the applicable HTSUS headings for the subject products.
The revised phase-in enforcement schedule for the import declaration for plants and plant products, through September 30, 2010, is as follows:
| Phase I | December 15, 2008 – March 2009 |
PPQ Plant Import Declaration Form available on Web site, and accepted on/after Dec. 15, 2008. Outreach |
|---|---|---|
| Phase II | April 1, 2009 – Sept 30, 2009 |
HTS Chapters: Ch. 44 Headings (Wood & Articles of Wood) 4401 (fuel wood) |
| Phase III | October 1, 2009 – March 31, 2010 |
HTS Chapters: Ch. 44 Headings (Wood & Articles of Wood) 4402 (wood charcoal) Ch. 47 Headings (Wood Pulp) 4701 (mechanical wood pulp) Plus Phase II |
| Phase IV | April 1, 2010 – Sept 30, 2010 |
HTS Chapters: Ch. 44 Headings (Wood & Articles of Wood) 4421 (articles of wood, nesoi) Ch. 48 Headings (Paper and Articles of) 4801 (newsprint) Ch. 94 Headings (Furniture, etc.) 9401.69 (seats with wooden frames) Plus Phases II and III |
APHIS states that it will continue to consider the applicability of the declaration requirement to products not included in the current phase-in schedule, and is inviting comments on how the declaration should be enforced as to these products. Written comments on this plan are due by April 6, 2009.
At present, APHIS plans to only enforce the declaration requirement on formal consumption entries. APHIS does not intend to enforce the declaration requirement for informal entries, personal importations, mail (unless subject to formal entry), transportation and exportation entries, in-transit movements, carnet importations, foreign trade zone entries, or warehouse entries.
Also, APHIS states they only enforce the declaration requirement for the actual product being imported and not the materials that ordinarily accompany the product (e.g., tags, labels, manuals, and warranty cards).
A copy of APHIS’s notice is available at- http://edocket.access.gpo.gov/2009/pdf/E9-2232.pdf
Regards,
Paul Vroman
Regulatory & Compliance Consultant
DHL Global Forwarding
