On Tuesday, the U.S. Customs and Border Protection issued a trade notice which updated wood packaging material guidance for wood packing material destined to the U.S.
This trade notice CSMS#17-000612, spotlights a date of November 1st for potential penalties that the responsible party for wood packaging material (WPM) imports may face should their wpm be found to be in violation.
The trade notice specifically states, “Pursuant to U.S. Code of Federal Regulations 7 CFR § 319.40-3 (effective since September 16, 2005), non-exempt wood packaging material (WPM) imported into the United States must have been treated at approved facilities at places of origin to kill harmful timber pests that may be present. The WPM must display a visible, legible, and permanent mark certifying treatment, preferably in at least 2 sides of the article. The mark must be approved under the International Plant Protection Convention (IPPC) in its International Standards of Phytosanitary Measures (ISPM 15).”
According to U.S. Customs and Border Protection, “Effective November 1, 2017, responsible parties with a documented WPM violation may be issued a penalty under Title 19 United States Code (USC) § 1595a(b) or under 19 USC § 1592. This is a change from the previous published threshold of 5 violations. There will be no yearly reset for calculating repeat violations as each WPM violation may incur a penalty.”
Importation of Wood Packing revised regulations went into effect September 16, 2005, and the requirements can be found here.
For more information, please contact your local MIQ Logistics representative.