China (People's Republic of) – Export requirements for fish and seafood

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Exporters are encouraged to confirm with Chinese importers that they meet China's import requirements prior to exporting.

On this page

• Eligible/ineligible product
• Pre-export approvals by competent authority of importing country
  • Export of live aquatic animals to China
  • Export of non-live aquatic animals to China
• Product specifications
• Packaging, labelling and marking requirements
• Documentation requirements
• Other information
• Appendix A – Request for addition to the list of eligible countries (areas) and aquatic products approved for exporting to China

Eligible/ineligible product

Eligible

• Live and non-live fish and seafood species which have been approved for export to China

  The following lists are implemented by the GACC and its China Inspection and Quarantine (CIQ) branches at ports of entry:

  • Live species: List of live aquatic animals (by family) approved for export to China (in Chinese only – food products located on first tab) (Excel)
  • Non-live species: List of non-live aquatic animals (by species) approved for export to China (in Chinese only)

Canada's approved products can be found by searching 加拿大 in either above list

• Bulk oil derived from any species of fish or aquatic animal (species approval is not required)
• Dried swim bladder of fish from any species (species approval is not required)
• Marine plant food products
  • if exported in its fresh (chilled) or frozen form, then species approval is required
  • if exported in all other forms: species approval is not required

To add a product to China's approved lists, establishments are asked to provide the following information to their local CFIA office: product name (scientific, common), processing method (live, fresh/chilled, frozen, fish roe, etc.), production method, territorial waters, country of origin, estimated annual production in Canada and estimated annual export volume to China.

See Appendix A for more details.

Ineligible

• Oysters
• Edible seal products

Pre-export approvals by competent authority of importing country

Export of live aquatic animals to China

List of Canadian Live Aquatic Animal Establishments Registered to export to China

In order to export to China, establishments who process, label, pack and/or store live aquatic animals must appear on China's Quarantine Registration List of Overseas Animals and Plants and Relevant Products administered by GACC.

• To access Canada's list of approved establishments for live aquatic animals, select:
  • Type: Animal and animal products
  • Country/Region: Canada
  • Province/State: Canada
  • Product type: Aquatic animals and genetic materials
  • Product category: Edible aquatic animals
  • Further filtering is available by entering the Overseas official registration number (CFIA's issued establishment identification (ID) number)

Procedure to add, modify or delete a live aquatic animal establishment registered to export to China

The CFIA must submit an application on the establishment's behalf to request changes to GACC's list.

Please contact your local CFIA office to initiate a request in writing to add, modify, or delete an establishment. For modification and deletion requests, please provide the company name and establishment ID number as they appear on the list. For addition requests, please include the following information:

• establishment identification (ID) number
• Safe Food for Canadians (SFC) licence number
• company name as it should appear on the export list. The options are:
  • legal name of business as it appears on the SFC licence, or
  • legal name of business (operating name), or
  • legal name of business (vessel name)
• physical site address of establishment
• establishment type (production, packaging and processing)
• animal species (Mollusca, Crustacean, Echinoderm, or Fish)

Before final approval, GACC may request additional information and/or audit the establishment.

Export of non-live aquatic animals to China

China Import Food Enterprise Registration (CIFER) system

All establishments that manufacture, process or store non-live fish and seafood products for export to China must be registered in GACC's China Import Food Enterprise Registration (CIFER) system,

• Note: Establishments that only ship live fish and seafood products to China do not need to be registered in CIFER at this time.

Details on the requirements and process for application to China's CIFER system can be found on the CIFER Industry Guidance page.

All fish and seafood establishments, including cold storage warehouses, wishing to become registered in the CIFER system:

• must be licensed under and in compliance with all aspects of the Safe Food for Canadians Act and Safe Food for Canadians Regulations (SFCR), as well as meet China's regulatory requirements,
• are subject to Preventive Control Plan (PCP) requirements under the SFCR.

When an establishment that is already on the list undergoes a name change, the documentation and labelling must identify the previous legal name, as recorded on the list in CIFER, until such time as the list is officially amended.

If an establishment that is registered in CIFER undergoes a change in ownership, the current registration must be cancelled, and the new owner must reapply for approval in the CIFER system.

Establishments are only eligible to export products that were produced after the initial date of registration in CIFER. This date can be found in the CIFER query system.

Verifying establishment registration in CIFER

A list of all registered establishments can be found in the CIFER query system.

Product specifications

• Chinese customs authorities may conduct sampling and testing activities on exported products to verify compliance to Chinese requirements

Chemical contaminants

• Fish and seafood products intended for human consumption must meet the relevant chemical contaminants criteria as specified under GB 2762–2022 China's National Food Safety Standard for Maximum Levels of Contaminants in Food, effective from 30 June 2023
• To assist exporters, maximum levels for a selection of heavy metals are outlined in the table below. Please refer to GB 2762-2022 for a full list of chemical contaminants and their maximum limits
• A full English translation (PDF) of the GB 2762–2022 has also been provided via the USDA Foreign Agricultural Service

Therapeutants and antibiotics requirements

• The maximum limits established for therapeutants and antibiotics may differ between China and Canada
• Exporters of aquaculture fish and seafood products should discuss and confirm any regulatory requirements with Chinese importers
• Any detections of a residue above China maximum levels (as applicable) may result in rejection of a shipment

Microbiological requirements

• Fish and seafood products intended for human consumption must meet the relevant microbiologicallimits as specified under GB 10136-2015 China's National Food Safety Standard for processed aquatic products of animal origin
  • This standard applies to aquatic animal products which fall into the ready-to-eat raw, ready-to-eat marinated, and cooked categories
  • A full English translation (PDF) of the GB10136-2015 has also been provided via the USDA Foreign Agricultural Service
• Additional microbiological limits are also specified under GB 29921-2021 China's National Food Safety Standard for Limits of Pathogens in Pre-packaged Foods (PDF) (in Chinese only)
  • A full English translation (PDF) of the GB 29921-2021 has also been provided via the USDA Foreign Agricultural Service

Packaging, labelling and marking requirements

As of January 1, 2022:

• The inner and outer packaging should have strong, clear, and legible Chinese and English or Chinese and export country (region) text marks, indicating the following:
  • name of the goods and scientific name
  • specifications
  • production date
  • lot number
  • shelf life
  • storage conditions
  • production method (seawater fishing, freshwater fishing, aquaculture)
  • production area (ocean fishing areas, freshwater fishing countries or regions, countries or regions where the aquaculture products are located)
  • all production and processing enterprises involved (including fishing vessels, processing vessels, and transport vessels and an independent cold store) name, registration number and address (specific to the state/province/city)
  • the destination must be marked as the People's Republic of China
• For aquatic products entering directly into the domestic consumer market, the labelling requirements must be implemented item by item
• For products not entering directly into the domestic consumer market (including raw materials for processing and re-export), pallets, containers and shipping cabins may be used as independent packaging units to indicate the labelling requirements
• If the liner is a 'closed plastic bag', an inner label is required to be attached to the bag
• If the liner is 'not closed', an inner label is not required

Note: the packaging and labelling requirements of foods produced before January 1, 2022, shall follow the original requirements that were in place prior to the implementation of Decrees 248 and 249.

Establishment Registration Number on packaging:

• Fish and seafood products produced on or after January 1, 2022, shall be marked on the inner and outer packaging with China's registration number or the CFIA unique establishment number
• It is the responsibility of exporters to communicate with their importers in China to ensure that the packaging, labelling and marking meet the Chinese import requirements

Documentation requirements

Certificate

Note: exporters are responsible for ensuring that the establishment is eligible to ship the products being certified. Exporters may contact their local CFIA office for information on how to add additional products if they want to ship products that they are not currently approved for in CIFER.

1. For fresh and frozen products including bivalve molluscan shellfish: Health Certificate for Fishery products intended for export from Canada to the People's Republic of China (CFIA/ACIA 5328)

   All fields on the certificate are mandatory unless otherwise stated. If a field is not applicable, please enter "N/A". The following information is additional guidance on the completion of certain fields:

   Under Section I. Origin of the fishery products:

   • Production place: the appropriate CFIA operational area(s) where processing occurred: Atlantic Canada, Quebec Canada, Ontario Canada, and/or Western Canada
   • Aquaculture region (name and address of farm): this field applies for all aquacultured fish. Provide the name and address of 1 of the fish farms where the fish were raised
   • Catch vessel name(s) and number(s): this field applies for all wild caught fish. Provide the name and registration or licence number^Footnote 1 of all of the fishing vessels used to harvest the fish
   • Name(s), registration number(s) and address(es) of producing and processing enterprise(s), factory vessel(s), cold store(s) or freezer vessel(s) registered by the CFIA for export to the People's Republic of China
     • Identify all facilities involved with the processing of the product(s)
     • For example, if a product was processed at 1 establishment and then stored at a cold store, both facilities would need to be identified on the certificate

2. For all live fish and seafood (fish, crustaceans, and bivalve molluscs): Origin and Hygiene Certificate for live fish intended for export for human consumption from Canada to the People's Republic of China (CFIA/ACIA 5584)

   All fields on the certificate template are mandatory unless otherwise stated. If a field is not applicable, please enter "N/A". The following information is additional guidance on the completion of certain fields:

   • For live fish and seafood:

     Under Section II: Destination of the live aquatic animals:

     • Product to be offloaded and reloaded into a different transport vehicle: complete this field if product is transferred into a different transport vehicle during shipping. Examples include:
       • Products, for example, live lobster, which are dispatched from Canada via truck to the United States (US), offloaded, and reloaded onto an airplane
       • Change of aircraft after dispatch from a Canadian airport
     • Name(s) and registration number(s) of establishment(s), factory vessel(s), cold store(s) or freezer vessel(s) registered by the CFIA for export to the People's Republic of China
       • Identify all facilities involved with the processing of the product(s)
   • For live bivalve molluscs:

     Under Section I: Origin of the live aquatic animals:

     • FAO Fishing region: the fishing area and the harvest area
   • For live crab harvested in FAO Area 67:

     Under Section I: Origin of the live aquatic animals:

     • FAO Fishing region: the fishing area and the sub-area
       • For example, indicate FAO Area 67 (British Columbia, Oregon, Washington or Alaska)

Other information

Further information on import requirements can be obtained from the General Administration of Customs of the People's Republic of China (GACC).

Appendix A – Request for addition to the list of live or non-live aquatic animals approved for export to China