Language selection

Search

Importing pet aquatic animals

This page is part of the Guidance Document Repository (GDR).

Looking for related documents?
Search for related documents in the Guidance Document Repository

The Health of Animals Regulations provide the requirements for importing aquatic animals (finfish, molluscs or crustaceans) into Canada. Aquatic animals that are brought into Canada must be declared and in the case of aquatic animals on the susceptible species list, must have an import permit unless otherwise exempt.

The Canadian Food Inspection Agency recognizes that some species of susceptible aquatic animals held in aquaria represent a low risk for spreading diseases. Therefore, some of these susceptible species have been granted an exemption, as outlined below.

Pet aquatic animal exemption

When importing an aquatic animal, an import permit will not be required when the owner can:

- and -

The pet aquatic animal is one of the following susceptible species of finfish:

When importing pet aquatic animals, the owner is required to complete and provide the Importer's Declaration of Ownership for Pet Aquatic Animals Form at the point of entry.

Import permits are required for all live susceptible species of finfish including those listed above if the requirements for the pet aquatic animal exemption are not met.

For susceptible molluscs and crustaceans, an import permit is necessary unless the requirements for the personal use exemption found in the Health of Animals Regulations are met.

The import requirements for pet aquatic animals can be found in the Health of Animals Regulations.

For more information, contact your CFIA Animal Health Office.

Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES)

It is the importer's/owner's responsibility to determine whether the species being imported is subject to the controls imposed by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), which are administered by the Canadian Wildlife Service. Please contact the Canadian Wildlife Service for information.

Date modified: