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Notice to industry – Changes to required plant health documentation for importing invertebrates and micro-organisms

Ottawa, March 3, 2022 – The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) is updating and simplifying the process for importing invertebrates and micro-organisms under the Plant Protection Act.

Starting May 1, 2022, letters issued by the CFIA to importers of an invertebrate or microorganism, indicating that an import permit under the Plant Protection Act is not required, will no longer be accepted as import documentation. This change is made to support the implementation of a new digital service for invoicing within the My CFIA portal.

Appendix 1 of Plant Protection Policy Directive D-12-02, Import Requirements for Potentially Injurious Organisms (Other than Plants) to Prevent the Importation of Plant Pests in Canada, continues to be accepted as valid documentation that a plant protection import permit is not required. Importers will either need to (i) present a plant protection import permit or (ii) if a permit is not required, reference Appendix 1 in their shipping documents.

In parallel to the above-noted change, hundreds of organisms, including insects, bacteria and fungi, have been added to Appendix 1 to specify that they do not require an import permit under the Plant Protection Act. This simplifies the import process as importers of these organisms will no longer need to apply for a plant protection permit. If applicable, the shipping documents must refer to Appendix 1 and to the genus and species of the organism in question.

Before applying for a plant protection permit to import an invertebrate or microorganism, importers should review Appendix 1 to determine if a permit is needed. If 1 is needed, importers must submit to the CFIA form 5256, Application to Import Plants and Other Things under the Plant Protection Act.

Furthermore, importers should consult the CFIA's Automated Import Reference System (AIRS) to determine whether other CFIA requirements apply.

Direct questions regarding these updates to IAS.EEE@inspection.gc.ca.

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