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APHIS Set to Begin Phase 7 Lacey Act Import Declaration Enforcement on Dec. 1

May 30, 2024 by Brian Feito|Top News

The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service plans to begin its seventh phase of enforcement of Lacey Act import declaration requirements on Dec. 1, it said in a notice that includes a list of tariff provisions included under phase seven and seeks comments on product coverage.

Comments are due July 30. If APHIS makes changes based on those comments, it will publish those changes in the Federal Register and give “industries affected by those changes” at least six months notice “to facilitate compliance with the new requirements.”

“In this phase, declarations will be required for all remaining plant product Harmonized Tariff Schedule (HTS) codes that are not 100-percent composite materials,” APHIS said in a news release. Composite materials will be included in the next, eighth phase of Lacey Act enforcement (see 2312050078).

“If an importer imports items that contain plant products, but do not currently file a Lacey Act declaration, they likely will need to file under Phase VII,” APHIS said in the release. “Phase VII includes the broadest range of items, items as varied as industrial or medicinal plants, handbags, plywood, laminated wood, tools, matches with natural wood stems, products of natural cork, products of bamboo and rattan, footwear and more. Plant and wood products included in past phases include timber, some furniture, essential oils, wood cases and trunks, and woodwind instruments and their parts and accessories.”

Specifically, APHIS listed subheadings under the following chapters (and product descriptions) for phase seven enforcement, as follows (see the notice for the full list of tariff headings and subheadings subject to Phase VII):