Notice to exporters : Updates to Canadian phytosanitary certificates

The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) has revised its policy on issuing phytosanitary certificates and phytosanitary certificates for re-export to align it with international standard for phytosanitary measures (ISPM) No. 12: Phytosanitary certificates.

Effective January 11, 2016, Canada will begin using a revised phytosanitary certificate for shipments for export.

Changes to the policy for phytosanitary issuance include:

• Updating certificate headings to ensure consistency with language used by the International Plant Protection Convention (IPPC),
• Removing the optional clause on the certifying statement of the phytosanitary certificate, and
• Adding the ability to include additional phytosanitary information in the certificate to facilitate subsequent re-export certification.

Phytosanitary certificates are issued by an exporting country's national plant protection organization such as the CFIA and certify that a shipment of plants, plant products or other regulated articles meets an importing country's specified phytosanitary requirements. CFIA is responsible for issuing phytosanitary certificates for Canadian exports. Please contact a CFIA office for more information.

All other elements on the Canadian phytosanitary certificate will remain the same.

Learn more about the changes to phytosanitary certificates and read the revised policy on the CFIA website.

Date modified:

2015-12-21