epalrecycling.comEuro pallet reference for the US and Canada

ISPM 15 and euro pallets

Every wooden pallet that crosses a border needs to be debarked, treated by an approved method and marked. That is ISPM 15, and both the United States and Canada build their import rules on it.

Document
IDX-ISP
Sheet
Index
Last reviewed
Sources
4 cited
[EPAL mark][EPAL mark]IPPCXX-000HT000-0-00Centre block: treatment mark, licence and stapleOuter blockOuter block
On EPAL pallets the treatment mark sits on the centre blocks of the long sides. Schematic; the EPAL trademark is only shown as a placeholder.

The four treatment codes

CodeTreatmentRequirement
HTHeat treatment56 °C throughout the wood for 30 continuous minutes
DHDielectric heating60 °C throughout the wood, surface included, for 1 continuous minute
MBMethyl bromide fumigationmethyl bromide concentration-time product over 24 h (ISPM 15 Table 1)
SFSulphuryl fluoride fumigationsulphuryl fluoride concentration-time product over 24 or 48 h (ISPM 15 Table 3)

EPAL requires heat treatment for EPAL pallets and prohibits methyl bromide. Read the full summary of the standard on the ISPM 15 rules sheet, and the national rules for the United States and Canada.

Read a stamp

Type the codes into the stamp decoder, or follow the field guide.

By country of treatment

All 60 country sheets

Sources

Last reviewed . Figures come from these publications; follow the links for the current versions.

  1. ISPM 15, Regulation of wood packaging material in international trade (adopted 2018, published 2019), IPPC Secretariat / FAO
  2. 7 CFR 319.40-3, general permits; regulated wood packaging material, eCFR, US Government Publishing Office
  3. D-98-08: Entry requirements for wood packaging material into Canada (11th version, effective 2026-04-01), Canadian Food Inspection Agency
  4. ISPM 15: protection of international ecosystems, European Pallet Association e.V.

What do you need to do with them?

Pick one. Each form takes about a minute and goes to one partner, not a list of dealers.

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