US import rule for wood packaging (7 CFR 319.40-3)

Under 7 CFR 319.40-3(b), regulated wood packaging, including pallets used to carry imports, may enter the US under a general permit only if it was treated under 7 CFR part 305 and carries the IPPC-approved mark with an ISO country code, a producer number and a treatment code such as HT or MB. Unmarked packaging may be ordered re-exported.

What the rule requires

Paragraph (b) of 7 CFR 319.40-3 covers regulated wood packaging material, whether it is in use as packing for goods or imported as cargo itself. Two conditions apply:

The wood packaging must have been treated in accordance with 7 CFR part 305.
It must carry a visible, legible and permanent mark, preferably on at least two opposite sides, approved by the IPPC. The mark includes a unique graphic symbol, the ISO two-letter code of the country that produced the packaging, a unique number assigned by that country's plant protection organisation to the producer, and an abbreviation for the treatment, for example HT for heat treatment or MB for methyl bromide fumigation.

Unmarked packaging

An inspector at the port of first arrival may order the immediate re-export of regulated wood packaging that arrives without the required mark. That can be ordered in addition to, or instead of, the other port-of-arrival procedures in § 319.40-9. In practice, a euro pallet without a legible IPPC mark is a liability for the importer of record, not an asset.

Exceptions in the section

Wood packaging used by the US Department of Defense to package non-regulated articles, including commercial shipments under a DoD contract, may enter without the mark.
Paragraph (a) lets most regulated articles from Canada enter under a general permit, with exclusions for certain Rutaceae and for ash (Fraxinus), and with importer-document requirements.
Dry loose wood packing materials may be imported subject to inspection.

What it means for euro pallets arriving in the US

Euro pallets that came in under goods from Europe will normally carry an HT mark, because EPAL has required heat treatment of new pallets since 2010. Once those pallets are inside the US, the import rule has done its job; selling them domestically does not involve APHIS. If you later re-export them, the destination country's rules apply, and a pallet that has been repaired outside the licensed system may no longer qualify as correctly marked.

The amendment history printed with the section runs from 60 FR 27674 (May 25, 1995) to 85 FR 61809 (October 1, 2020).