Phytosanitary and veterinary health certificates
A phytosanitary certificate is issued under IPPC standards by the exporting country’s official plant-protection organisation after inspection, confirming that plant products – grain, pulses, seeds, timber, wooden pallets – are free of pests and meet the importing country’s requirements. Animal products such as meat, milk powder, fishmeal and gelatin require an official veterinary health certificate instead. Wooden packaging must be heat-treated and stamped under ISPM 15. Missing or non-compliant certificates lead to detention, destruction or re-export at customs.
Related terms
Mycotoxins and aflatoxin limits
Toxic compounds produced by moulds in grains, oilseeds, nuts, spices and feed: aflatoxins (B1 and total), ochratoxin A, deoxynivalenol (DON), zearalenone, fumonisins and T-2. Legal limits differ widely by country and use – in the EU, for example, aflatoxin B1 in nuts for direct consumption is limited to 2–8 µg/kg, and exceeding it triggers RASFF notifications and rejection of the shipment. The contract must state the limits, the sampling method and whose laboratory result is final.
Certificate of origin and preferential origin proofs (EUR.1, A.TR, Form A) C/O
A document showing the country in which goods were produced or obtained, usually certified by a chamber of commerce. Non-preferential certificates serve anti-dumping, quota and import-ban rules; preferential proofs give reduced or zero duty under free trade agreements – the A.TR movement certificate for industrial goods between the EU and Türkiye, EUR.1 or an origin declaration on the invoice where origin rules are met, Form D in ASEAN, Form E under China’s agreements, and so on. Origin rules vary by product, and false documents bring large duty differences and penalties.
Pre-shipment inspection (independent inspection) PSI
An independent inspection company – SGS, Bureau Veritas, Intertek, Cotecna, CCIC, ALS and others – checks quality, quantity, packing and marking, draws samples and issues a report before the goods are loaded. The contract should state whether results are “final at load port” or “final at discharge”. Some countries require inspection under certificate of conformity (CoC) programmes for imports. It is one of the most effective safeguards when working with a new supplier.