By Richie Lin    Photo：CANVA

The Lacey Act was first enacted in 1900 and significantly amended in 1981, is the United States' oldest wildlife protection statute. The Act was designed to combat trafficking in illegally taken wildlife, fish, or plants. The Lacey Act now makes it unlawful to import, export, transport, sell, purchase any plants which are taken, possessed, transported, or sold in violation of any law of the United States or foreign laws. The main purpose is to protect plants from certain specified plant-related activities in illegally harvested or sourced plant materials, thereby helping conserve global forests and ecosystems. The Lacey Act requires importers to provide documentation and declarations that prove the legality of the plants and plant products they are importing.

The Lacey Act applies to a wide range of plant and plant-related products, including but not limited to:

• Timber and wood products
• Paper and paper products
• Furniture made from wood
• Musical instruments made from wood
• Plants, seeds and plant-based products

You can see which Harmonized Tariff Schedule chapters and headings currently require a Lacey Act declaration here.

However, certain products are exempt from the Lacey Act's requirements such as:

• Plant products used exclusively as packaging material such as pallets wooden cases to support, protect or carry another item, unless the packaging material itself is the item being imported.
• Common food crops, such as fruits, vegetables, and grains.
• Live plants.
• Products made from non-plant materials (e.g., metals, plastics) that may contain small amounts of plant material incidentally.

Evolution:

While the act initially aimed to address issues related to the illegal trade of wildlife, it was expanded in 2008 to include plants and plant products. Subsequently, there were four phases of revisions before 2024. The first on was February 3, 2009, the second on September 2, 2009, the third on February 6, 2015, and the fourth on July 2, 2021. In 2024, APHIS (Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service) rolled out Phase VII of the Lacey Act: In this phase, Lacey Act declarations will be required for all remaining plant products which have Harmonized Tariff Schedule (HTS) codes that are not 100% composite materials. If you import items that contain plant products, you will likely need to file a Lacey Act declaration after Phase VII was implemented in December 2024. For example, HTS 94037080 other wooden furniture will need to file Lacey Act after December 2024. APHIS recommends knowing the supply chain for each piece of plant material in the final products, some of which may include many different plant species. For example, furniture may include inlays of many species, so you need to request that suppliers provide the scientific name and harvest location for each plant product used.   

Enforcement:

The enforcement of the Lacey Act is executed by several U.S. government agencies such as U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) and the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP). These agencies work together to investigate and enforce the provisions of the act to ensure that imported plants and plant products comply with the requirements. The declaration must contain the scientific name of the plant, value of the importation, quantity of the plant, and name of the country from which the plant was harvested. For paper and paperboard products containing recycled content, the declaration also must include the average percent of recycled content without regard for species or country of harvest. Below filing example for reference

Filing Process:

The Importer of Record (IOR) will authorize a customs broker to file a Lacey Act declaration electronically together with customs clearance through Automated Commercial Environment (ACE). By the entry into the ACE, customs brokers can check the duty of any HTS code and commodity, also any required compliance with PGA (Partner Government Agencies) such as APHIS (Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service), FDA (Food and Drug Administration), etc. If a commodity needs to file the Lacey Act, customs brokers will file the customs clearance and the Lacey Act at the same time. Usually, the import entry will be filed three days before the ships arrive at ports if the containers will be picked up at the ports; and the import entry will be filed after container departs on rail if it will be picked up at inland cities. After filing the entry, there will be three scenarios as follows:

1. 1. May Proceed means the container can be picked up at any time
   2. Under review means the container can be picked up but CBP, APHIS need to review the documents thoroughly.
   3. Hold means the container shall be confiscated for further inspections

Conclusions:

Filing Lacey Act is not a complicated process but noncompliance with it can have severe consequences for importers. Penalties for violations can include fines, confiscation of goods and even imprisonment. Additionally, non-compliant companies may face reputational damage and be excluded from participating in future trade. Therefore, if you have plans to import any products related to plants and wildlife to the USA, you need to consult thoroughly with your logistics provider about the Lacey Act. If you have further questions, please contact richie_lin@tgl-group.net for more information.

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