COMBATTING WASTE CRIME

IMPORT PERMITS / NOTIFICATIONS

• An import permit is required for Annex A and Annex B species, to be applied for at the competent authorities in the Member State.
• An import notification is required for Annex C and D species. An import notification is a declaration filled in by the importer and is to be submitted, where appropriate together with CITES Appendix III documents from the (re-)exporting country, to the customs office of introduction into the Community. It is contained in Annex 2 to Commission Regulation (EC) 865/96 and is available from the competent authorities in each Member State.

HOUSING CONDITIONS
One of the conditions for issuing a permit for import of specimens of Annex A and Annex B species is that “the intended accommodation for a live specimen at the place of destination is adequately equipped to conserve and care for it properly”.

TRANSPORT CONDITIONS
Regulation 338/97 and Council Directive (EEC) No 95/29/EEC on the protection of animals during transport make compliance with the IATA Live Animals Regulations for air transport and the CITES Guidelines for Transport legally binding.

The transport into, from or within the Community of specimens from Annexes A to D should be undertaken in such a way as to minimise the risk of injury, damage to health or cruel treatment and in conformity with Community legislation on the protection of animals during transport.

The Commission can also restrict imports for specimens of Annex B species subject to high transport mortality.

INTERNAL TRADE IN ANNEX A SPECIES
Regulation (EC) 338/97 contains special provisions for trade within the European Community, i.e. within and between individual Member States.

The following commercial activities involving Annex A specimens are prohibited:

• purchase,
• offer to purchase,
• acquisition for commercial purposes,
• display to the public for commercial purposes,
• use for commercial gain,
• sale,
• keeping for sale,
• offering for sale,
• transport for sale.

A Management Authority of a Member State can grant a specific exemption by means of a certificate on a case-by-case basis and under certain conditions. By way of example, an exemption can be granted if a specimen was acquired before the relevant legislation became applicable.

The Commission has defined general exemptions. In these cases, the procedure is easier, or no certificate is needed at all. Examples would be internal trade in artificially propagated Annex A plants or trade between scientific institutions with a non-commercial purpose, i.e. for research or education.

ANNEX D
Annex D contains species listed in CITES Appendix III for which one or more EU Member States have entered a reservation as well as species for which Community imports warrant monitoring. The decision to include a species in this Annex is taken by the Management Committee on the basis of a proposal by the Commission and after consultation of the Scientific Review Group.

Data for import of Annex D species is compiled yearly by UNEP-WCMC and can be consulted on this website. If the data gives rise to serious conservation concerns, inclusion of a species into Annex B may be considered.

As regards other relevant legislation:

• The EU Nature Directives (the 1992 Habitats Directive and the 2009 Birds Directive) prohibit the sale and transport of a number of strictly protected wild species in the EU.
• Wildlife trafficking is addressed by the Environmental Crime Directive (see below).
• EU Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated (IUU) Regulation (Council Regulation (EC) No 1005/2008) provides a Community system to prevent, deter and eliminate illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing and Commission Regulation (EC) No 1010/2009 lays down detailed rules for its implementation;
• Regulation on deforestation-free products (Regulation (EU) No 2023/1115), which repeals the EU Timber Regulation (Regulation (EU) No 995/2010) – see below;
• EU animal welfare regulations: See Art 4.1 (c), 4.2 (b), 4.6 (c) and 9.4 of Council Regulation (EC) No 338/97; Council Regulation (EC) No 1/2005 (amending Directives 64/432/EEC and 93/119/EC and Regulation (EC) No 1255/97); Council Directive 99/22/EC relating to the keeping of wild animals in zoos;
• EU human and animal/plant health regulations, for example, Regulation (EU) 2017/625 in relation to trade in animals, or Commission Directive 93/50/EEC in relation to trade in plants;
• Wider veterinary regulations, for example, the International Air Transport Association Regulations (IATA) regulations for the air transport of live animals, International Animal Health Code, Chapter1.4. (OIE) IATA – Global;