Importing wood packaging material

When importing wood packaging or dunnage to the EU, you need to comply with the the FAO International Standard for Phytosanitary Measures, ISPM 15, which lays down guidelines for regulating wood packaging material in international trade.

The rules are explained on the EU Commission's website. You will find this and the text of the ISPM 15 in the right-hand column.

You can find the rules on wood packaging material in the EU Directive in the right-hand column. The relevant articles are Annex IV, Part A, Section I, points 2 and 8.

The rules on bark were amended on 1 July 2009


From 1 July 2009, wood packaging material must  be free from bark, with the exception of any number of individual pieces of bark if they are either less than 3 cm in width (regardless of the length) or, if greater than 3 cm in width, of not more than 50 cm2 in area.
 
Last updated: 2009-09-09