Steps to importing seeds for sowing

Search the Plants Biosecurity Index

The Plants Biosecurity Index (PBI) is a database of over 30,000 plant species. It provides information on whether they can be imported into New Zealand as seeds or nursery stock. You can use this tool to search for the import specifications of any genus or species listed on the database. You’ll need to know the scientific name (genus and species) to search.

Search for your seed species in the Plants Biosecurity Index

How to interpret the search results

The PBI search results state whether a species can be imported as seeds for sowing. The column "Import specification" refers to the section you need to read in the Seeds for Sowing Import Health Standard to find out the entry requirements for that species. The PBI uses a number reference for the import health standard – "155.02.05".

If your species requires assessment, you still have options.

• Check the other column in the PBI to see whether you can import this species as nursery stock instead.
• Ask MPI about having the seeds assessed for biosecurity risks. Email plantimports@mpi.govt.nz

If the search results show "not listed", check to see if it is listed by another name (synonym). If you know the plant has another name but this name isn’t listed in the PBI, you can ask us for a synonym assessment.

If your seed is not listed on the PBI, you can apply to the Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) to determine whether the species is a new organism or not. If the EPA determines the species is not a new organism, it can be added to the PBI as "Requires assessment". MPI will still need to assess the biosecurity risks associated with the species and develop an import specification before it can be imported.

Find out more about importing new organism species – Environmental Protection Authority

Check if your seeds require a significant review

If your seed type (genera) hasn't been imported for more than 5 years, we may need to do a reassessment. We have listed these in a document – 'Plant genera with specific import requirements that may require significant review before imports can be permitted'. 

Check if the seeds you want to import are on this list [PDF, 407 KB]

If they are on the list, it means that the biosecurity requirements may be out of date. MPI will need to reassess potential biosecurity risks which might lead to changes in import requirements.

Before booking post-entry quarantine, applying for an import permit, or ordering seeds, email us at plantimports@mpi.govt.nz

MPI is unable to advise whether a permit will be issued until after this assessment. Importers should take this into account when planning to import goods. Any financial or other commitments made prior to MPI issuing a permit are at the importer’s own risk.

Check if the seeds you want to import are an internationally protected species

Some plants (including their seeds) are protected under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES). These protected plants and seeds cannot be transported between countries or can only be imported with a CITES permit. MPI does not manage these permits.

Check if your seeds are on the CITES list – Species+

Find out more about getting a permit – Department of Conservation

Check for other import restrictions

Check with the New Zealand Customs Service whether:

• you can import the product without restriction
• the product will be subject to duties or tariffs
• you need a New Zealand Customs permit.

Find out more about the import entry process – NZ Customs Service

The Seeds for Sowing Import Health Standard tells you what you need to do to import seeds to grow or plant. As the importer, you are responsible for complying with all the biosecurity requirements.

Standards are updated frequently. Never rely on a saved version. Always access it from the MPI website, as the website always has the most up-to-date version.

Seeds for Sowing Import Health Standard [PDF, 1.9 MB]

Read the standard thoroughly

You need to have a thorough understanding of all the requirements for the seed species you intend to import.

All seeds must comply with the general import requirements in Part 1 of the standard. Your seed species or genus may also have specific requirements in Part 2 – check the section of the standard that was listed in the Plant Biosecurity Index.

Ask MPI if you’re not sure

If you don't understand the requirements in the standard or the results in the Plants Biosecurity Index, email plantimports@mpi.govt.nz

Check that you can comply with the requirements

Once you understand the import requirements for your seeds (listed in the import health standard), check:

1. that your exporter can meet the requirements before export
2. that you can meet the requirements for your seeds on arrival in New Zealand. These could include treatment, testing, or post-entry quarantine.

Tell your exporter about the requirements. Make sure your exporter can meet these requirements. If your seeds need to be treated before export, check that your exporter can get the required chemicals in their country.

Requesting an assessment under equivalent measures

If your seeds can't meet all the requirements in the standard (for example, if the required chemical treatment is not available in the exporting country but you know that the seeds can be tested instead), you can ask MPI about assessing your seeds under equivalent measures. This is known as 'equivalence'.

You'll need to:

• propose an alternative measure to manage the risk
• supply information to show how the risks managed by the requirements you can’t comply with will be managed to an equivalent level (for example, information about the type of test you want to use).

MPI will review your request and let you know if it's approved. Fees apply for equivalence assessment.

To ask about equivalence, email plantimports@mpi.govt.nz

• Most seeds do not need to go into quarantine when they arrive in New Zealand, but a few seeds still do.
• Check the specific requirements for your seeds in the Seeds for Sowing Import Health Standard to find out whether your seeds need quarantine.
• If your seeds need to go into quarantine, they also need an import permit (step 4).

How to book post-entry quarantine

If your seeds need to be grown out in a post-entry quarantine (PEQ) facility, you will need to find a facility that can hold your plants.

Contact an MPI-approved facility to make a booking. This facility needs to be listed on your import permit application to MPI. Any financial commitments made prior to getting your permit are at your own risk.

Post-entry quarantine facilities for plants

Post-entry quarantine facilities at the Plant Health and Environment Laboratory

About post-entry quarantine

During quarantine, the seeds are actively grown in controlled conditions that allow them to show symptoms of particular pests, if they have them. The plants will be inspected and may be tested for pests or diseases. Fees apply.

• You can import most seeds without a permit but some seeds still need one.
• The Seeds for Sowing Import Health Standard tells you whether your seeds need a permit.

How to apply for an import permit

Complete an application form and send it to us.

Apply early. We aim to process import permit applications within 30 business days, although complex or incomplete applications may take longer. Permits are valid for 1 year from the date of issue. They are for a single import entry and can only be used once.

The application form is in 2 formats – a PDF and a Word document. It doesn't matter which one you use.

Application form for a permit to import seeds for sowing – PDF version [PDF, 237 KB]

Application form for a permit to import seeds for sowing – Word version [DOCX, 105 KB]

If the seeds you’re importing need a chemical treatment, you can choose to have your seeds treated before they are exported or when they arrive in New Zealand. If you are getting them treated offshore, make sure you get all the relevant documents. Ensure the documents include:

• the volume of formulated product that was used to treat a stated weight of seed (using either the metric or imperial system, ideally both if you are primarily using the imperial system)
• the concentration of active ingredients in the formulated product (always attach each label for each active ingredient in case multiple formulated products are used)
• the intended target concentrations and treatment code.

You can use this calculator to convert metric or imperial units to the required grams of active ingredient per kilogram (g.a.i/kg).

Calculation tool for seed treatments [XLSX, 665 KB]

Choose when you will test seeds for genetic modification

Some seed species must be tested for genetic modification. This is specified in the Seeds for Sowing Import Health Standard.

If your seeds need to be tested, you can choose to have them tested before they are exported or after they arrive in New Zealand.

Find out more about testing for GM seeds

Note that you cannot import genetically modified seeds into New Zealand without approval from the Environmental Protection Authority (EPA).

• If the PBI says your seed species needs to meet "Basic" import requirements, a phytosanitary certificate is not mandatory.
• If the PBI says your seed species has "Specific requirements", you will need a phytosanitary certificate to import your seeds.

How to get a certificate

Phytosanitary certificates are issued by the exporting country. Your consignment needs to meet all the requirements for a phytosanitary certificate (including additional declarations) before it is exported. Make sure your exporter obtains a certificate that has the exact wording of the additional declarations in the import health standard. If the wording is not the same, there could be delays at the border while MPI assesses the risk of your product.

If you had your seeds treated offshore in step 5, the phytosanitary certificate should contain details about this. The NPPO must confirm any treatments that have been applied by recording this in the "Disinfestation and/or Disinfection Treatment" section of the phytosanitary certificate.

To apply for a certificate, you or your exporter should contact the national plant protection organisation (NPPO) of the exporting country. You can find the contact details on the International Plant Protection Convention (IPPC) website.

Find an NPPO – International Plant Protection Convention

Issuing phytosanitary certificates

The exporting country’s NPPO will issue a phytosanitary certificate when they are confident that the requirements of New Zealand’s import health standard have been met.

Some countries use an electronic system to send MPI the certificates securely. Other countries issue paper certificates. If you’re getting a paper certificate, the original phytosanitary certificate must be included with your consignment.

For more on phytosanitary certificates, see the "phytosanitary certificate" section in Part 1 of the Seeds for Sowing Import Health Standard.

Getting a seed analysis certificate

You don’t need a seed analysis certificate (SAC) to import seeds, but having a certificate can make it faster when your seeds arrive at the New Zealand border.

For more on seed analysis certificates, see the "phytosanitary certificate" section in Part 1 of the Seeds for Sowing Import Health Standard.

Many large logistics companies have in-house customs brokers. They often have their own transitional facilities, where shipments go to be unpacked when they arrive in New Zealand. They also organise Biosecurity Authority Clearance Certificates (BACCs) for their customers and arrange times with MPI for the biosecurity inspector to inspect the goods. It’s a good idea to use a company that can do all of these steps for you.

If you arrange for your seeds to come through one of these companies, and you’ve checked that they will take care of all the next steps, go to Steps 9 and 10 and then Step 12.

If you are using a company that doesn’t provide all these services, you will have to do them yourself. Go to Step 8

Choose a customs broker

A customs broker will help you get import entry clearance.

Find a customs broker in the Customs Brokers and Freight Forwarders Federation directory

MPI approves transitional facilities to hold and manage imported goods that might have a biosecurity risk. MPI staff need to inspect your seeds at a transitional facility before they can clear it.
All air and sea containers arriving in New Zealand must be taken to a transitional facility and unpacked there.

You or your customs broker need to arrange for your container or seeds to be transferred to a transitional facility before they arrive in New Zealand. If you decided to have your seeds treated on arrival (Step 5), make sure the transitional facility you’re using is also approved for treatments.

Some facilities have limitations on the size of the seed packages that can be inspected there, so make sure you talk through all the details with them first.

Read more about finding a transitional facility

Search for an approved treatment provider [PDF, 375 KB]

Ordering seeds by mail

If your seeds are arriving by mail, you don’t need to arrange a transitional facility. All mail from overseas goes to the New Zealand Post International Mail Centre, which is a transitional facility.

Correct labelling and packaging prevents your goods getting damaged in transit and also helps border staff process your consignment faster when it arrives in New Zealand.

Labelling

Before your consignment is packed, make sure everything is labelled and that the wording is the same as the wording used on all your other documents. The outside of the package must be clearly labelled with the scientific name (genus and species) of the seeds.

Packaging

The package must be clean and free from soil, pests, and other contaminants.

If your seeds are coming in packaging such as wood crates or peat, the packaging needs to comply with its own import requirements to ensure there are no hidden pests or diseases.

Importing wood packaging and ISPM 15 material

Read the Import Health Standard Fertilisers and Growing Media of Plant Origin (includes peat) [PDF, 357 KB]

Seeds sent by mail

If your seeds are arriving by mail, make sure the exporter attaches any documents that need to go with your seeds to the outside of the package. If your seeds need documents, these are listed in the import health standard. The outside of the package must be clearly labelled with the scientific name (genus and species) of the seeds and must be clean and free from soil, pests, and other contaminants.

You can now arrange for your seeds to be shipped.

Apply for a BACC

Your seeds need a BACC if your seeds are arriving any way other than by mail. Having a BACC does not necessarily mean your goods have been cleared. The biosecurity authority is a legal direction that explains what your goods are authorised to do next.

You or your customs broker should apply for a BACC as soon as you have all the documents you need. This can be done using the online Trade Single Window (TSW) portal. To avoid delays, apply for your BACC early so that your consignment does not have to wait at the border while MPI processes your application.

Trade Single Window (TSW) – New Zealand Customs Service

You or your broker need to submit all the relevant documents as soon as you have them. For example, your:

• phytosanitary certificate
• import permit
• bill of lading or air waybill
• invoice
• packing list
• chemical labels for any treatments
• GM testing certificates
• seed analysis certificate
• importer declaration for pelleted seeds.

Make sure you or your broker tells MPI which approved transitional facility your consignment is going to.

What happens in the on-arrival document check

An MPI inspector will check the documents you or your customs broker has sent. At this stage, they only review paperwork. They do not look at your goods in person.

MPI aims to process your BACC application within 3 business hours for airfreight and within 21 business hours for sea freight. The MPI inspector will issue a BACC with the next steps for your consignment. The inspector checks that all required documents are present and in the correct format.

If the documents are not correct or show that the consignment does not meet requirements, the MPI inspector may issue a BACC requiring:

• documents to be corrected
• the consignment to be held while waiting for assessment
• the consignment to be treated after inspection
• the importer to decide whether they want the consignment reshipped or destroyed.

If the BACC requires you to make a decision and you are using a customs broker, your customs broker will let you know.

If you decided to get your genetic modification (GM) testing done after your seeds arrive in New Zealand, you will now have to choose an MPI-approved GM testing lab.

Choose a lab to test for GM seeds

Once you have a BACC for your consignment, the operator of the transitional facility (where the seeds are being held) can book a time for an MPI inspector to go the transitional facility to inspect your consignment.

Contact your local border clearance office to book a seed inspection.

Find contact details for border clearance offices

Ordering seeds by mail

If your seeds are arriving by mail, you don’t need to book an inspection. The International Mail Centre will carry out the required inspection when the package arrives in New Zealand.

At some transitional facilities, you may be asked to help. It’s a good idea to do this if you can.

What happens during inspection

An MPI inspector will check your documents and may inspect the consignment when it arrives in New Zealand, to make sure it complies with the import health standard. The inspector checks that:

• the consignment is as described in the documents
• the consignment is labelled correctly
• the consignment and packaging are free of contaminants (detritus, soil, disease and pests).

The inspector may also take samples of your seeds to inspect for the presence of pests and diseases. If you decided to have your seeds tested for genetically modified (GM) seeds in New Zealand, the inspector will take samples for these tests too. Currently, no labs in New Zealand are approved to test for GM seeds, so the inspector will send the samples to an MPI-approved GM testing lab overseas.

What happens during sampling

The inspector will take a sample from each seed lot in your consignment. If your seeds are easy to see, the inspector will check the seed sample themselves. If your seeds are very small or easily confused with high-risk weed seeds, the inspector will send the sample to a seed analysis lab to check for weeds. For GM testing, the inspector will send the sample to the MPI-approved GM testing lab that you chose.

If your consignment doesn't comply on arrival

There are two ways your consignment can fail inspection – issues with the paperwork, or contamination.

Missing or incorrect paperwork

If any paperwork or information is missing or if paperwork has the wrong information, the inspector may wait to receive advice from another part of MPI. Your seeds are likely to stay at the transitional facility while this happens.

Contaminated packaging or seeds

If the inspector finds contamination in the packaging or on your seeds, they will tell you your options for the consignment. Depending on the type of pest or disease found, you may choose to:

• have your seeds treated (for example, by fumigation)
• have your seeds redressed to remove contaminants
• have the organism identified at a lab (and treat the seeds if it's a regulated pest)
• have your seeds shipped to another destination country
• have your seeds destroyed.

All treatments must be done at a transitional facility by an approved treatment provider. For some pests, lab identification is mandatory. You must pay any costs associated with non-compliance or contamination.

There is more information about the maximum levels of pest or weed contamination in the "Requirements for seed for sowing" section in Part 1 of the Seeds for Sowing Import Health Standard

Download the list of approved treatment providers [PDF, 375 KB]

Download the list of MPI-approved pest identification services [PDF, 418 KB]

Search for a pest name in the Official New Zealand Pest Register (ONZPR)

After the inspection

The inspector will issue a new BACC that contains the instructions for your consignment. Possible instructions are:

• release the goods
• move the goods to a post-entry quarantine facility
• hold the goods to wait for documents or a decision from the importer on whether to treat, reship or destroy
• hold the goods and wait for the organism to be identified
• the goods are authorised to be treated
• a non-compliance report (NCR) has been issued
• reship the goods
• destroy the goods.

If you need to make a decision, your customs broker will let you know.

Ordering seeds by mail

If your seeds are arriving by mail, an MPI inspector will inspect your seeds to make sure they meet the requirements. MPI may charge you an inspection fee if you are importing seeds for commercial use. If your seeds meet the requirements, they will put a green 'passed inspection' sticker on your package. The green sticker means your seeds have received biosecurity clearance. They will then be sent to you in the post.

To obtain biosecurity clearance, your seeds must meet all entry conditions listed for their species in the Seeds for Sowing Import Health Standard.

Your seeds will be cleared for release into New Zealand when an MPI inspector is satisfied that all the requirements have been met, including the time your seeds may need to stay in PEQ. They will check that:

• the documentation is official and has all the information MPI needs
• all required treatments have been applied
• the seeds are not infested with a regulated pest
• seeds that were actively grown in a PEQ facility have been inspected and/or tested for pests as required in the standard
• seeds that were tested were found to be free of specified organisms.

If the seeds still cannot be given biosecurity clearance, you will be given the option to have your seeds reshipped or destroyed.

Ordering seeds by mail

If you have received seeds in the post and the package has a green 'passed inspection' sticker, open your seeds and plant away!

If your package does not have a green sticker, do not plant your seeds. If you are concerned that your seeds have not been inspected, call or email MPI to discuss your case on 0800 008 333 or info@mpi.govt.nz

Find out more about clearing overseas mail