Lacey Act / Federal Labeling Requirements
Apologies right off the bat – this is a bit of a long post, but I have a couple questions at the bottom.
I’ve seen a lot of mention here about labeling boxes for the Lacey Act, but different people mention different labeling methodology, and I wondered what the actual requirements were. Found a lot of good information (see quote box, emphasis mine), but still had a couple questions. Quote:
That makes it pretty obvious that writing a list on the outside of the box is quite acceptable. But, for security purposes (like not blatantly advertising expensive animals) is it also acceptable to just include a list within the box rather than on the outside? Not sure what “readily accessible” covers. Also, just for curiosity – has anyone ever heard of someone that has been fined, jailed, etc. for not following the required labeling? |
To meet both federal and state requirements, at ShipYourReptiles we recommend users mark each box with "Wildlife- Live Harmless Reptiles".
They should then have an itemized invoice or packing list with scientific names and quantities immediately available, which we suggest as immediately under the top flap. Fish & Wildlife inspectors do NOT want to actually have to go into the box (past the insulation) to ascertain the contents. There was a reptile dealer prosecuted on Lacey Act issues in 2014 or 2015. It wasn't over a single shipment issue, but over a larger and repetitive issue, also involving prohibited species. I don't remember the particulars. We see packages audited and inspected regularly when they are going into California and Florida. When shipping to either of those states, you should EXPECT that your package will be inspected. If the package is inspected but not properly labeled, it may be returned to you, or it may be delivered, but you will hear about it through a fairly nasty letter and a threat of $10k+ fines if you do not comply in the future. I have never heard of someone prosecuted over single package labeling, but there is effort on package auditing and inspection, so we do encourage users to comply with the labeling requirement. We address Lacey Act labeling a few times on the ShipYourReptiles site. |
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Finally found the letter. No mention of fines on the letter so that must have been part of the discussion I had with the officer at the FedEx location. Blacked out the unnecessary information and personal data
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Thanks for posting that April.
These inspection letters aren't super common, but at ShipYourReptiles we do see them for Cali shipments a few times a year. I haven't heard of anyone receiving an actual fine in Cali, but I have for Florida. You want to be especially careful shipping to either state. You should EXPECT inspection for either state, so be sure to label according to Federal statute, as well as State "requirements". I say "requirements" because unfortunately, that can mean different things to different staffers/officers/inspectors/agents. One way to trigger an issue is NOT to label your package though, so labeling it according to our direction should keep you covered on these California shipments. ShipYourReptiles Get Help section- Lacey Act compliance and labeling detail |
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