APHIS Clarifies Certificate Requirements for Certain Animal Exports

The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service is amending its regulations to clarify certificate requirements for exports of animals (other than livestock), animal semen, animal embryos, hatching eggs, other embryonated eggs or gametes, in a final rule (here). If the importing country requires “an export health certificate endorsed by the competent veterinary authority of the United States,” these products will only be eligible for export if they have an export health certificate endorsed by APHIS, the agency said. Its recently amended regulations only specified that the export health certificate be endorsed by the “competent veterinary authority” of the U.S. (see 1601200011), causing some confusion over which U.S. agency must endorse it, APHIS said.