Notification on the Change of Ph ytosanitary Measures for Plants 
without Phytosanitary Certificate 
 
Whereas Article 6 of the Japanese Plant Prot ection Act1 (Act No. 151 of 1950) prohibits 
the import of any plant which is not acco mpanied by Phytosanitary Certificate (PC) 
issued by the National Plant Protection Organization (NPPO) of exporting country, Japan has exceptionally been accepting the im portation of plants without PC if they 
were commercial samples or gi fts; and imported by mail or hand-carry, and subject to 
conducting thorough examination. 
 
Considering the recent reports that some seri ous quarantine pests have entered into the 
Japanese territory such as White Potato C yst Nematode (Globodera pallida) and Plum 
Pox Virus, Japanese NPPO has decided to st op the above mentioned exception in order 
to reduce the entry risks of such pests. Japan would request NPPO of member countries to inform those who has an intention to expo rt plants to Japan by mail or hand-carry 
that it is necessary to attach PC  to them without any exceptions. 
    Excerpts of Japanese legislation on Plant Protection 
 
・The Article 6 of the Plant Protection Act: 
 http://www.japaneselawtranslation.go.jp/ law/detail/?printID=&id=25&re=02&vm=02  
Article 6  Imported plants (excluding plants th at are not used for cultivation and 
provided for in the Ordinance of the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries as 
those with little possibility of Quarantine Pe sts being attached: hereinafter the same 
shall apply in this paragraph and the foll owing paragraph) and their containers or 
packages shall not be imported, except for those to which a phytosanitary certificate, 
or its copy, issued by a governmental organization of the exporting country is attached, 
which states to the effect that it is confir med or believed that a Qu arantine Pest is not 
attached to them as a result of inspection by such organization; however, this shall not 
apply to the following plants and their containers or packages: 
 
(i) Plants and their containers or packages that are imported from countries having 
no governmental organizations for plant qu arantine, for which particularly careful 
inspection is carried out pursuant to the provision of this Chapter; 
(ii) Plants and their containers or packag es that are imported from countries 
provided for in the Ordinance of the Ministry  of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, 
for which matters to be stated in the ph ytosanitary certificate or its copy are 
transmitted from the governmental organization of such countries to an electronic computer used by the plant protection station (including input and output devices) 
by way of a telecommunications line and ar e recorded in a file stored in such 
electronic computer. 
 
・The Article 5.3 of the Ordinance for Enforcement of the Plant Protection Act 
(Provisional translation): 
(Plants to which no phytosanitary cert ificate is required to be attached) 
Article 5-3  Plants not used for cultivation under  Article 6 (Limitation on Import), 
Paragraph 1 of the Act and designated by the Order of the Ministry of Agriculture, 
Forestry and Fisheries as least liable to be infested with quarantine pests are as 
follows: 
1. Dried plants of tu rmeric and the genera 
Eucommia ; 
2. Dried seeds of almond, cashew, coconut, pepper, pistachio, Persian walnut and 
macadamia nut. ・The Article 6 of import Plant Quarantine  Regulation (Provisional translation): 
(Plants not subject to quarantine) 
Article 6  The articles listed in each of the following items shall not fall under the 
plants specified in Article 2, Paragraph 1 of the Act; 
1. Processed goods such as lumber, antiseptic log, wood work, bamboo work and 
furniture, etc. 
2. Wood Packaging material (in case of the wood packaging material , including pallets, 
dunnage, crating, packing blocks, drums, cases,  load boards, pallet collars, skids, etc. 
which is made of raw wood without processi ng or treatment, this Article shall apply 
only to those treated in producing country in accordance with the provision of Annex 
1 of International Standard for Phyt osanitary Measures 15 adopted by the 
Commission on Phytosanitary Measures established on the basis of International 
Plant Protection Convention and provided with the mark in accordance with Annex 2 
of the international standard.) 
3. Rattan and cork 
4. Fibrous goods such as gunny bag, cotton, cotton cloth, loofah products, paper, string, 
rope, etc. and coarse fiber (including raw cotton) not ever used as packing materials 
for any plant or plant products. 
5. Processed tea leaves, dried hop flowers and dried bamboo shoot. 
6. Fermented vanilla beans. 
7. Plants immersed in sulfurous acid, al cohol, acetic acid, sugar, salt, etc. 
8. Dried fruit of common apri cot, fig, persimmon, Kiwi frui t, plum, pear, jujube, date 
palm, pine apple, banana, papaya, grape, mango, peach and longan. 
9. Desiccated endocarp of coconut. 
10. Dried spices packed in se aled containers for retail.