Ivory trade in the EU : strict rules to protect elephants in the wild.
Date: 2022-02-04
Institutions: Directorate-General for Environment
Subjects: biotope, international market, material of animal origin, musical instrument, restriction on competition, trade regulations, wild mammal, work of art

Ivory trade in the EU
Strict rules to protect  elephants  

in the wild

Despite an international ivory ban, elephant poaching and ivory trafficking remain at high levels. 
Wild elephant populations in their natural habitats continue to be threatened by illegal killing 
and their ivory is often sold illegally on the international market.

The EU already has strict rules on ivory trade and is committed to taking further action against 
elephant poaching and ivory trafficking globally. To ensure that ivory trade in the EU does not 
contribute to these threats, in December 2021, the EU further tightened the rules for certain 
transactions. 

The new measures aim to ban most forms of the EU trade in ivory. Now, only few ivory objects 
can be traded within the EU.

What ivory objects can I trade in the EU (including within my country)?

In  the  EU,  the  trade  in  elephant  ivory  is  prohibited  in  general.  There  are  exemptions  for  antique 
artefacts and musical instruments containing ivory. Specific conditions apply, depending on the nature 
of the object and on when the ivory contained in them was acquired.

Antiques 
Artefacts made of or containing ivory, such as jewellery or sculptures, 
are often referred to as “antiques”. You can only trade them if
 ✓ there  is  proof  that  the  ivory  item  was  acquired  before  3  March 

1947 and

 ✓ it has been clearly altered from its natural state to create the 

object

Musical instruments 
In the EU, you can only trade a musical instrument containing pieces 
of ivory, such as piano keys or violin bows, if
 ✓ The ivory was acquired before 1975, irrespective of the instrument’s 
date  of  manufacture  -  this  is  referred  to  as  a  “pre-1975  musical 
instrument” and

 ✓ the  musical  instrument  is,  or  has  been  until  recently,  used  by  a 

performing artist.

Environment

Raw  ivory  includes  objects  such  as  tusks  or 
pieces of tusks. It is subject to tighter restrictions 
than antiques and musical instruments. This is 
because trade in raw ivory carries a higher risk 
of  feeding  the  international  demand  for  ivory 
and of incentivising elephant poaching.

You can only sell raw ivory to 

repair antiques (pre-1947), provided a  
public authority for cultural heritage  
supports the transaction or

repair pre-1975 musical instruments

Commercial trade in elephant trophies consisting of raw ivory is prohibited within the EU; they can 
only be imported for personal use.

How do I sell an artefact or musical instrument containing ivory that I acquired legally?

1.  Verification:  Verify  if  you  have  all  the  evidence  needed  to  prove  that  your  piece  of  ivory 

meets the criteria listed above to be authorised for trade.

2.  Application: Provide your national CITES authority with the information required and request 

a certificate.

3.  Result of the application: Proceed with trade only when a valid certificate is issued. 

N.B.  Certificates  issued  before  19/01/2022  will  cease  to  be  valid  on  19/01/2023  -  and  potential  
sellers will have to apply for a new certificate in accordance with the above.

More information: 

EU guidance on ivory trade

Press release and Questions and Answers on new rules

EU Wildlife Trade Regulations 

CITES website

Neither the European Commission nor any person acting on behalf of the Commission is responsible for the use that might 
be made of the following information.

Luxembourg: Publications Office of the European Union, 2022

© European Union, 2022

Reuse is authorised provided the source is acknowledged.

The reuse policy of European Commission documents is regulated by Decision 2011/833/EU (OJ L 330, 14.12.2011, p. 39).

For any use or reproduction of photos or other material that is not under the EU copyright, permission must be sought 
directly from the copyright holders.

PDF:     ISBN 978-92-76-44691-0           doi:10.2779/011176 

KH-01-21-498-EN-N

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