Importing Fresh Cut Flowers & Foliage
MAF Biosecurity New Zealand allows fresh cut flowers and foliage to enter New Zealand on a country:commodity basis. Only specific species of fresh cut flowers and foliage can be imported into New Zealand, where they have been assessed from a specific country.
- Which species can be imported into New Zealand?
- What about species not included in Appendix 1 of the Standard?
- Import Health Standard
- Clearance of Fresh Cut Flowers and Foliage
- Import Permit
- CITES
Which species can be imported into New Zealand?
Only cut flowers and foliage for the species listed in Appendix 1 
(100 KB) of the import health standard 155.02.04 Import Health Standard for Cut Flowers and Foliage will be considered for entry into New Zealand. Cordyline and Dracaena species maybe imported under a separate import health standard and meeting the requirements.
What about species not included in Appendix 1 of the Standard?
Each year, MAF BNZ Plant Imports, receives many proposals and applications to import horticultural commodities. We advise that in order for these commodities to be permitted entry into New Zealand, it is necessary for MAF BNZ to undertake an import risk analysis for each commodity so as to develop appropriate phytosanitary measures, in the form of an import health standard. The outcome of such analyses will be the import requirements (schedule) for each commodity, that will list the requirements to be met before biosecurity clearance can be given, this may include a post entry quarantine period.
More information is available for requesting the development of an import health standard.
Import Health Standard
The phytosanitary requirements for cut flowers and foliage species approved for importation into New Zealand have been specified in the import health standard document 155.02.04 Import Health Standard for Cut Flowers and Foliage (65 KB). Specific phytosanitary requirements and additional declarations to the phytosanitary certificate for each country:commodity are further detailed in Appendix 1 (100 KB).
These documents state the requirements for cut flowers and foliage, approved in accordance with New Zealand MAF's obligations under the Biosecurity Act 1993 and the International Plant Protection Convention (IPPC).
A specific import health standard is in place to import cut flowers and foliage of the following species:
Clearance of Fresh Cut Flowers and Foliage in New Zealand
The clearance standard 152.09.05 Clearance of Fresh Cut Flowers and Foliage (87 KB) outlines the processes that are required to clear the flowers or foliage once they reach New Zealand.
Import Permit
A permit to import is not required to import fresh cut flowers and foliage into New Zealand.
CITES
The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES 
) regulates the international trade and movement of animals and plant species that have been, or may be, threatened due to excessive commercial exploitation. For more information on species covered under CITES, please refer to the CITES website.
In genereal, the importation of endangered species into New Zealand is regulated under this Convention and must be accompanied by a valid CITES export permit issued by the appropriate management authority in the country of export. The Departement of Conservation is responsible for managing CITES species in New Zealand, including providing information on how to obtain CITES permits.
Page last updated: 3 December 2009