Permits, certification, and export documentation

Philippines • CITES Appendix II Species • Plantation, Processing, Export

I. PLANTATION ESTABLISHMENT REQUIREMENTS

(Before planting or operating a nursery)

1. SEC / DTI Business Registration

  • SEC Registration (for corporations)
  • DTI Business Name Registration (for sole proprietorships)
  • Articles of Incorporation / By-laws

2. LGU Requirements

  • Mayor’s Permit
  • Barangay Clearance
  • Zoning Clearance
  • Fire Safety Inspection Certificate

3. DENR–BMB (Wildlife) Permits

These are core legal permits for all Agarwood plantations:

A. Wildlife Culture Permit (WCuP)

  • Required for cultivating Aquilaria
  • Covers nursery, propagation, and plantation operations

B. Certificate of Wildlife Registration (CWR)

  • Proof of legal ownership of planted trees
  • Mandatory for future harvest and trade

C. Wildlife Collector’s Permit (WCP)

(Only if collecting seeds or genetic materials from wild source)

II. ENVIRONMENTAL COMPLIANCE REQUIREMENTS

1. EMB – CNC / ECC

Depending on plantation size and environmental impact:

  • CNC (Certificate of Non-Coverage)
    For small–medium plantations and low-impact operations.
  • ECC (Environmental Compliance Certificate)
    Required for:
    ✔ large-scale plantations
    ✔ oil extraction, processing facilities
    ✔ distillation plants
    ✔ storage and warehousing with environmental risk

Supporting Documents:

  • Environmental Management Plan (EMP)
  • Pollution Control Officer (PCO) appointment
  • Quarterly Self-Monitoring Reports (SMR)

III. HARVESTING & PROCESSING REQUIREMENTS

(For cutting, collecting resin, extracting oil, moving wood chips, etc.)

1. Inventory Verification by DENR–BMB

  • GPS mapping
  • Tree tagging
  • Pre-harvest yield estimation
  • DENR inspection

2. Cutting / Harvest Permit

Issued only for trees under:

  • Valid WCuP
  • Registered in CWR
  • Verified inventory

3. Local Transport Permit (LTP)

Required for any movement of:

  • Logs
  • Bark, chips, flakes
  • Oil, resin
  • Seedlings and saplings

Each shipment must have:

  • QR-coded or serialized transport memo
  • CWR copies
  • Harvest permit reference

IV. PROCESSING, EXTRACTION & VALUE-ADDED PERMITS

1. Processing Plant Business Permits

  • Mayor’s permit for processing facility
  • Fire Safety Certificate
  • Sanitary Permit

2. EMB Requirements for Processing

If distilling agarwood oil:

  • ECC
  • Hazardous waste registration (if chemicals used)
  • Wastewater discharge permit
  • Air emissions permit
  • Chemical inventory reporting

3. FDA (Optional depending on products)

For cosmetics, incense oils, soaps, or perfumery:

  • FDA Notified Cosmetic Products
  • FDA License to Operate (LTO) – Cosmetic Manufacturer

V. EXPORT DOCUMENTATION (MANDATORY)

Required for every international shipment of Agarwood (chips, oil, beads, resins).

1. CITES EXPORT PERMIT

The most important export document
Issued by: DENR–BMB CITES Management Authority

Prerequisites:

  • CWR
  • WFP
  • Harvest Permit
  • WTP
  • Verified inventory
  • Non-Detriment Finding (NDF)
  • Chain-of-custody documentation

2. DENR–BMB Export Clearance

Inspection & approval of shipment prior to port release.

3. Bureau of Customs (BOC) Export Requirements

  • Export Declaration (ED)
  • Bill of Lading / Airway Bill
  • Commercial Invoice
  • Packing List
  • Exporter Accreditation (Client Profile Registration System – CPRS)
  • Export Commodity Clearance (if applicable)

4. Bureau of Plant Industry (BPI)

Required when exporting plant materials such as:

  • seedlings
  • seeds
  • leaves
  • unprocessed botanical products

Documents:

  • Phytosanitary Certificate
  • Plant Quarantine Inspection Report

5. Additional Requirements for Processed Products

Depending on the destination country:

  • Certificate of Origin (from DTI or Chamber of Commerce)
  • Laboratory Analysis (GC-MS, FTIR)
  • Safety Data Sheet (SDS)
  • Certificate of Analysis (COA)
  • IFRA compliance statement (for perfumery oils)
  • Halal Certificate (for Middle East markets)

VI. OPTIONAL BUT HIGH-VALUE CERTIFICATIONS

(Strengthens brand credibility and increases export value)

1. Quality & Sustainability Certifications

  • ISO 9001: Quality Management
  • ISO 14001: Environmental Management
  • ESG Certification (various bodies)
  • FairWild (for ethical & traceable sourcing)
  • Organic Certification

2. Market-Specific Certifications

  • Halal Certification
  • Kosher Certification
  • EU REACH Declaration (if exporting perfumery ingredients to Europe)

3. Traceability System Certifications

  • Blockchain or QR-coded traceability
  • Internal “Farm-to-Oud” documented chain-of-custody
  • Digital tree registry (GPS + ID + inoculation date + harvest date)

VII. FULL DOCUMENTATION PACKAGE FOR EXPORTERS

A complete Agarwood Export Dossier should include:

A. Legal Plantation & Ownership

✔ WFP
✔ CWR
✔ ECC/CNC
✔ Tree inventory

B. Harvest & Processing

✔ Harvest permit
✔ Processing records
✔ Resin/oil yield logs
✔ COA, GC-MS, FTIR reports

C. Shipment Documents

✔ WTP
✔ CITES Export Permit
✔ Packing list
✔ Commercial invoice
✔ BOC Export Declaration
✔ Certificate of Origin

D. Quality & Brand Documents

✔ Sustainability statement
✔ Traceability documents
✔ Safety Data Sheet (SDS)
✔ Halal/Organic/ISO (if applicable)

VIII. Summary: What You MUST Have to Export Agarwood

Minimum Required Set:

  1. WFP – Wildlife Farm Permit
  2. CWR – Certificate of Wildlife Registration
  3. ECC/CNC
  4. Harvest Permit
  5. WTP – Wildlife Transport Permit
  6. CITES Export Permit
  7. BOC Export Declaration
  8. Packing List + Invoice
  9. Laboratory Analysis (oil/chips)

This is the non-negotiable compliance chain for legal export.