Zoas and Rics Sharing Club

[Terryz_]

There is no requirement for CITES permit for Soft Corals.. Have brought in Us Zoas before..

[onizukaa]

There is no requirement for CITES permit for Soft Corals.. Have brought in Us Zoas before..

really? hmm ok. will email ava try, if can maybe we can ship in bulk.

ordering those zoas/frags of other corals that we like, then shipped the shipment and go to a common place to view

bino, able to pen to AVA ? lol, love your english

[teebs]

There is no requirement for CITES permit for Soft Corals.. Have brought in Us Zoas before..

CITES permit is totally different from import permits. Current AVA regulations state that if any individual wishes to import in any corals, regardless of whether it is CITES listed or not, he will have to apply for an import permit AND currently ONLY LFSes can apply for these import permits.

You can import in corals without the applying for the import permits but if you are caught, then at the very minimum, you will be looking at a heafty fine.

[jackywongto]

really? hmm ok. will email ava try, if can maybe we can ship in bulk.

ordering those zoas/frags of other corals that we like, then shipped the shipment and go to a common place to view

bino, able to pen to AVA ? lol, love your english

I do recall that Peter did check with AVA.

Think something like no permit is required if <5 bags or something like that.

But yeah, if some one can reconfirm that, it will be great.

[Terryz_]

Read this..

http://www.ava.gov.sg/InformationForTravellers/BringOrnamentalFish/index.htm

[teebs]

I do recall that Peter did check with AVA.

Think something like no permit is required if <5 bags or something like that.

But yeah, if some one can reconfirm that, it will be great.

The reply I got from AVA previously:

If you are planning to import soft corals such as Zoanthids from an onlinesource, the import is allowed and only applicable to a licensed ornamental fish importer as the incoming consignments would require an import permit which only a licensee can apply for.

To apply for the licence, you need to have a government-approved premise (e.g. a retail shop) with facilities setup according to the licence requirements. For more details on the licence application, please refer to the link below:

http://www.ava.gov.sg/AnimalsPetSector/ImportExportTransOfAnimalRelatedPrd/OrnamentalFish

As a traveller, you may bring into Singapore without import permits/licences, not more than 5 kg soft corals for personal use. Please note that certain corals and fish are listed under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES)and import/export of these species would require CITES permits from the CITES authorities.

Therefore, a Singapore CITES import permit must be obtained from the Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority (AVA) prior to the import. Please note that failure to obtain a CITES permit may result in confiscation of the goods. Severe penalties may be imposed on persons or companies infringing the Endangered Species (Import and Export) Act. You may wish to check the CITES website(http://www.cites.org/eng/append/appendices.shtml) to confirm if the species you wish to import are CITES-listed.

Applicants must apply for CITES import permits from the AVA website (http://www.ava.gov.sg/javascript/module7/m7-option10-content.htm). Each CITES permit costs $12 per species subject to a minimum of $60 per consignment. Application must be submitted at least one week before the arrival of consignments. Each import application has to be accompanied by a scanned or faxed (Fax: 6325 7646) copy of the CITES export/re-export permit from country of departure. The CITES permits may be collected after 2 working days upon receipt of the application. If you still have any further queries on import of ornamental fish, please do not hesitate to contact me.

[Terryz_]

The limit is the same as hand carrying..

[teebs]

Read this..

http://www.ava.gov.sg/InformationForTravellers/BringOrnamentalFish/index.htm

It does state in the footnote:

The above allowances are for baggage of travellers only and not applicable to items shipped by cargo.

[Terryz_]

Sometimes, somethings no need to check with AVA one.. Hehe...

Zoas importing for personal usage have been done by a lot of old reefers for years without problems with the permits...

Just that it is risk as the zoas might not reach in good condition... Becos of the long trip (3-4 days)...

[Terryz_]

It does state in the footnote:

The above allowances are for baggage of travellers only and not applicable to items shipped by cargo.

Missed that.. Hehe...

[onizukaa]

http://www.ava.gov.sg/InformationForTravellers/BringOrnamentalFish/index.htm

Quote from the above web:

--

The import of the following does not require an AVA import permit if the amount of import falls within the personal allowances listed below. Please note that for CITES-listed species, you are still required to apply for a CITES permit before import. Imports of quantities exceeding the personal allowances will require an AVA import permit.

--

that means we can import! (or i am wrong).

any 1 wanna import some goodies?

[onizukaa]

zz read the footnote highlighted by doraemon.

[teebs]

http://www.ava.gov.sg/InformationForTravellers/BringOrnamentalFish/index.htm

Quote from the above web:

--

The import of the following does not require an AVA import permit if the amount of import falls within the personal allowances listed below. Please note that for CITES-listed species, you are still required to apply for a CITES permit before import. Imports of quantities exceeding the personal allowances will require an AVA import permit.

--

that means we can import! (or i am wrong).

any 1 wanna import some goodies?

Read the footnote.

Basically in Singapore, you can do anything as long as you do not get caught but if you do, you cannot plead ignorance and you will probably be slapped with a huge fine at the minimum.

Take note that the personal allowances are for hand carry items and not for corals/fishes shipped as cargo as stated in the footnote.

[onizukaa]

any 1 going US ? so much more easier to get those "nice corals that i saw online" then in singapore.

[tian1974]

guys, there are so many nasi penyet (wysiwyg) stores in s'pore, why want to order from oversea which might not be hot and fresh by the time reaches you? hehezz... *grin*

[teebs]

any 1 going US ? so much more easier to get those "nice corals that i saw online" then in singapore.

You can ask Indian Chief if he can get AM to import in the US zoas from the websites...

[teebs]

guys, there are so many nasi penyet (wysiwyg) stores in s'pore, why want to order from oversea which might not be hot and fresh by the time reaches you? hehezz... *grin*

That's because you can get nicer zoas from stores in US.

[onizukaa]

chief, our happiness is in your mouth....

doraemon ask shan leh

[FuEl]

Where got 5kg so much. It's only max 5 pcs with each pc not exceeding palm size and total weight not exceeding 5kg. I am sure the 5kg includes the water.

[teebs]

chief, our happiness is in your mouth....

doraemon ask shan leh

Sounds a bit wierd rite???

Let me put it this way, to get any LFS to ship in corals that we want from any website where the price is already indicated will be very difficult. The very first issue will be how much the LFS will charge us for importing in the corals? Even if we get past this issue, then there is the issue of DOA. Who is going to be responsible for this?

[yikai]

for more exotic corals.... you might wanna ask bigger importers/exporters like iwarna.. they have much better resources and stretch out to many different locals...

[teebs]

for more exotic corals.... you might wanna ask bigger importers/exporters like iwarna.. they have much better resources and stretch out to many different locals...

The main issue is that importers like Iwarna get their corals direct from the coral collectors and they will never be able to get WYSIWYG corals simply because these corals are so much more expensive. So if reefers want to get in a bulk order for only certain types of exotic US zoas for example, Victor will probably find it very difficult to get these from any of his existing suppliers.

[MarcoVan]

Sometimes, somethings no need to check with AVA one.. Hehe...

Zoas importing for personal usage have been done by a lot of old reefers for years without problems with the permits...

Just that it is risk as the zoas might not reach in good condition... Becos of the long trip (3-4 days)...

+1. I have joined such bulk purchases before. Seriously, the risk is there, but somehow all of us managed to run away from it. I am sure we won't be that lucky the next time, but so heng, the next time never came as the US online store became quite dead with its selections.

In our place, it's a hidden secret that we can do things that may break the law, just don't get caught luh (:

any 1 going US ? so much more easier to get those "nice corals that i saw online" then in singapore.

hello bro onizuka, imo after asking alot of US people, for livestock such as zoas and rics which are non-CITES, most of them said it's not worth the effort. Think about 18-20 hrs of flight time in a non-compressed air cargo box with immediate fluctuating temperatures inside a small cube box with no access for yourself to inspect the corals till luggage belt, DOA rate is expected to be very high!

and not forgetting cargo crews do not really care about whether your luggage is made by Samsonite or made by some ulu shop in singapore, they will dump it and pile it up upon one another inside that tiny space. And if your coral package breaks and leaks, the cargo crew security can ask you to present your items on the table for inspection as a SOP procedure. End up you may get charged for smuggling corals without proper license. Lagi cham right?

So for shipping of zoas/rics, take the risk. Do what you can and pray you do not get caught. but the important thing is BE HONEST with the package description. DO NOT declare it as science experiment, or mineral water, because penalty caught for cheating is heavier! however, if your package suay suay get caught, in my experience thus far, I only heard of one case where someone kanna $1000 fine which till date i cannot believe/trust wholeheartedly when some of my friends who got caught only got their items confiscated. My some of my friends heng and that guy suay? I don't know

Sounds a bit wierd rite???

Let me put it this way, to get any LFS to ship in corals that we want from any website where the price is already indicated will be very difficult. The very first issue will be how much the LFS will charge us for importing in the corals? Even if we get past this issue, then there is the issue of DOA. Who is going to be responsible for this?

Ourselves. We got to suck this up bro. deal with the proper online stores. I believe most stores will credit your DOA corals and ask you to choose another coral and only have to buy the freight cost which is USD140. Smart marketing technique but it depends on whether you want to bite the bullet the second time (:

Anyway, about asking LFS to do such stuff for us, I think it's not feasible. There are too many concerns involved between both parties and an obvious concern is there is no profit margin earned by the owners in helping you ship a shipment in using their CITES and import license which they paid quite a substantial sum periodically to AVA.

HTH everyone. I'll love to join another bulk zoa/ric purchase in future, but let's just take this one step at a time. Currently, imo, what US reefers have, alot of us in Singapore have them. of course, the hunt for gems never stops but be contented that our lfses like Irwana and GO etc have put in substantial amount of effort to bring many wonderful shipments to us (:

Happy Reefing,

Marc J.

[jackywongto]

posted some zoas and misc for trade/ sale on our gallery album.

Let me know if you are keen.

[qwertman321]

can i trade too?