Rosewood and CITES - USA Custom Guitars

International Rosewood export suspended

We regret that we will no longer export Rosewood products outside of the U.S.A.

We really did try to make it work.

We met the challenge of the new CITES ruling head on, being one of the first guitar companies to receive the permit. We spent countless hours working with government agencies to wade through all the paperwork, trying to make sense of the rules and restrictions.

We worked out the logistics and cost of getting each item inspected and certified, but the bureaucracy and excessive time required to process rosewood for export turned out to be more than we could have imagined.

Delays in processing forced our international customers to endure months of waiting, and when the product finally arrived at their country, even with what was supposedly the proper paperwork, there were some instances where their items were still held or confiscated by customs officials.

If the worldwide governmental agencies can get a firm grasp on how the rules are interpreted, we will revisit this, but for now, we will no longer export Rosewood products outside of the U.S.A.

Any existing orders for Rosewood will be processed and shipped, but new no orders will be accepted.

Thanks for your continued support.

We are approved for International shipping of Rosewood!

USA Custom Guitars has received a Master File Permit from the United States Department of the Interior, Fish and Wildlife Service for the export of Rosewood species (Dalbergia spp.) and the issuance of certificates under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Flora and Fauna (CITES).

So, what does this mean to our International customers?

There will be an additional processing fee of $25 PER ORDER, for orders containing Rosewood. This fee will cover the cost of the individual CITES certificate as well as any special shipping and handling that will be required.

Another caveat is that no rosewood necks for export are permitted to have shell inlay (MOP or Paua).

There is also a possibility, depending on the laws of your country, that there may be a “Phytosanitary Certificate” fee which can range from $75 to $125. If this fee is required, we will contact you before processing your order.

A few months into the process and our experience so far.

We take all the steps necessary to comply with both CITES and United States government regulations in the import and export of all species of Dalbergia (Rosewood). All exports of Rosewood will have the proper CITES certificate included with each shipment and will have passed US Govt inspection prior to shipping from our warehouse.

We are now finding that some import authorities may require that you furnish documentation as well. We have found that this is a rapidly changing environment as the world catches up to the recent CITES ruling, therefore it is your responsibility as the customer to clear customs in your country of residence, and any holdup of that clearance is the sole responsibility of you.the customer.

USA Custom Guitars accepts no responsibility of the items once they have successfully cleared CITES inspection in the United States and have shipped to your location.

Thanks for your continued support!

Subscribe