Import and Export legislation - Ornamental Fish International

Ornamental Fish International
CITES
CITES (the Convention
on International Trade
in Endangered Species
of Wild Fauna and
Flora) is an
international agreement between
governments. Its aim is to ensure that
international trade in specimens of wild
animals and plants, and parts of
products thereof, does not threaten
their survival.
CITES was drafted as a result of a
resolution adopted in 1963 at a
meeting of members of IUCN (The
World Conservation Union). The text of
the Convention was finalised and
agreed upon at a meeting of
representatives of 80 countries in
Washington DC., United States of
America, on 3 March 1973. For this
reason CITES is sometimes also
called the Washington Convention.
The original copy of the Convention
was filed with the Depositary
Government in Chinese, English,
French, Russian and Spanish, each
version being equally authentic.
CITES is an international agreement to
which States (countries) voluntarily
become a party. States that have
agreed to be bound by the Convention
('joined' CITES) are known as Parties.
Although CITES is legally binding on
the Parties - in other words they are
required to implement the Convention -
it does not take the place of national
laws.
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Legislation
Instead, it provides a
framework to be
respected by each
Party, which in turn
must adopt its own
domestic legislation to
ensure that CITES is
implemented at the national level.
For many years CITES has been
among the conservation agreements
with the largest membership, at
present 169 Parties.
How CITES works
CITES works by subjecting the
international trade in specimens of
selected species to certain controls. All
import, export, and re-export of
species covered by the Convention
must be authorised through a licensing
system. Each Party to the Convention
must designate one or more
Management Authorities in charge of
administering that licensing system
and one or more Scientific Authorities
to advise them on the effects of trade
on the status of the species.
The species covered by CITES are
listed in three Appendices, according
to the degree of protection they need.
Appendices I and II
Appendix I includes species
threatened with extinction. Trade in
specimens of these species is
permitted only in exceptional
circumstances.
Appendix II includes species not
necessarily threatened with extinction,