Bringing plant products to NZ | NZ Government

Skip to content

Choose the type of plant product:
Boab nut and gourds for ornamental purposes
Coconut shells
Live plants, cuttings, pine cones, and bulbs
Flax cloak and hat
Flowers
Seeds for growing/sowing
Soap nuts
Therapeutic heat bags
Balls filled with seeds
Mats

Boab nut and gourds for ornamental purposes

Examples:	Boab nut, gourds
Allowed if:	It is dried and does not contain bugs, seeds, soil, disease, or other plant or animal material.
Weight limit:	None
Declare the item?	Yes
Inspection required?	Yes
Clearance guaranteed?	No Check our legal disclaimer to find out why we can't guarantee clearance

Coconut shells

Examples:	Ornamental coconut bowl
Allowed if:	It does not contain outer fiber, bugs, seeds, soil, disease, or other plant or animal material
Weight limit:	None
Declare the item?	Yes
Inspection required?	Yes
Clearance guaranteed?	No Check our legal disclaimer to find out why we can't guarantee clearance

Live plants, cuttings, pine cones and bulbs

Examples:	Live plants, plant cuttings, branches, leaves, pine cones, bulbs, banana leaves
	Not allowed into New Zealand

Flax cloak and hat

Allowed if:	It is dried and does not contain bugs, seeds, soil, disease, or other plant or animal material.
Weight limit:	None
Declare the item?	Yes
Inspection required?	Yes
Clearance guaranteed?	No Check our legal disclaimer to find out why we can't guarantee clearance

Flowers

Examples:	Fresh flowers, dried flowers, dried flowers heads, lavender pillows, lavender pouches
Allowed if:	It is dried or pressed and does not contain bugs, seeds, soil, disease, or other plant or animal material.
Extra tip:	Do not bring fresh flowers. Some plant items are protected under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), like orchids. They may require CITES documentation to be imported or may be prohibited. Find out about CITES – Department of Conservation
Weight limit:	None
Declare the item?	Yes
Inspection required?	Yes
Clearance guaranteed?	No Check our legal disclaimer to find out why we can't guarantee clearance

Seeds for growing or sowing

Example:	Rose seed
Allowed if:	It follows the instructions outlined in this video: Importing seeds for sowing into New Zealand – YouTube It also must have the scientific name labelled on the packaging and must not contain bugs, soil, disease or other plant or animal material.
Extra tips:	Tools the video mentions: Plant Biosecurity Index – search seed scientific name Import Health Standard – Seeds for Sowing [PDF, 1.7 MB] Steps to importing seeds for sowing If you are ordering seeds online you will need to talk with your seller to make sure they declare the seeds scientific name on the parcel coming to New Zealand. Some seeds are protected under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), like seeds from some orchids, cacti, and cycads. They may require CITES documentation to be imported or may be prohibited. Find out about CITES – Department of Conservation
Weight limit:	Depends on the seed.
Declare the item?	Yes
Inspection required?	Yes
Clearance guaranteed?	No Check our legal disclaimer to find out why we can't guarantee clearance

Soap nuts

Example:	Soap nut shells
Allowed if:	It's only the shell and it does not contain bugs, seeds, soil, disease, or other plant or animal material.
Weight limit:	None
Declare the item?	Yes
Inspection required?	Yes
Clearance guaranteed?	No Check our legal disclaimer to find out why we can't guarantee clearance

Therapeutic heat bags

Examples:	Wheat bags, therapeutic heat bags
Allowed if:	It has been used and it is from Australia or New Zealand, or the seeds within the bags are listed as "basic" in the plant biosecurity index. Search the scientific name of the seed in the index and under the "Import Specification Seed for Sowing" column it will show if it is "basic". Plant Biosecurity Index – search seed scientific name
Extra tips:	You can find the scientific name of the seed by searching for it on the web. For example, the scientific name for sesame seed is Sesamum indicum. Check your item does not contain bugs, soil, disease or other plant or animal material.
Weight limit:	None
Declare the item?	Yes
Inspection required?	Yes
Clearance guaranteed?	No Check our legal disclaimer to find out why we can't guarantee clearance

Balls filled with seeds

Examples	Stress ball, juggling balls, hacky sacks
Allowed if:	The seeds within the balls are listed as "basic" in the plant biosecurity index. Search the scientific name of the seed in the index and under the "Import Specification Seed for Sowing" column it will show if it is "basic". Plant Biosecurity Index – search seed scientific name
Extra tips:	You can find the scientific name of the seed by simply searching for it on the web. For example, Sesame Seed's scientific name is Sesamum Indicum. Check your item does not contain bugs, soil, disease or other plant or animal material.
Weight limit:	None
Declare the item?	Yes
Inspection required?	Yes
Clearance guaranteed?	No Check our legal disclaimer to find out why we can't guarantee clearance

Mats

Examples	Tapa mat
Allowed if:	It does not contain bugs, seeds, soil, disease, or other plant or animal material.
Extra tip:	Clean and dry your items.
Weight limit:	None
Declare the item?	Yes
Inspection required?	Yes
Clearance guaranteed?	No Check our legal disclaimer to find out why we can't guarantee clearance

← Back

Restart