Hardwood Lumber Import Rules by Destination Country

Every hardwood lumber shipment passes the same three gates at the border: plant health, legality of the wood and CITES for listed species. Each destination adds its own tariff lines and its own grade and size conventions. This hub sorts the rules by destination and links one page per country. It is general information as of October 2026, not legal advice: confirm with your customs broker or the regulator.

Gate	United States	European Union
Legality law	Lacey Act: declaration with species, country of harvest, quantity, value	EUDR: due diligence statement with species, plots, harvest period, from 30 December 2026
Plant health	APHIS 7 CFR 319.40: heat treated or kiln dried, marked HT or KD or stated on the importer document	Regulation (EU) 2016/2031 and 2019/2072: phytosanitary certificate for listed wood, special rules for oak and ash
CITES	CITES export permit, US Fish and Wildlife Service clearance	EU import permit for Annex A and B species, plus the export permit
Tariff	HTS heading 4407, general rate free on temperate hardwood lines. Section 232 names softwood only	TARIC per CN code
Grades and units	NHLA, board feet, quarters	NHLA for American species, EN 975 for European oak, beech and poplar, cubic meters, mm
Moisture norm	6 to 8% for interior use	About 10 to 12% for European hardwoods, 7 to 9% for American export lumber

How the pages relate

• One page per destination. Each country page sets out the gates in the order a broker works them, with the data the mill must supply. Start with importing lumber into the US or importing hardwood lumber into the EU.
• Papers in detail. The documents themselves, field by field, are in lumber papers and certificates, for example the Lacey Act declaration and the lumber import documents checklist.
• Grades in detail. Grade rules and size rules are on the lumber grades hub.
• Species. Botanical names for the declarations and species-specific rules, such as those for ash and oak, are on the hardwood species pages.

What every mill should have ready

1. The scientific name of each species in the load, and the country of harvest.
2. Proof of drying or heat treatment, with the mark or statement the destination asks for.
3. A tally per bundle, with the measuring basis stated.
4. For the EU: the geolocation of harvest plots and the harvest period for each lot.
5. CITES documents for any listed species.

Send your lumber RFQ with the destination and the paperwork you need, and we pass it to up to 3 mills or exporters that ship there.