Article — Regulation
ISPM 15 governs the mandatory phytosanitary treatment of wood pallets for export. More than 180 countries apply it. Up-to-date 2026 list, HT 56 °C treatment, IPPC marking, exemptions and penalties — the essentials for shippers exporting through Rotterdam, Antwerp, Hamburg or any EU port.
2026 update: no major changes to the signatory list. The trend is expansion (Madagascar and Bahrain joined recently). Worth watching: the EUDR (EU Deforestation Regulation), which has applied on top of ISPM 15 to wood imported into the EU since late 2024.
ISPM 15 (International Standard for Phytosanitary Measures No. 15) is a standard adopted in 2002 under the International Plant Protection Convention (IPPC, operating under the FAO). It requires phytosanitary treatment of the wood packaging materials used in international trade, to prevent the spread of harmful organisms between continents (wood-boring insects, fungi, nematodes).
In practice, any pallet, crate or wedge made of raw wood destined for export outside the EU must be treated by one of these methods:
More than 180 countries apply ISPM 15 in 2026. The full list is maintained by the FAO. Here is a summary by region, with some operational notes:
United States, Canada, Mexico (USMCA — strict ISPM 15 enforcement, regular customs checks). Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Peru, Uruguay, Paraguay, Bolivia, Ecuador, Venezuela. Costa Rica, Panama, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Honduras, Guatemala, Nicaragua, El Salvador, Haiti.
China (very strict — systematic refusal of non-compliant packaging), Japan, South Korea, Vietnam, Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka. Israel, Turkey, Iran, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain, Oman, Lebanon, Jordan.
Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Egypt, Libya, Sudan, Ethiopia, Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Ivory Coast, Senegal, Ghana, Nigeria, Cameroon, Gabon, Angola, South Africa, Zimbabwe, Madagascar. Enforcement varies from country to country — always supply a compliant pallet as a precaution.
United Kingdom (since Brexit, applies ISPM 15 strictly to imports), Switzerland (signatory — but in practice packaging manufactured in the EU is exempt under a bilateral agreement), Norway, Russia, Ukraine, Belarus, Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, North Macedonia, Albania, Moldova.
Australia (among the strictest in the world — high biosecurity), New Zealand, Fiji, Papua New Guinea.
💡 Good to know: signatory countries may apply additional rules on top of ISPM 15 (Australia, for instance, adds extra biosecurity checks). Before a first shipment to a new country, check the customs requirements with the embassy or your freight forwarder.
Intra-EU shipments are exempt from ISPM 15 (free movement of goods). You can ship untreated pallets from Italy to Belgium or from Germany to France with no phytosanitary constraint — which is also why our deliveries from the Paris region to your EU site need no treatment. Exception: Portugal, which requires ISPM 15 even for intra-EU shipments because of the pinewood nematode (Bursaphelenchus xylophilus), a parasite that devastates Portuguese forests.
Plywood, OSB and particle board, and other engineered wood products (heat-processed or glued) are exempt from ISPM 15. The logic: these materials have already been exposed to high temperatures during manufacturing. Handy for custom plywood crates.
Every piece of raw wood used to secure the load is covered: wedges, battens, bracing boards. Often overlooked — a shipment can be refused over a single unmarked wedge.
The IPPC mark is a rectangular frame branded into the wood of the pallet or crate. It contains 4 mandatory elements:
Complete example: FR-001 HT — a pallet heat-treated by French approved producer No. 1. An FR mark is recognised worldwide exactly like any other country code: the IPPC system is global.
A non-ISPM 15 pallet in an export outside the EU triggers, depending on the country:
For a regular exporter, a single infringement can cost 3 to 10 times the price of a compliant ISPM 15 pallet. Compliance is not a cost — it is insurance.
Since late 2024, the EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) has applied on top of ISPM 15 to wood imported into the EU. The EUDR requires full forest traceability: geolocation of the plot of origin and proof that the wood does not come from land deforested after 2020. It covers pallets, crates and wood packaging materials imported into the EU.
ISPM 15 and the EUDR are cumulative and independent: a pallet imported into the EU can be ISPM 15 compliant (phytosanitary treatment) yet non-compliant with the EUDR (undocumented forest origin). For pallets sourced in France — our case, 100% French sourcing — EUDR traceability is handled through the PEFC/FSC forestry chain. More on PEFC certification →
More than 180 signatory countries of the International Plant Protection Convention (IPPC). All WTO members apply it, as do most major economies outside the EU (United States, China, Japan, Australia, Brazil, Mexico, and others).
Intra-EU shipments are exempt (free movement of goods). Notable exception: Portugal applies ISPM 15 even inside the EU because of the pinewood nematode. The post-Brexit UK requires ISPM 15; Switzerland is a signatory but in practice exempts EU-manufactured packaging under a bilateral agreement. Check case by case as phytosanitary rules evolve.
The goods are refused, impounded for treatment at the shipper's expense, or destroyed depending on the country. Typical cost: €500–€3000 per refused shipment, plus 7–30 days of delay and the commercial damage. Repeat offences risk a customs blacklist.
A rectangular branded frame containing: (1) the IPPC wheat-ear pictogram; (2) the ISO country code (FR); (3) the approved producer's number; (4) the treatment method (HT, DH, MB). Example: FR-001 HT. Methyl bromide (MB) is banned in the EU.
Yes — all our one-way pallets are delivered with ISPM 15 treatment included, with the IPPC FR mark. For second-hand EPAL pallets, treatment is available on request and quoted by volume. ISPM 15 export guide →