Documentation for any mailed or nonmailed terrestrial plant which is required to have documentation under 50 CFR part 17 or part 23 at the time of importation, must be validated by an inspector prior to movement of such plant from the Customs inspection area at the port of entry. The original documentation must be surrendered to the inspector at the time of validation.

Documentation for any mailed or nonmailed terrestrial plant which is listed in 50 CFR 17.12 or 23.23 and which is required to have documentation under 50 CFR part 17 or part 23 at the time of exportation or reexportation, must be validated at the port of export or reexport by an inspector prior to the exportation or reexportation of such plant. 5 The original and one copy of the documentation must be submitted for validation, and the copy must be surrendered to the inspector at the time of validation.

5 It is the policy of the Department of Agriculture to allow, if inspectors are available, terrestrial plants listed in 50 CFR 17.12 or 23.23 which are intended for export to be inspected at the premises where such plants are grown. However, the documentation required for the export of such plants by 50 CFR part 17 or part 23 shall only be validated at the port of export and only when such plants are presented at the port for export together with the documents required by 50 CFR part 17 or part 23 and a certified statement by the inspector who inspected the plants that the plants are apparently eligible for exportation in accordance with the provisions of this part and provisions of 50 CFR chapter I relating to the Act and Convention. Plants which have been previously inspected must be exported through a designated port (unless allowed by the United States Department of the Interior to be exported through a nondesignated port) in order to comply with section 9(f) of the Act [16 U.S.C. 1538(f)]. Plants which are inspected at the premises of origin must be available at the port of export for monitoring inspections and for other inspections deemed need for enforcement purposes, but, unless so inspected, will not need to be unpacked, inspected and repacked at the port. Information concerning the availability of inspectors to conduct inspections at the premise of origin may be obtained by calling local offices of Plant Protection and Quarantine, which are listed in telephone directories, or by writing the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, Plant Protection and Quarantine, Operational Support—Director's Office, 4700 River Road, Unit 131, Riverdale, Maryland 20737-1236.

Documentation for a plant shall be validated under this section upon endorsement of the documentation by an inspector when he or she determines that the plant was apparently eligible for importation, exportation, or reexportation in accordance with the provisions of this part and the provisions of 50 CFR chapter I relating to the Act and Convention.

To obtain validation of documentation, the importer, exporter, or reexporter, or agent thereof, shall make available to an inspector:

All shipping documents (including bills of lading, waybills, packing lists, and invoices):

All documents required by the Act and Convention; and

The plant being imported, exported, or reexported.