Questions concerning bringing houseplants, fruits, or vegetables into California, must be directed to our Pest Exclusion Branch at (916) 654-0312 or peinfo@cdfa.ca.gov. Information may also be obtained at: www.cdfa.ca.gov/plant/PE/.
1220 N Street, Room 210
Sacramento, California 95814
Telephone: (916) 654-1017
Email:
permits@cdfa.ca.gov
FAX: (916) 654-1018
The permits and regulations program develops all regulations administered by Plant Health and Pest Prevention Services and develops associated legally required documents such as notices, statements of reason, orders, and certificates of compliance. This program also issues state permits involving agricultural pests and quarantine commodities as authorized under administrative regulations and the Food and Agricultural Code. This program also recommends approval or disapproval of applications for Federal permits which are issued by the USDA. These permits concern movement into California of plant pests, foreign soil, foreign postentry quarantine plant material, genetically engineered organisms, and foreign commodities normally prohibited entry into the United States.
The program has 30 days to notify an applicant if their application is complete or deficient.
The Department of Food and Agriculture has established time periods for the processing of permit applications, in compliance with Government Code Sections 15374-15378. Failure to comply with these time periods may be appealed to the Director of Food and Agriculture, 1220 N Street, P.O. Box 942871, Sacramento, CA 94271-0001, pursuant to regulations set forth in Title 3, California Code of Regulations, Section 301. Under certain circumstances, the Director may order that the applicant receive a reimbursement of filing fees.
FILL-IN FORMS or copies of application forms are available for download below. If you have problems with a form, contact us at (916) 654-1017.
This application is for the movement of live plant pests within California, including within counties, and is for entities who want to do diagnostics or work with plant pests. Examples of who should apply for this permit:
This permit does not exempt the holder from compliance with state interior quarantines or county ordinances.
Note: An applicant signature is required. If you are unable to complete a digital signature, you may print the application and either scan and email the signed form to permits@cdfa.ca.gov or fax it to 916-654-1018.
This application is for California non-regulatory Diagnostic Laboratory testing [Asian Citrus Psyllid (ACP) Tissue and Citrus Plant Tissue] for Huanglongbing (HLB). This permit will require the laboratory to undergo a facility site inspection by CDFA technical staff prior to issuance of a permit. The purpose of the permit conditions are to ensure the capability of private laboratories, without Certification by the U.S. Department of Agriculture's National Plant Pathogen Laboratory Accreditation Program (NPPLAP), to make accurate diagnostic determinations of all Suspect Positive Samples processed by them, and to enable replication and confirmation of these determinations by the CDFA. Please complete the following steps.
Note: An applicant signature is required. If you are unable to complete a digital signature, you may print the application and either scan and email the signed form to permits@cdfa.ca.gov or fax it to 916-654-1018.
This permit is generally used for moving commodities for commercial purposes. This material would normally not be allowed entry into California from areas within the U.S. or allowed movement within California due to plant pest quarantines. The conditions of the permit are biologically equivalent to those in the applicable state interior or exterior quarantine.
Note: An applicant signature is required. If you are unable to complete a digital signature, you may print the application and either scan and email the signed form to permits@cdfa.ca.gov or fax it to 916-654-1018.
This application is for laboratories performing analytical testing of plant materials such as testing for pesticide residues or performing nutrient analyses. If you wish to perform diagnostic tests on plant material, application must be made on Form 66-026.
Note: An applicant signature is required. If you are unable to complete a digital signature, you may print the application and either scan and email the signed form to permits@cdfa.ca.gov or fax it to 916-654-1018.
The USDA applications listed below can be downloaded from USDA's Permits and Certification.
