ISPM 15: the wood packaging standard for international shipping

ISPM 15 is the reason almost every export pallet carries a small rectangular stamp with a wheat-ear symbol. It is International Standard for Phytosanitary Measures No. 15, published by the International Plant Protection Convention (IPPC), the plant health treaty hosted by the UN Food and Agriculture Organization. Its title is Regulation of wood packaging material in international trade. First adopted in 2002, it was revised in 2009, and its two prescriptive annexes (treatments and the mark) were last revised in 2018 at the time of writing. Each country enforces it through its national plant protection organization (NPPO), such as USDA APHIS in the United States.

#What does ISPM 15 cover?

ISPM 15 covers packaging made from raw (unprocessed) wood that moves in international trade: pallets, crates, boxes, packing cases, cable drums and spools, and dunnage used to brace or support cargo. The goal is to stop wood-boring insects and nematodes, which can survive in untreated wood and damage forests in the importing country.

The standard requires three things for every piece of regulated wood packaging:

1. It is made from debarked lumber.
2. It has received an approved treatment.
3. It carries the official IPPC mark, applied under the authority of the exporting country's NPPO.

The mark replaces a phytosanitary certificate for the packaging itself. Importing countries should accept marked packaging without further wood-packaging requirements.

#What is exempt from ISPM 15?

These materials are exempt because they are low risk:

Plastic, metal and paper pallets are outside the scope because they are not wood. Plastic, steel, aluminum, paper and presswood pallets and slip sheets all ship without the mark.

#Approved treatments

Annex 1 lists four approved treatments. Each has a two-letter code that appears in the mark.

HT is the default for pallets in North America and Europe. Kiln-drying counts as heat treatment only if the schedule reaches the HT time and temperature. Methyl bromide depletes ozone, the standard encourages alternatives, and some countries restrict or ban its use. If you need MB or SF, confirm the destination accepts it.

Treatment providers must be NPPO-approved, monitor temperature at the coldest point of the load and keep records. In the US, pallet makers usually work under an ALSC-accredited agency program that audits the kiln and issues the registration number.

#Debarking tolerance

Wood packaging must be debarked, but small pieces of bark may remain. Any number of visually separate pieces are allowed if each piece is either:

• less than 3 cm wide, at any length, or
• more than 3 cm wide but under 50 cm² in total surface area.

For MB and SF fumigation, bark must come off before treatment. For heat treatment it can come off before or after. Bark usually survives on wane edges, so limiting wane helps.

#How to read the ISPM 15 mark

Annex 2 defines the mark. It must be rectangular or square, inside a border, with a vertical line separating the symbol from the codes.

Rules for applying it:

• Legible without a visual aid, durable, not transferable, and not hand drawn.
• Visible when the packaging is in use, preferably on at least two opposite sides. Some buyers ask for more (Costco asks for both long sides; Snap-on recommends all four).
• No other information inside the border. Company logos, the auditing agency's logo or a lot number may sit next to the mark, outside the border.
• Avoid red and orange, which are reserved for dangerous-goods labels.

The mark is normally applied by hot-iron brand, ink stamp or stencil. See pallet stamps and markings for photos of real marks and the other codes you will find on a pallet.

#Reuse, repair and remanufacture

The rules depend on how much of the pallet has been replaced.

This matters for recycled pallets. A recycled combo pallet with a new stamp from the recycler is fine. One with a mix of old stamps and unmarked replacement boards is a common rejection.

#Country adoption

ISPM 15 applies wherever an importing country's NPPO has adopted it into regulation, which covers most trading nations including the US, Canada, Mexico, the EU member states, the UK, China, Japan, Australia and India. Countries may add bilateral arrangements. The best-known is the long-standing arrangement between the US and Canada for wood packaging of US or Canadian origin, while shipments into Mexico require marked packaging. Rules change, so check the destination NPPO before relying on any exemption.

#Common rejections at the border

When inspectors find a problem, the importing NPPO can detain the shipment, order treatment, destruction or removal of the packaging, or send it back. Typical causes:

• No mark, or a mark with missing elements (no country code, no treatment code).
• A KD, grade or company stamp mistaken for the IPPC mark.
• Hand-drawn or illegible marks.
• Repaired pallets with unmarked replacement boards.
• Bark pieces over the size limits, or live insects or fresh bore holes.
• Untreated dunnage, blocking or bracing added at loading. Dunnage needs the full mark on every piece.

#How to specify ISPM 15 on a pallet spec or RFQ

State the requirement explicitly rather than writing "export pallet":

• Phytosanitary: "ISPM 15 compliant, treatment HT, IPPC mark on both long sides" (add ends if your customer requires four sides).
• Mark application: ink or hot brand, no red or orange.
• Documentation: heat-treatment certificate or treatment records on request.
• Lumber: debarked, bark within ISPM 15 limits.
• Repairs: repaired pallets re-treated and re-marked, or replacement parts individually marked.

For how HT differs from kiln drying and what it costs, see heat-treated pallets and heat treated vs kiln dried. When you request a quote from the designer, the ISPM 15 requirement is one of the fields sent with the drawing.