15% OFF on orders from 10kg with code: WELCOME15🌿 Sourced directly from African cooperatives 15% OFF on orders from 10kg with code: WELCOME15🌿 Sourced directly from African cooperatives

Import Documentation by Market

Customs documentation checklist for importing African ingredients into the US (FDA Prior Notice), UK (GB IMP), EU (TRACES-NT), Canada (CFIA AIRS), and UAE (MOCCAE). Doc list per market.

Customs documentation is market-specific. Below is the checklist your customs broker will ask for when our shipment lands in your destination port. We supply all origin-side documents (commercial invoice, packing list, phytosanitary, CoA, certificate of origin) by default. Destination-side filings (Prior Notice, TRACES registration, importer of record) are your responsibility — this page tells you what those are.

United States

  • FDA Prior Notice — required for any food or food-grade ingredient. Must be filed at least 8 hours before arrival via the FDA PNSI system. Importer of record responsibility.
  • USDA APHIS PPQ — review of phytosanitary certificate at port of entry.
  • FDA Cosmetic Registration — not required for ingredient imports but required if you are the final-product registrant.
  • Customs forms — CBP Form 7501 (entry summary), commercial invoice, packing list.

United Kingdom

  • GB IMP (Imports of Products, Animals, Food and Feed System) — pre-notification of plant-product imports via APHA. Required for botanicals classified under the high-risk plant list.
  • HMRC CDS (Customs Declaration Service) entry — commercial invoice, EORI number, commodity code.
  • UK Cosmetic Product Information File (PIF) — not required for ingredients but for finished products.

European Union

  • TRACES-NT (Trade Control and Expert System) — mandatory pre-notification for plant-product imports. The Common Health Entry Document for Plants and Plant Products (CHED-PP) must be filed at least 24 hours before arrival.
  • Customs declaration — via CDU (Union Customs Code), commodity code per Combined Nomenclature, commercial invoice, EORI.
  • EU Cosmetic Regulation 1223/2009 — ingredient must be CPNP-notifiable in the final cosmetic product (your responsibility as the final-product manufacturer).

Canada

  • CFIA Automated Import Reference System (AIRS) — lookup the import requirements by commodity code.
  • Food import via CFIA Safe Food for Canadians Regulations (SFCR) — license required for food-grade ingredient importers.
  • Cosmetic Notification via Health Canada — for finished cosmetic products only.

United Arab Emirates

  • MOCCAE (Ministry of Climate Change & Environment) — phytosanitary review at port.
  • ESMA (Emirates Authority for Standardization & Metrology) — conformity assessment for food-grade ingredients.
  • Dubai Municipality Food Code — if shipping into the Dubai emirate specifically.
  • Halal certification — not required for our ingredients (no animal-origin components) but commonly requested for documentation completeness.

Documents we supply by default

  • Commercial invoice (with HS codes per ingredient)
  • Packing list (carton-level)
  • Phytosanitary certificate from DPV Bénin (see phytosanitary process)
  • Certificate of Analysis per batch (see CoA process)
  • Certificate of Origin (Benin Chamber of Commerce)
  • Air waybill (DHL Express) or Bill of Lading (sea freight)

If your customs broker requires additional documentation specific to your market or your in-house QA process, mention it in the wholesale quote request. We can usually accommodate within the standard 5–10 day lead time.

Trustpilot