The State Department has published a list of certified nations and fisheries that wild-caught shrimp are allowed to be imported from. For all other nations and fishers not on the list, only shrimp harvested from aquaculture (farmed) are eligible to enter the United States.
The complete list of certified nations, and in some cases specific fishers within that nation, is below:
- Argentina
- Australia (Northern Prawn Fishery, the Queensland East Coast Trawl Fishery, the Spencer Gulf, and the Torres Strait Prawn Fishery)
- Bahamas
- Belgium
- Belize
- Canada
- Chile
- Colombia
- Costa Rica
- Denmark
- Dominican Republic
- Ecuador
- El Salvador
- Estonia
- Fiji
- France (French Guiana)
- Gabon
- Germany
- Guatemala
- Guyana
- Honduras
- Iceland
- Ireland
- Italy (giant red shrimp)
- Jamaica
- Japan (shrimp baskets in Hokkaido)
- Republic of Korea (mosquito nets)
- Malaysia (Kelantan, Terengganu, Pahang, and Johor)
- Mexico
- Netherlands
- New Zealand
- Nicaragua
- Nigeria
- Norway
- Oman
- Panama
- Peru
- Russia
- Spain (Mediterranean red shrimp)
- Sri Lanka
- Suriname
- Sweden
- United Kingdom
- Uruguay
Section 609 of Public Law 101-162 prohibits imports of wild-caught shrimp or products from shrimp harvested with commercial fishing technology unless the harvesting nation has adopted a regulatory program governing the incidental taking of relevant species of sea turtles in the course of commercial shrimp harvesting that is comparable to that of the United States and that the average rate of that incidental taking by the vessels of the harvesting nation is comparable to the average rate of incidental taking of sea turtles by United States vessels in the course of such harvesting; or the particular fishing environment of the harvesting nation does not pose a threat of the incidental taking of sea turtles in the course of shrimp harvesting. The State Department has certified the following countries as having such a program:
- Colombia
- Ecuador
- El Salvador
- Gabon
- Guatemala
- Guyana
- Honduras
- Mexico
- Nicaragua
- Nigeria
- Panama
The Department also certified several shrimp-harvesting nations and one economy as having fishing environments that do not pose a threat to sea turtles, including the following nations with shrimping grounds only in cold waters where the risk of taking sea turtles is negligible:
- Argentina
- Belgium
- Canada
- Chile
- Denmark
- Estonia
- Germany
- Iceland
- Ireland
- Netherlands
- New Zealand
- Norway
- Russia
- Sweden
- United Kingdom
- Uruguay
Additionally, the Department certified that the following nations and Hong Kong only harvest shrimp using small boats with crews of less than five that use manual rather than mechanical means to retrieve nets or catch shrimp using other methods that do not pose a threat of incidental taking of sea turtles: The Bahamas, Belize, Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic, Fiji, Jamaica, Oman, Peru, and Sri Lanka.
Shrimp from the certified nations are eligible for importation into the United States utilizing the Shrimp Exporter’s/Importer’s Declaration (“DS-2031”) Box 7(B) provision for shrimp harvested in the waters of a nation currently certified pursuant to Section 609 of P.L. 101-162.
Shrimp from uncertified nations that are harvested with turtle excluder devices (TEDs) may be eligible for import under the DS-2031 Box 7(A)(2) provision for shrimp harvested by commercial shrimp trawl vessels using TEDs comparable in effectiveness to those required in the United States. Shrimp from the following regions are eligible for entry under this provision:
- The Northern Prawn Fishery, the Queensland East Coast Trawl Fishery, and the Torres Strait Prawn Fishery in Australia
- The French Guiana domestic trawl fishery, and in the fisheries of Kelantan, Terengganu, Pahang, and Johor in Malaysia
Finally, there are specific exemptions allowed for uncertified nations where shrimp are harvested in a manner determined to not pose a threat to sea turtles. These may be imported into the United States under the DS-2031 Box 7(A)(4) provision:
- The Spencer Gulf region in Australia
- With shrimp baskets in Hokkaido, Japan
- With “mosquito” nets in the Republic of Korea
- Mediterranean red shrimp harvested in the Mediterranean Sea in Spain
- Giant red shrimp harvested in Italy
A completed DS-2031 Shrimp Exporter’s/Importer’s Declaration (“DS-2031”) must accompany all imports of shrimp and products from shrimp into the United States. Importers of shrimp and products from shrimp harvested in certified nations and Hong Kong must either provide the DS-2031 form to Customs and Border Protection at the port of entry or provide the information required by the DS-2031 through the Automated Commercial Environment.
Importers of shrimp and products from shrimp from certified nations and Hong Kong should mark the box 7(B) provision for shrimp “harvested in the waters of a nation currently certified pursuant to Section 609 of Public Law 101-162” regardless of whether the shrimp is wild-caught or the product of aquaculture. DS-2031 forms accompanying all imports of shrimp and products from shrimp harvested in uncertified nations and economies, to include all fisheries with determinations, must be originals with Box 7(A)(1), 7(A)(2), or 7(A)(4) checked, consistent with the form’s instructions with regard to the method of harvest of the shrimp and based on any relevant prior determinations by the Department, and signed by a responsible government official of the harvesting nation.
The importation of wild-caught shrimp from any nation or fishery without a certification or determination will not be allowed.
To stay informed on import news and other important updates, stay connected with a customs broker.
