[Code of Federal Regulations]
[Title 50, Volume 2]
[Revised as of October 1, 2006]
From the U.S. Government Printing Office via GPO Access
[CITE: 50CFR17.72]

[Page 151-154]
 
                    TITLE 50--WILDLIFE AND FISHERIES
 
 CHAPTER I--UNITED STATES FISH AND WILDLIFE SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE 
                          INTERIOR (CONTINUED)
 
PART 17_ENDANGERED AND THREATENED WILDLIFE AND PLANTS--Table of Contents
 
                       Subpart G_Threatened Plants
 
Sec.  17.72  Permits--general.

    Upon receipt of a complete application, the Director may issue a 
permit authorizing any activity otherwise prohibited with regard to 
threatened

[[Page 152]]

plants. The permit shall be governed by the provisions of this section 
unless a special rule applicable to the plant is provided in Sec. Sec.  
17.73 to 17.78. A permit issued under this section must be for one of 
the following: scientific purposes, the enhancement of the propagation 
or survival of threatened species, economic hardship, botanical or 
horticultural exhibition, educational purposes, or other activities 
consistent with the purposes and policy of the Act. Such a permit may 
authorize a single transaction, a series of transactions, or a number of 
activities over a specified period of time.
    (a) Application requirements. A person wishing to get a permit for 
an activity prohibited by Sec.  17.71 submits an application to conduct 
activities under this paragraph. For interstate commerce activities the 
seller gets the permit for plants coming from cultivated stock and the 
buyer gets the permit if the plants are taken from the wild. The Service 
provides Form 3-200 for the application or you may submit the general 
information and certification required by Sec.  13.12(a) of this 
subchapter. Application requirements differ for permits issued for 
plants taken from the wild (excluding seeds), seeds and cultivated 
plants, or herbarium specimens. You must attach the following 
information and any other information requested by the Director.
    (1) For activities involving plants obtained from the wild 
(excluding seeds), provide the following information:
    (i) The scientific names of the plants sought to be covered by the 
permit;
    (ii) The estimated number of specimens sought to be covered by the 
permit;
    (iii) The year, country, and approximate place where taking occurred 
or will occur;
    (iv) If the activities would involve removal and reduction to 
possession of a plant from an area under Federal jurisdiction, the year, 
State, county or any other description such as place name, township, and 
range designation that will precisely place the location where the 
proposed removal and reduction to possession will occur, the name of the 
Federal entity having jurisdiction over the area and the name, title, 
address, and phone number of the person in charge of the area.
    (v) A brief description of the applicant's expertise and facilities 
as related to the proposed activity;
    (vi) A justification of the activities sought to be authorized by 
the permit and the relationship of such activities to scientific 
purposes, enhancing the propagation or survival of the species, or other 
objectives consistent with the purposes and policy of the Act; and
    (vii) A statement of the applicant's willingness to participate in a 
cooperative propagation program, and to maintain or contribute data 
relating to such efforts.
    (2) For activities involving seeds obtained from the wild and 
cultivated plants, provide the following information:
    (i) The scientific names of the plants sought to be covered by the 
permit;
    (ii) A statement of the applicant's willingness to participate in a 
cooperative propagation program, and to maintain or contribute data 
relating to the success of such efforts; and
    (iii) A justification of the activities sought to be authorized by 
the permit and the relationship of such activities to scientific 
purposes, enhancing the propagation or survival of the species, or other 
objectives consistent with the purposes and policy of the Act.
    (iv) If the activities would involve removal and reduction to 
possession of seeds from an area under Federal jurisdiction, the year, 
State, county, or any other description such as place name, township, 
and range designation that will precisely place the location where the 
proposed removal and reduction to possession will occur, the name of the 
Federal entity having jurisdiction over the area and the name, title, 
address, and phone number of the person in charge of the area.
    (3) For importation or exportation involving the non-commercial 
loan, exchange or donation of herbarium or other preserved, dried or 
embedded museum specimens of all threatened species between scientists 
or scientific institutions, provide the following information:
    (i) The name and address of the institution or other facility where 
the

[[Page 153]]

plants sought to be covered by the permit will be used or maintained; 
and
    (ii) A justification of the activities sought to be authorized by 
the permit and the relationship of such activities to scientific 
purposes, enhancing the propagation or survival of the species, or other 
objectives consistent with the purposes and policy of the Act.
    (4) When the activity applied for involves a species also regulated 
by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild 
Fauna and Flora, additional requirements of Sec.  23.15(c) of this 
subchapter must be met. For your convenience, Sec.  23.15(c) is repeated 
here.

    Application requirements for permits or certificates to import, 
export or re-export wildlife or plants listed in Appendix I, II or III 
that are not subject to the regulations in part 17 or part 18 of this 
subchapter. Any person subject to the jurisdiction of the United States 
who wishes to get such a permit or certificate submits an application 
under this section to the Director, Fish and Wildlife Service 
(Attention: Office of Management Authority), 4401 N. Fairfax Drive, Room 
700, Arlington, VA 22203. The Service provides Form 3-200 for the 
application to which as much of the following information relating to 
the purpose of the permit or certificate must be attached:
    (1) The scientific and common names of the species (or taxa to the 
rank listed in Appendix I, II, or III) sought to be covered by the 
permit, the number of wildlife or plants, and the activity sought to be 
authorized (such as importing, exporting, re-exporting, etc.);
    (2) A statement as to whether the wildlife or plant, at the time of 
application, (i) is living in the wild, (ii) is living, but not in the 
wild, or (iii) is dead;
    (3) A description of the wildlife or plant, including (i) size, (ii) 
sex (if known), and (iii) type of goods, if it is a part or derivative;
    (4) In the case of living wildlife or plants, (i) a description of 
the type, size, and construction of any container the wildlife or plant 
will be placed in during transportation, and (ii) the arrangements for 
watering and otherwise caring for the wildlife or plant during 
transportation;
    (5) The name and address of the person in a foreign country to whom 
the wildlife or plant is to be exported from the United States, or from 
whom the wildlife or plant is to be imported into the United States;
    (6) The country and place where the wildlife or plant was or is to 
be taken from the wild;
    (7) In the case of wildlife or plants listed in Appendix I to be 
imported into the United States, (i) a statement of the purposes and 
details of the activities for which the wildlife or plant is to be 
imported; (ii) a brief resume of the technical expertise of the 
applicant or other persons who will care for the wildlife or plant; 
(iii) the name, address, and description, including diagrams or 
photographs, of the facility where the wildlife or plant will be 
maintained; and (iv) a description of all mortalities, in the two years 
preceding the date of this application, including any wildlife species 
covered in the application (or any species of the same genus or family) 
held by the applicant, including the causes and steps taken to avoid 
such mortalities; and
    (8) Copies of documents, sworn affidavits, or other evidence showing 
that either (i) the wildlife or plant was acquired prior to the date the 
Convention applied to it, or (ii) the wildlife or plant was bred in 
captivity, or artificially propagated, or was part of or derived 
therefrom, or (iii) the wildlife or plant is an herbarium specimen, or 
live plant material to be imported, exported, or re-exported as a 
noncommercial loan, donation, or exchange between scientists or 
scientific institutions.

    (b) Issuance criteria. Upon receiving an application completed in 
accordance with paragraph (a) of this section, the Director will decide 
whether or not a permit should be issued. In making his decision, the 
Director shall consider, in addition to the general criteria in Sec.  
13.21(b) of this subchapter, the following factors:
    (1) Whether the purpose for which the permit is requested will 
enhance the survival of the species in the wild;
    (2) Whether the purpose for which the permit is requested will 
enhance the propagation of the species;
    (3) The opinions or views of scientists or other persons or 
organizations having expertise concerning the plant or other matters 
germane to the application; and
    (4) Whether the expertise, facilities, or other resources available 
to the applicant appear adequate to successfully accomplish the 
objectives stated in the application.
    (c) Permit conditions. In addition to the general conditions set 
forth in part 13 of this subchapter, every permit issued under this 
section shall be subject to the following special conditions:
    (1) If requested, the permittee shall submit to the Director a 
written report of the activities authorized by the permit. Such report 
must be postmarked

[[Page 154]]

by the date specified in the permit or otherwise requested by the 
Director.
    (2) A copy of the permit or an identification label, which includes 
the scientific name, the permit number, and a statement that the plant 
is of ``wild orgin'' or ``cultivated origin'' must accompany the plant 
or its container during the course of any activity subject to these 
regulations, unless the specimens meet the special conditions referred 
to in paragraph (c)(3) of this section.
    (3) In the case of plants that are herbarium specimens, or other 
preserved, dried, or embedded museum specimens to be imported or 
exported as a noncommercial loan exchange or donation between scientists 
or scientific institutions, the names and addresses of the consignor and 
consignee must be on each package or container. A description such as 
``herbarium specimens'' and the code letters assigned by the Service to 
the scientist or scientific institution must be entered on the Customs 
declaration form affixed to each package or container. If the specimens 
are of taxa also regulated by the Convention on International Trade in 
Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, the letters ``CITES'' 
(acronym for the convention) also must be entered on the Customs 
declaration form as indicated in Sec.  23.15(e)(3) of this subchapter.
    (d) Duration of permit. The duration of a permit issued under this 
section shall be designated on the face of the permit.

[42 FR 32380, June 24, 1977, as amended at 50 FR 39691, Sept. 30, 1985; 
63 FR 52636, Oct. 1, 1998]