CITES Regulations of Wooden Instruments – Update

On 28 August 2019, the CITES Convention voted to exclude the trade of musical instruments from the list of controlled items.

This is welcome relief for both customers and retailers, as it reduces both the cost of purchase and delivery times of both new and pre-owned instruments crossing borders. It also means that musicians travelling with musical instruments do not have to be concerned about carrying a ‘musical instrument passport’ when travelling, reducing stress and paperwork.

The UK government ratified this amendment into law in November 2019, and the EU ratified it on 12th December to be valid from 14th December.

For all customers, this means imported shipments of musical instruments and accessories containing Dalbergia species (Grenadilla-wood and other rosewoods) will arrive more quickly and regularly than they have over the past few years.

Additionally, for international customers, this means you will not need to pay our £99 CITES processing fee on wooden instruments, and no longer have to wait 6-8 weeks for the paperwork – we can now ship these to you immediately with no hassle!

For further information, see the EU Commission document – ‘Implementation in the EU of the Amendments made to the CITES Appendices at CoP18’.