Ghana will start issuing FLEGT licenses from October 8, 2025. FLEGT stands for legally harvested timber and is an abbreviation of Forest Law Enforcement Governance and Trade. The FLEGT license is part of the voluntary partnership agreement that Ghana has signed with the European Union. In recent years, Ghana has worked hard to improve its forest management, legislation, and enforcement. The EU and Ghana have recently determined that the GhLAS system set up by Ghana to guarantee the legality of timber is sufficiently robust. The EU and Ghana have agreed that the submission of a FLEGT import license upon import into the EU will start on October 8, 2025.
What should you do if you import?
If you import wood, wooden furniture, paper, or pulp from Ghana, you must indicate the FLEGT shipment in the NVWA import system CLIENT for shipments that are imported into the EU from October 8, 2025. The license is issued by the Ghanaian authorities upon export.
The CLIENT system is linked to the Customs declaration system, and without approval from the NVWA in CLIENT, you cannot make a declaration to Customs. Visit our website for more information about FLEGT, CLIENT, and the procedures.
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