Import Alert: Import Restrictions on Canada due to Virulent Newcastle Disease 

Import Alert: Import Restrictions on Canada due to Virulent Newcastle Disease 

Issuance Date: June 23, 2025 

  5:05 pm, U.S. Eastern 

Newly restricted zone(s) 

June 04, 2025 - PCZ-FV6 in British Columbia 

Effective on the date listed above, and until further notice, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) Veterinary Services (VS) is updating its list of zones in Canada that are subject to restrictions on the importation of certain avian commodities. 

APHIS imposed these restrictions following a detection of virulent Newcastle disease (pigeon paramyxovirus type 1) in squab in the Fraser Valley region in British Columbia. See Figure 1 for a map of the restricted zone. 

Imports of Canadian-origin live poultry, poultry hatching eggs, commercial birds, and ratites originating from or transiting through PCZ-FV6 are prohibited.  

Pet birds, zoological birds and Columbiformes originating from or transiting through PCZ-FV6 are eligible for import by air direct to Miami International Airport in Florida or John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York to undergo a 30-day federal quarantine that includes mandatory testing; they may not enter by land. A USDA import permit and export health certificate are required. 

Importation of fresh, unprocessed shell/table eggs and other egg products, void of the shell (i.e., liquid eggs and dried egg whites), originating from or transiting through PCZ-FV6, imported as cargo, is prohibited unless they are consigned from the port of arrival directly to an APHIS approved breaking and pasteurization facility. An import permit and/or certificate is/are not required for these shipments if they are consigned to an APHIS-approved establishment.  

Processed/mitigated avian products, materials, and byproducts originating from or transiting through PCZ-FV6, imported as cargo, must be accompanied by an APHIS import permit and/or government certification confirming that the products/byproducts were treated according to APHIS requirements. 

Processed avian products and byproducts, including eggs and egg products, for personal use originating from or transiting all of Canada, and entering in passenger baggage must:  

• Have a thoroughly cooked appearance; or 

• Be shelf-stable as a result of APHIS-approved packaging and cooking (i.e., packaged in hermetically sealed containers and cooked by a commercial method after such packing to produce articles that are shelf stable without refrigeration); or 

• Be accompanied by an APHIS import permit and/or government certification confirming that the products/byproducts were treated according to APHIS requirements.