Phytosanitary and Fumigation Certificates for Goods From India

In July 2026 Australia's agriculture department told the trade that thirteen fumigation companies in India had been suspended or had withdrawn from its accreditation scheme after compliance checks, seven suspended and six withdrawn (DAFF notice IIAN 118-2026, as summarised by the Freight and Trade Alliance (opens in a new tab), July 2026). Some containers treated by those firms were already on the water. Their fumigation certificates were genuine pieces of paper, signed and stamped, and they still weren't accepted, so the goods faced onshore treatment, inspection or a treatment plan before release. An Australian biosecurity consultant put it bluntly a month later: an Indian fumigation certificate on its own no longer proves anything for Australia (LinkedIn, August 2026, our forum signal FS-SHP-001).

That's the gap this guide closes. A phytosanitary certificate and a fumigation certificate look simple. One is a government form and the other is a company's treatment record. But each proves something narrow, each can be wrong in a way that only shows up at your port, and the work to get them right sits with the exporter in India. Below is the importer's half first, then the exporter's, step by step. For the full list of certificate guides, see certifications.

1. What Each Certificate Says

A phytosanitary certificate (PSC) is issued by the exporting country's national plant protection organisation under the International Plant Protection Convention. In India that's the Directorate of Plant Protection, Quarantine and Storage (PPQS), and 201 officers from central, state and union territory governments are authorised to sign them (PPQS (opens in a new tab)). It says an official inspected the plants or plant products in the consignment, found them free of the pests your country regulates, and that any extra declarations your country asks for are true. Rice, spices, seeds, pulses, fresh produce, cut flowers, some handicrafts in natural fibre, and timber are the usual India cases.

A fumigation or treatment certificate is issued by the company that treated the goods or the container. It records the treatment (methyl bromide, aluminium phosphide or heat), the dose, the temperature, the exposure time and the provider's accreditation number. When your country requires a treatment, the PSC usually repeats it in its treatment section.

What neither proves is just as important. A PSC is about pests. It isn't a test for pesticide residues, aflatoxin, ethylene oxide or Salmonella, and those are what most Indian food actually fails on (see food import testing). And a PSC doesn't cover the pallets. Wood packaging has its own mark under ISPM 15, and a PSC isn't a substitute for it.

2. When Your Border Asks for One

Your country's import conditions decide this, per product and per form. Raw, dried, roasted and ground versions of the same spice can have different rules. Read the current conditions in the official system before you order -

Two points buyers miss. The extra declaration wording is set by your country, not by India, so if your condition says the lot must be "free from" a named pest, that sentence has to appear on the PSC. And a PSC is issued for one consignment, so a supplier can't reuse one for the next shipment. If you're also new to the biosecurity side of baskets, rugs or other natural goods, biosecurity for natural goods covers that ground.

3. What an Importer Should Check

Ask for a scanned draft of the PSC and the treatment certificate before the goods sail, not with the arrival notice. Then check five things.

1. It's from PPQS. An Indian PSC is a government document. A "phytosanitary certificate" on a private company's letterhead isn't one.
2. It matches the shipment. Description, botanical name, quantity, number of packages, marks and the exporter and consignee names must agree with the invoice and packing list. Our study of 1,765 EU notifications on Indian food found 299 (17%) named no contamination at all, only missing or mismatched certificates and reports. An Indian incense exporter's first shipment to Germany sat in port for four days because the PSC didn't match the invoice (LinkedIn, April 2026 (opens in a new tab)).
3. The extra declaration is there. Word for word as your import condition sets it.
4. The treatment is right and the provider is accepted. Dose, temperature and exposure time meet your condition. For Australia, check the provider's AFAS number on DAFF's India treatment provider list. DAFF doesn't accept certificates from providers listed as suspended, withdrawn or under investigation from the date of listing, and goods treated by them have to be re-treated, exported or disposed of (DAFF India provider list (opens in a new tab)). Earlier lists also stated plainly that there's no allowance for goods in transit.
5. The date fits. The treatment happened before the inspection or within the window your condition allows, and the PSC is dated before the bill of lading or within your country's tolerance. Ask your customs broker what your border accepts.

Red flags are few and plain. A PSC that arrives only after the goods do. A treatment certificate from a provider your supplier can't name in advance. Handwritten corrections on a PSC (an official PSC is replaced, not amended in pen). A botanical name that doesn't match the product. None of these makes a supplier dishonest. A busy freight agent often books the fumigation, and small exporters rarely see the certificate before it goes to the bank. But they're your cue to ask.

Is It Real

India started exchanging electronic phytosanitary certificates (ePhyto) through the IPPC hub around 2023 (IPPC (opens in a new tab)). Where your plant protection authority receives Indian ePhytos, the certificate reaches it government to government, which is the strongest check there is. Ask your broker whether your border receives Indian ePhytos for your product. Where it doesn't, the paper PSC goes with the documents, and if in doubt your plant health authority can query PPQS.

4. What to Ask the Supplier For and When

Put it in the purchase order, not in an email after packing.

• At the PO: your import condition, with the extra declaration wording and the treatment required. For Australia, name the requirement that the treatment provider must be AFAS-listed and not suspended on the day of treatment.
• Before packing: the name and accreditation number of the treatment provider the supplier will use, so you can check it.
• Before sailing: scans of the draft PSC and the treatment certificate, checked against the invoice and packing list.
• With the documents: the originals, unless your border uses ePhyto.

If you'd rather someone in India checked the fumigation, sat in on the inspection and matched the paper before the container is sealed, SourcingSync (opens in a new tab) does exactly that at origin.

5. Who Issues It in India

The phytosanitary certificate comes from PPQS, under the Ministry of Agriculture, through its regional and port plant quarantine stations. Applications go through the Plant Quarantine Management System, PQMS (opens in a new tab). PPQS's own instruction is short: "Register as Exporter in PQMS which is one time exercise and apply online well in advance prior to every export" (PPQS FAQ (opens in a new tab)).

Treatments come from private providers accredited by PPQS. Methyl bromide fumigation is accredited under NSPM-12, aluminium phosphide under NSPM-22 and forced hot air treatment under NSPM-9. A provider applies to its regional plant quarantine station in the format the NSPM sets, needs trained operators before applying, and must apply to renew at least 45 days before its accreditation expires (PPQS FAQ (opens in a new tab)). Australia then runs its own layer on top (AFAS), so an Indian provider can be PPQS-accredited and still not acceptable to Australia.

Some products also need a registered facility. For rice, chilli and peanuts, PPQS registers packhouses and processing units, and the facility applies to the regional station under the product's SOP (PPQS FAQ (opens in a new tab)). Check if your importing country's protocol requires one.

6. How an Indian Exporter Gets One

Step 1 - Get the buyer's import condition. Ask for the exact entry condition from the buyer's system (BICON, MPI, APHIS, EU or UK rules). You need the extra declaration and the treatment before anything else. Time: a day, if the buyer is organised.

Step 2 - Register on PQMS. A one-time exporter registration with your IEC and firm details. Check the documents asked for on PQMS (opens in a new tab). Time: varies by station, so do it well before your first order.

Step 3 - Register the facility if your product needs it. Rice, chilli and peanut exporters to some markets need a registered packhouse. Apply to the regional plant quarantine station. PPQS's charter has given 45 days from nomination for facility inspections (check the current charter on the PPQS site).

Step 4 - Book the treatment with an accepted provider. Pick a provider accredited by PPQS for the treatment, and for Australia check DAFF's AFAS list for India on the day. Give the provider the buyer's treatment condition in writing. Fumigation itself takes from one to several days with aeration, depending on the gas and the goods.

Step 5 - Apply for the PSC on PQMS. Enter the consignment details exactly as on your invoice and packing list. Include the botanical name, the extra declaration and the treatment details. Pay the fee online (check the current fee on PQMS).

Step 6 - Present the goods for inspection. A plant quarantine officer inspects and may draw samples at the station or your premises. Have the lot packed, marked and accessible.

Step 7 - Collect the PSC and send the scan. Check every field against your invoice before it goes to the buyer or the bank. If something is wrong, ask the station for a replacement certificate. Don't correct it by hand.

Common rejection reasons are almost all in the paper. Botanical name missing or wrong. Quantity in different units from the invoice. Extra declaration missing. Treatment below the dose or time required. Treatment done by a provider the importing country no longer accepts. Goods that came into India from another country and are going out again follow re-export rules, so ask the station what it needs before you quote.

What to send the buyer: the PSC scan, the treatment certificate scan with the provider's accreditation number, the invoice and packing list, and the container and seal numbers, all before the vessel sails.

7. A Worked Example With Turmeric for Melbourne

This example is an illustration built from the rules above, not a real firm.

Say you're a Melbourne importer buying dried turmeric fingers from Erode and ground turmeric from a packer in Sangli. You check BICON for each form. Assume your conditions call for a PSC and a khapra beetle treatment for the whole fingers, and different conditions for the ground product (we haven't read your exact case, so read your own BICON entry).

At the PO, you write the conditions into the contract with the extra declaration wording, and require an AFAS-listed provider that is not suspended on the day of treatment. Before packing, the Erode supplier names its fumigation provider. You check the DAFF India list. In this example the provider is one of the thirteen from July 2026, so you ask for another one before any gas goes in. That single check is the difference between a normal clearance and onshore re-treatment in Melbourne.

Before sailing, you get the draft PSC and treatment certificate, see that the PSC lists 400 bags and the packing list 20 tonnes, and ask for both in the same units. The goods leave Chennai with paper that matches. For the food-safety side of the same lot (pesticides, lead chromate), see quality control in India and the turmeric page.

FAQ

8. Next Steps

• Check the border rules for your market: Australia, New Zealand, EU, UK, US, UAE.
• For lab tests on the same lot, read food import testing.
• For animal products, see health and veterinary certificates.
• For the full list of certificates, go to certifications.