6.0 Export to Mexico

6.1 Export to Mexico—General

General Requirements

1. Livestock, semen, and embryos imported into Mexico require a "hoja de requisitos zoosanitarios" (HRZ) or list of requirements and statements that Canada's veterinary health certificate must include. This condition is similar to an import permit and, on occasion, the requirements change without notification to Canada. Exporters should verify that the requirement for an importer to obtain the "hoja de requisitos" has been met and that the conditions listed in that document are satisfied by Canada's export certificate.

2. Trucks transporting animals for export from Canada to Mexico through the U.S. usually will be sealed at the U.S. port of entry, and the seals will be removed at the port of entry into Mexico. It is up to the Mexican importer to apply for an in-transit permit from the USDA and arrange for feed and rest stations on trips of long duration.

3. All inspections must be made by an accredited veterinarian authorized by the Accredited Veterinarian Agreement, and every animal must meet each of the conditions required for their export to Mexico.

4. Livestock inspected and certified for export to Mexico are not to be certified for export to the U.S. Animals certified for export to Mexico are not eligible to stay in the U.S. They are considered to be "in transit" only.

5. In completing certificates, "premises of origin" refers to the town and province that the producer uses as a mailing address. "Port of departure" refers to the port from which animals leave Canada. "Destination" is the Mexican destination provided by the Canadian exporter.

6. The export certification is considered complete and valid only when it has been endorsed and stamped with the official export stamp by a CFIA veterinary inspector. The veterinary inspector is usually the district veterinarian responsible for the area in which the herd of origin is located or another veterinary inspector if prior arrangements have been made.

7. The period of time that an export certificate remains valid is based not only on the date that the completed certificate is endorsed by a CFIA veterinarian, but also on the actual date that the inspections or treatments commenced.

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6.2 Export to Mexico—Horses

Health Certification

1. The veterinary health certificate is the HA1263 Export of horses to Mexico / Exportación de caballos a Mexico.

2. The status of the HA1263 certificate must be verified with the local CFIA district office before beginning testing to ensure that the certificate is current and matches the "hoja de requisitos" and that Canada is free of contagious equine metritis.

3. Animals must be individually identified.

4. The animals must be inspected and found healthy and free of ectoparasites.

5. Vehicles used to transport the horses must be cleaned and disinfected before loading, and can only carry horses qualified for export to Mexico during the trip.

Certification Procedure

6. The animals must be tested for equine infectious anemia using the agar gel immunodiffusion test (AGID) test or the ELISA test with negative test results within the 30 days before exportation.

7. Animals must be vaccinated against equine rhinopneumonitis within the six months before their departure.

How to Complete the Canadian Health Certificate (HA1263)

8. The accredited veterinarian must use the most recent version of the HA1263.

9. The date the blood sample was taken and the laboratory that conducted the test must be indicated on the certificate.

10. For the vaccination against equine rhinopneumonitis, the date of vaccination, the type of vaccine, and the name of the manufacturer must be indicated.

11. The accredited veterinarian must complete the export health certificate by entering all required information according to the directions provided above. The "Reference number" is attributed by the CFIA district office. The completed and signed health certificate shall be submitted to a CFIA veterinary inspector to review and, if all the requirements have been met, endorse. An incomplete export certificate will be returned to the accredited veterinarian to be completed. A fee will be charged for CFIA's endorsement. Endorsed certificates will be returned to the accredited veterinarian. The health certificate is valid for a period of 30 days from the date of the examination.

References

A copy of HA1263 - PDF (100 kb).

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6.3 Export to Mexico—Swine

Breeding Swine
Health Certification

1. Certificate HA1240 Export Swine to Mexico / Exportación de cerdos a México must be used.

2. The animals must meet all the export certificate requirements.

3. Canada must be free from brucellosis and pseudorabies (Aujeszky's disease).

4. The animals must be identified individually using "HofA" ear tags, tattoos or plastic tags officially approved by the CFIA that permit trace back to herd of origin.

5. The animals being exported must be inspected. They must be found to be free of clinical evidence of infectious, contagious, or parasitic disease.

6. The animals being exported must be free of atrophic rhinitis and originate from farms on which there have been no reported cases of atrophic rhinitis for at least 12 months before the date of exportation.

7. The animals being exported must originate from farms on which clinical cases of porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome (PRRS) have not been present during the previous three months and which have not introduced swine from farms on which PRRS has been identified during the previous 30 days.

8. The animals being exported must originate from farms on which transmissible gastroenteritis has not been diagnosed during the past six months.

9. The animals being exported must not have been vaccinated during the 30-day period before export.

10. The animals must be transported in cleaned and disinfected vehicles and must not be exposed to other livestock during transportation.

Certification Procedure

11. The animals for export must be examined by an accredited veterinarian within 10 days before the date of export.

How to Complete the Canadian Health Certificates (HA1240)

12. The accredited veterinarian must use the most recent version of the export certificate.

13. The export certificate must not contain cross-outs, changes or errors.

14. The identification of each animal must be reported on the certificate including the ear tag number and a description of the animal.

15. The completed certificate will be submitted to a CFIA veterinary inspector to review and, if all requirements are met, endorse. The "Reference number" is assigned by the CFIA district office. Incomplete export certificates will be returned to the accredited veterinarian for completion. A fee will be charged for CFIA endorsement. Endorsed certificates will be returned to the accredited veterinarian. The health certificate is valid for 30 days from the date of examination.

References

Copy of export health certificate HA1240 - PDF (35 kb).

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6.4 Export to Mexico—Cattle

This section describes inspection and certification requirements for the export of cattle to Mexico.

Authorization

Veterinarians accredited for this function are authorized to certify cattle for export to Mexico. Currently, there is a certificate for breeding cattle (HA1296). A certificate for entry of bulls into artificial insemination centres in Mexico is under negotiation.

Veterinarians accredited for this function are required to maintain records to document how certification elements have been met for each shipment.

General Certification Requirements

1. Livestock, semen, and embryos imported into Mexico require a hoja de requisitos (HRZ), i.e. a list of requirements and statements that the Veterinary Health Certificate must include. This condition is similar to an import permit and, on occasion, the requirements may change without notification to Canada. Exporters should verify that the requirement for an importer to obtain the hoja de requisitos has been met and that the conditions which are contained on that document are satisfied by the Canadian export certificate.

2. The general principles that apply to inspecting and testing cattle for export to the U.S. also apply to inspecting and testing cattle for export to Mexico. The terms and conditions of export are subject to change from time to time and without notice. The status of a CFIA export certificate must be verified with the local district office of the Canadian Food Inspection Agency prior to the commencement of testing, to ensure it is current and matches the hoja de requisitos.

3. The accredited veterinarian must use the most recent version of the export certificate.

4. Official tags approved under the Health of Animals Regulations must be used.

Note:

1. While it is not a requirement of the importing country that the ear tag numbers be listed in ascending numerical order on the certificate, accredited veterinarians are encouraged to complete certificates in this manner. This practice will facilitate inspection at the ports of entry and minimize delays.

2. Some old CCIA white buttons could eventually cause problems at borders or slaughterhouses. They were made in the early days of the program (2002-03) and had different numbers written on the buttons than what was programmed on the chip. These buttons were white in colour and distribution was believed to be limited to the province of Manitoba.

   Thus, if some of these specially-tagged animals were to be presented for export, it could potentially bring up a certification issue of misidentification (i.e. exporter physically reads button number and USDA [United States Department of Agriculture] or Mexico inspector use an electronic reader and vice versa). With the movement of calves, these buttons could be anywhere across Canada. The CCIA does have a list with which they can cross-reference any of these numbers, in either direction (i.e. electronic to printed number or vice versa).

   For export purposes, the method of recording the numbers on the white CCIA buttons should be as follows: record the visual number in the description column if the electronic number recorded in the "official ear tag" column differs.

3. The animals must not bear a light blue, Allflex, tamperproof, dangle tag in their left ear, marked with CFIA/ACIA and a 4-digit number, as these animals cannot be certified for export to any country.

5. In the column "AGE", record the birth date of each animal if a birth record is available. The only official requirement is that the exported animals must have been born on or after January 1, 1999; however, it is important for the exporter and the accredited veterinarian to know that Mexican importers may receive subsidies from the Government of Mexico if they can prove that the imported animals are under 30 months of age.

Non-specific age entries are not acceptable, e.g. <4 years, but an approximation based on dentition is acceptable (see section 22 below).

6. The accredited veterinarian must complete the export health certificate by entering all the necessary information with the exception of the number of animals in the shipment and the seal numbers. The "Reference number" is assigned by the CFIA district office. The completed and signed health certificate will be submitted to a CFIA veterinary inspector for review and, if all requirements are met, to endorse it. Any incomplete export certificates will be returned to the accredited veterinarian for completion. A fee is charged for CFIA endorsement. Once endorsed, certificates are returned to the accredited veterinarian.

7. The original and three copies of the official export certificate must accompany the shipment.

8. An addendum (see "Form for recording seal numbers" in section 12) will be added to the certificate during the transit in the U.S. by USDA veterinarians or USDA accredited veterinarians in order to keep a proper record of the times when the seals are broken and applied again.

9. It is possible to send multiple trucks under a single export certificate, providing that the exporter, importer and final destination in Mexico are the same.

The Mexican authorities made it clear that the destination written on the certificate must be the final destination and not a temporary destination before the animals are distributed to other locations. In this case, the original and three copies of the official export certificate, completed as described above, must accompany the first truck, and three copies of the certificate must accompany each subsequent truck. Seal numbers applied on a truck must be recorded on the copies that accompany this truck. Accredited veterinarians must keep on file the seal numbers that have been applied to each truck.

The total number of animals in the shipment, not the total number in a specific truck, must be recorded on all copies since changes can occur when animals are unloaded and loaded again at feed and water rest stops. All trucks must pass at the U.S. border and arrive at the inspection station at the Mexico-U.S. border at the same time.

10. If the seals are broken or missing, or if they do not match the seal numbers recorded on the health certificate or the USDA's addendum, the shipment will be refused entry into the U.S. or Mexico.

11. Before arrival at the U.S. border, the seals cannot be broken by anyone other than a CFIA inspector or a person under the inspector's supervision. If the exporter asks to transfer animals from one truck to another after leaving the farm of origin, the transfer must be performed under the direct supervision of a CFIA inspector. The CFIA inspector will issue an official letter to confirm the change in the seal numbers. The CFIA will charge a fee for this service.

During transit in the U.S., the USDA should always be contacted before breaking any seal on the truck.

USDA Protocol to Transit Ruminants from Canada to Mexico

12. Exporters transporting loads of cattle through the USA to Mexico are required to observe the USDA Protocol to Transit Ruminants from Canada to Mexico. The following documents are available at the following address on the United States Department of Agriculture - Animal and Animal Product Import Website:

• Questions and Answers Transit Canadian Bovines to Mexico
• Transit Canadian Bovines to Mexico
• Form for recording seal numbers

In case of refused entry in Mexico

13. The exporter needs—and should be advised by the accredited veterinarian— to have contingency plans in place for the handling of the shipment should it be refused entry in Mexico. For shipments which are refused entry, there are three possible outcomes:

1. they return to Canada (please check with the CFIA for requirements to return these animals);
2. they are sent to a U.S. slaughterhouse under a special permit from the USDA; or,

3. the animals can be sold within the U.S. if they have been inspected and certified to meet requirements. In this case, the accredited veterinarian must also be accredited for the export of cattle to the U.S. and the certificate must have accompanied the load into the U.S. Since the certificate for the U.S. will be used only if the shipment is refused entry in Mexico, it does not need to be shown on entry in the U.S. If needed, the inspection will be done by a USDA veterinarian at the Mexico-U.S. border's point of inspection, and the decision to let the animals enter the U.S. will be taken at this moment.

   If the CFIA district office is asked to certify a shipment for both countries, the usual certification fees will be charged for both certificates.

Use and Control of CFIA Seals

14. The export of cattle to Mexico must be done in vehicles that are sealed at the location from which the animals are being shipped. Seals must be applied by the accredited veterinarian who signs the certificate or by a technician designated by the accredited veterinarian.

15. To perform this function, accredited veterinarians or their auxiliaries must be designated under the Health of Animals Act. Contact the CFIA district veterinarian to obtain this designation.

16. Accredited veterinarians will provide the CFIA district veterinarian with the names of any technicians able to perform the duties of sealing vehicles for the shipment of animals to Mexico. This list must be updated as soon as changes in staff are made.

17. The CFIA's Animal Health district office will provide seals for the vehicles. Seals may be allocated to an accredited veterinarian or to a veterinary clinic when more than one accredited veterinarian is employed by the same clinic.

18. The district office will keep records containing the seal numbers and the names of the accredited veterinarians or veterinary clinics to which the seals were distributed.

19. Once seals are applied to all possible exits of a vehicle transporting livestock, accredited veterinarians or their designated auxiliaries must record the numbers on the official export certificate in the appropriate section and initial the appropriate section.

20. Accredited veterinarians must keep records of the seals that are used. Seal numbers must be matched with export certificate numbers. These records must be kept for a minimum of three years.

21. Accredited veterinarians must submit, upon request, a list of the seals used and the corresponding export certificate numbers to the CFIA's Animal Health district office. The following list can be put in a table and used to submit this information. The document can be sent by facsimile, electronic mail or regular mail.

• Accredited Veterinarian or Technician
• Seal Numbers
• Export Certificate Number
• Date of Application of Seals
• Truck or Trailer License Plate Number

Age Determination and Certification

22. The following will apply to age determination:

1. Dentition: animals may be exported to Mexico after a visual inspection of dentition, provided the eighth permanent incisor has not fully erupted. If the eighth incisor has fully erupted, the age of the cattle will need to be verified by a birth record (see definition in article ii. below).

   Click on image for larger view
   
   Dentition

2. Birth record: ATQ database, purebred record and registration certificate, CCIA database, or other record (including birth farm records) acceptable to the accredited veterinarian indicating the animal was born on or after January 1, 1999. It is highly recommended that if animals being certified fall into this category, that the accredited veterinarian maintains a record with the export file.
3. Visual inspection: Visual age verification is allowable for certification of younger animals which may be presented to an accredited veterinarian. Visual inspection may be used for animals which are under 3 years of age. It is recognized that the experienced practitioner is able to estimate the age of these young animals upon visual inspection, and that the accredited veterinarian is often knowledgeable about the cattle to be exported (for example, feed lots where cattle are essentially penned according to birth year or veal operations). Visual verification should only be used when the accredited veterinarian is confident about the age of the animals. If there is any concern that the animal(s) being inspected does not fall into this category, the accredited veterinarian should choose option i) or ii) above for age verification. As the animals get closer to an estimated age of 3 years, the accredited veterinarian should have more knowledge regarding the history of the animals, especially if the animals have been just recently assembled.

HA1296— Breeding cattle to Mexico—Requirements and Completion

23. The cattle certified for export are either born and raised in Canada or legally imported from the USA.

24. The cattle certified for export were born on or after January 1, 1999.

25. The exported cattle are identified with permanent identification approved under the Health of Animals Regulations, which allows the tracking of the animals to the herd of origin.

26. Canada is classified by the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) as a country with controlled risk with respect to BSE and complies with the conditions described in article 2.3.13 of the Terrestrial Animal Health Code.

27. During the inspection prior to exportation, the animals were found to be clinically healthy.

28. Bovine brucellosis

The animals to be exported originate from herds officially free of brucellosis and they were submitted to an individual serological test with negative results (in accordance with Canadian Standards) within 60 days prior to the date of export. If the animals are less than six 6 months of age on the day of the shipment, the test is not required.

The date of sampling must be recorded in section 6. In the case where sampling has been done on different days, record the earliest date.

29. Bovine tuberculosis

All animals over 1 month of age at the time of export must be tested and found negative to the caudal fold intradermal tuberculin test, using 0.1 ml of PPD tuberculin. The test must be completed within 60 days of export.

The date of reading of the tests must be recorded in section 7. In the case where testing has been done on different days, record the earliest reading date.

30. The animals must be free of campylobacteriosis and trichomoniasis. In the case of heifers that have never mated naturally or those that have been bred with artificial insemination only, a test is not required. If these conditions cannot be met, then animals must be tested with negative results. In specific cases, other animals may also be exempted from testing. For more information, please contact the CFIA district veterinarian in your area.

Testing can be done either by CFIA staff or accredited veterinarians once they have been properly trained.

31. Canada is free of piroplasmosis.

32. The animals were inspected and found to be free of clinical signs for infectious bovine rhinotracheitis and leptospirosis. They were vaccinated against infectious bovine rhinotracheitis and leptospirosis, using a bacterin against five strains of Leptospira (L. pomona, L. icterohaemorrhagiae, L. canicola, L. grippotyphosa and L. hardjo). For both diseases, the vaccine was administered between 10 and 90 days prior to the date of export.

33. The animals are free of ectoparasites.

34. Canada is free of Boophilus spp. ticks.

35. The animals in the shipment were inspected by an official veterinarian or a veterinarian accredited by the CFIA, and were loaded under his/her supervision.

36. From the point of shipping until their departure from Canada, the animals will be transported in sealed vehicles (see "Use and Control of CFIA Seals", sections 14 to 21).

37. The vehicles used for the transportation of the animals were cleaned and disinfected prior to the loading of the animals.

38. A small number of "reserve" animals can be recorded on the export certificate. No strike-out must be done on the export certificate for the animals that are not loaded on the truck at the moment of departure.

39. A list of animals may be attached to the export certificate as long as it contains the same information as the table in the Appendix I. In this case, it must be recorded in the table of Appendix I that the list of animals included in the shipment is attached. This list must be initialed by the accredited veterinarian and "CFIA" must be stamped on every page. The reference number must also be recorded on each page and pagination must be present. The rest of Appendix I must be completed as usual.

40. The accredited veterinarian or their technician must, on the day of export, return to the farm and apply CFIA seals to the transporting vehicles, after verifying that only the animals listed on the export certificate are included in the shipment. A CFIA seal must be applied to every door on the trailer.

41. The accredited veterinarian or their technician must record the number of animals in the shipment and the CFIA seal numbers in the appropriate section on the endorsed original health certificate, and initial the appropriate section. Please repeat this information on the copies of the certificate, as well as on the copy kept in the accredited veterinarian file.

Certification of bulls for entry into artificial insemination centres in Mexico (HA 2416)

Under negotiations

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