50 CFR §23.49
Verified against eCFR.gov as of June 20, 2026View official text on eCFR.gov ↗
- (a)Purpose. Article VII(7) of the Treaty grants an exemption for specimens that qualify as bred in captivity, artificially propagated, or pre-Convention and are part of a traveling exhibition.
- (b)U.S. and foreign general provisions. The following general provisions apply to the issuance and acceptance of a certificate for live wildlife and plants, or their parts, products, or derivatives in an exhibition that travels internationally:
- (1)The Management Authority in the country of the exhibitor's primary place of business must have determined that the specimens are bred in captivity, artificially propagated, or pre-Convention and issued a traveling-exhibition certificate.
- (2)The certificate must indicate that the wildlife or plant is part of a traveling exhibition.
- (3)A separate certificate must be issued for each live wildlife specimen; a CITES document may be issued for more than one specimen for a traveling exhibition of live plants and dead parts, products, or derivatives of wildlife and plants.
- (4)The certificate is not transferable.
- (5)Parties should treat the certificate like a passport for import and export or re-export from each country, and should not collect the original certificate at the border.
- (6)Parties should check specimens closely to determine that each specimen matches the certificate and ensure that each live specimen is being transported and cared for in a manner that minimizes the risk of injury, damage to health, or cruel treatment of the specimen.
- (7)If offspring are born or a new specimen is acquired while the traveling exhibition is in another country, the exhibitor must obtain the appropriate CITES document for the export or re-export of the specimen from the Management Authority of that country.
- (8)Upon returning home, the exhibitor may apply for a traveling-exhibition certificate for wildlife born overseas or for wildlife or plants acquired overseas.
- (c)U.S. application form. Complete Form 3-200-30 for wildlife and Form 3-200-32 for plants, and submit it to the U.S. Management Authority.
- (d)Criteria. The criteria in this paragraph (d) apply to the issuance and acceptance of U.S. and foreign certificates. When applying for a U.S. certificate, you must provide sufficient information for us to find that your proposed activity meets all of the following criteria:
- (1)The traveling exhibition makes multiple cross-border movements, and will return to the country in which the exhibition is based before the certificate expires.
- (2)The cross-border movement must be for exhibition, and not for breeding, propagating, or activities other than exhibition.
- (3)The traveling exhibition is based in the country that issued the certificate.
- (4)The specimen meets the criteria for a bred-in-captivity certificate, certificate for artificially propagated plants, or pre-Convention certificate.
- (5)The exhibitor does not intend to sell or otherwise transfer the wildlife or plant while traveling internationally.
- (6)The wildlife or plant is securely marked or identified in such a way that border officials can verify that the certificate and specimen correspond. If a microchip is used, we may, if necessary, ask the importer, exporter, or re-exporter to have equipment on hand to read the microchip at the time of import, export, or re-export.
- (e)U.S. standard conditions. In addition to the conditions in § 23.56, you must meet all of the following conditions:
- (1)The certificate may be used by you, and you must not transfer or assign it to another person or traveling exhibition.
- (2)You must transport the specimen internationally only for exhibition, not for breeding, propagating, or activities other than exhibition.
- (3)You must present the certificate to the official for validation at each border crossing.
- (4)For live plants, the quantity of plants must be reasonable for the purpose of the traveling exhibition.
- (5)You must not sell or otherwise transfer the specimen, or any offspring born to such specimen, while traveling internationally.
- (6)If the certificate is lost, stolen, or accidentally destroyed, you may obtain a replacement certificate only from the U.S. Management Authority.
- (7)If you no longer own the wildlife or plants, or no longer plan to travel as a traveling exhibition, the original certificate must be immediately returned to the U.S. Management Authority.
- (8)You must return the traveling exhibition to the United States before the certificate expires.