§4222 Moratoria

Summary

The Secretary must ban imports of raw and worked ivory from an ivory‑producing country right away if the country does not meet the criteria in section 4221(b)(1). If the Secretary does not have enough information about a country, the ban must start no later than January 1, 1990, unless new information shows the country meets the criteria before that date. The Secretary must also ban ivory from an intermediary country right away if the country is not part of CITES, does not follow the CITES ivory controls, brings in ivory from non‑CITES or non‑producing countries, brings in ivory illegally, or sharply raises imports from a country already under a ban. Imports from a banned country are barred after the first three months, except that ivory shipped by vessel during the first six months may enter if shipping papers show it was exported before the ban. The Secretary must lift a ban after notice and public comment if the reasons for it are gone. Any person can petition the Secretary to start or stop a ban, must give strong information, and the Secretary will publish the petition, take public comments, and decide no later than 90 days after the comment period ends. People may import legally taken sport‑hunted elephant trophies from producing countries that have submitted an ivory quota, and the Secretary may not ban those imports. Ivory seized and sold under CITES rules will not alone cause a ban if all sale money goes to conservation; if the country was not a CITES party when the ivory was seized, that protection applies only after the country ensures people with illegal‑ivory histories cannot benefit.