Export Regulations of Medicinal Plants in Iran

The Department of Natural Resources and Watershed Management has introduced these fresh export guidelines to safeguard and uphold the medicinal plant life in alignment with the ecological, economic, and technical parameters of the nation's medicinal plant sector. 

Consequently, all medicinal plants sourced from the rangelands must be harvested in accordance with sustainability principles and only with the explicit authorization from the Department of Natural Resources. Failure to adhere to these guidelines constitutes unauthorized harvesting. The primary objective of this initiative is to conserve, rejuvenate, cultivate, and sustainably utilize natural resources.

In accordance with Article 3 of the legislation on the Preservation and Utilization of Forests and Rangelands, any utilization of natural resources must be executed within a structured plan. These exploitation schemes must be approved by the Department of Natural Resources and Watershed Management, as any utilization beyond these sanctioned plans is considered illicit trade under the legal framework. 

This law was revised on February 10, 2021, to incorporate measures aimed at combating illicit trade. As per these regulations, any activities involving the procurement, sale, and possession of harvested items such as timber, charcoal, and other non-timber products, as well as the exploitation of medicinal plants without the requisite permissions from the competent authorities, are strictly prohibited.

Presently, there exist 422 thousand flowering plant species globally, with 12.5% of them, equivalent to 52 thousand species, possessing medicinal attributes. Among these, 8% or 4,160 species are endangered and face the risk of extinction. 

Under the new export guidelines, medicinal plants are classified into three categories: prohibited, conditionally permitted, and agricultural. 

1_The first category (prohibited)

includes plants for which harvesting, buying, and selling are categorically forbidden, and they are not eligible for trade. Items falling under the "prohibited" category encompass species deemed endangered, threatened, or part of the nation's genetic reserves. These species comprise those outlined in Article 1 of the legislation on the Preservation and Protection of Forest Reserves and the Protection of Genetic Reserves of the country, including but not limited to: wild pistachio, Persia poppy, black cumin, fennel thistle, wild celery and mountain celery (clove), leek, Khuzestani basil, violet flower, wild grapevine, musk thistle, sweet clover, soranjaneh, black hawthorn, bilharziasis, red poppy, Iranian poppies, various tulips, forty-lamp lily, Khuzestani sedge, various edible mushrooms (harvested from forests), wild garlic (valak), grassy goosefoot, roots and barks of forest trees and shrubs, as well as various other plant parts.

2.The second Category (conditionally permitted)

Conditionally permitted items, apart from prohibited or purely agricultural items, are species for which harvesting can only be done through contracts with the Department of Natural Resources and Watershed Management. 

These items include marshmallow, spurge, wild chicory, milk thistle, fennel, chickpea, chamomile, licorice, wild grape, wild celery, shepherd's purse, dandelion, nettle (afsindein and branjaseb), cowslip, narcissus, Khoansar licorice (angobin), Shirazi oregano, cakouti, bitter and sweet wormwood, hemishak, various types of red clover including eagle's wing red clover, eshqeh and kool-e-khas, tarkheh arghavan, barige, ketira, vasha, shakertighal, anzaroot, caparis (lagji), tea herb, motherwort flower, dandelion flower, wheat flower, Shirazi qudomeh, barhang, chamomile, shatera, musir (harvested from rangelands), kangar, various edible mushrooms (harvested from rangelands), Denai oregano stem, narrow leaf oregano stem, Kermani oregano stem, aerial parts of reyvas, natural gum benzoic (Saqez), natural gum from almond and cherry trees (zadu), side leaf, eucalyptus leaf, mahaleb fruit, ronass fruit, naakhank fruit, wild almond fruit (mountain), wild barberry fruit (forest), wild medlar fruit, ben tree and oak fruit, mazooj (gall oak), wild pistachio, sumac, walnut and forest hazelnut, maro seed, mushtaki, zalzalkh, wild spinach, wild pear, wild apple, jeft seed, and ben seed.

License holders seeking permission for the transportation and export of these goods are required to remit a royalty fee equivalent to 20% of the designated sum for the specific plant to the Department of Natural Resources prior to harvesting and transportation. In instances of unauthorized harvesting, as well as the buying and selling of the harvested merchandise, a payment amounting to 50% of the designated sum must be deposited into this account to secure the necessary authorization for transportation and exportation.

It should be noted that the determined amount for these plants is sometimes several times different from the market price of the product. 

For example, the wholesale price of wild medlar fruit in the market is about 50,000 Tomans, but the determined price by the Natural Resources Organization is up to 140,000 Tomans.

3_ The third Category  (agricultural):

Issuance of permits for items other than those mentioned in categories one and two is done through the system of the Agricultural Jihad Organization of the province. These items do not generally require a product transportation certificate. If needed, the certificate is issued through the Agricultural Jihad Organization system of the provinces, and the permit for transportation and export of these products is carried out without receiving any royalties.

If it is confirmed that the product has been harvested from national lands and natural resources, legal actions are taken by the provincial General Departments of Natural Resources and Watershed Management through the SAMA system. It is obvious that in case of not obtaining a permit, the harvested product will be considered as smuggling and will be confiscated in favor of the government according to Article 25 of the Law on Amending the Law on Combating Smuggling of Goods and Currency.

Source: Website of the Iranian Natural Resources Organization.