<The Ministry of Environment, Water and Agriculture called on suppliers wishing to obtain import licenses for fresh vegetables and fruits to quickly apply for the necessary licenses before the expiration of the deadline set by the Ministry, which is scheduled from 1 Muharram 1443 AH, stressing that no shipment of fresh vegetables and fruits can be imported without an electronic import permit.
The Ministry had previously outlined the steps for issuing the license, which begins by submitting the application electronically through the Zarai electronic platform https://eservices.mewa.gov.sa/request/111111. The application will be studied within a period not exceeding 3 days, and then the applicant will be notified of the result of his application, provided that the rejection is reasoned, indicating that once the approval is issued, the import license will be issued by the Ministry's Agency for Agriculture and will be valid for between 3 and 10 years depending on the category of the license.
The Ministry explained at the time that obtaining an import license enables the importer to obtain import permits, which begins on the first of next Muharram, stressing that no shipment of fresh vegetables and fruits can enter the Kingdom without prior import permission, noting that one of the conditions of the import license is that the importer must be a Saudi person licensed to engage in the activity, or a foreign investor licensed to engage in the activity according to the foreign investment system, and is financially solvent.<The Ministry stated that the health conditions of the shipment are that it must be free of pests listed in the lists of quarantine pests in the Kingdom, free of pesticide residues or within the limits allowed by law in the Kingdom, and conform to the provisions of the Agricultural Quarantine Law and its executive regulations in the Kingdom, and conform to the requirements of the technical regulations and specifications approved by the Ministry The Ministry has the right to verify the quantities imported according to the issued import license, as well as revoke the license or permit and stop the shipment if epidemic diseases appear in the country of export.<It is noteworthy that the Ministry of Environment, Water and Agriculture had launched a new mechanism to apply the conditions and controls for the import of vegetables and fruits, with the aim of supporting the sustainability of local production, quality control, protection of plant wealth, and the continued flow of fresh vegetables and fruits to enhance food security, noting that the mechanism was based on the agricultural quarantine system in the Gulf Cooperation Council countries, which stipulates that: “No shipment shall be allowed to enter the country without an import license and a phytosanitary certificate issued by the competent authorities in the exporting country,” in addition to the Kingdom's executive regulations for the GCC Agricultural Quarantine System, which states: “An entity wishing to import plants, plant products or materials subject to phytosanitary regulations requires an import permit to apply to the competent authorities”, and a reference to the international standards of the Commission on Phytosanitary Measures (CPM) that allows countries to set requirements on imported goods.
The Ministry had previously outlined the steps for issuing the license, which begins by submitting the application electronically through the Zarai electronic platform https://eservices.mewa.gov.sa/request/111111. The application will be studied within a period not exceeding 3 days, and then the applicant will be notified of the result of his application, provided that the rejection is reasoned, indicating that once the approval is issued, the import license will be issued by the Ministry's Agency for Agriculture and will be valid for between 3 and 10 years depending on the category of the license.
The Ministry explained at the time that obtaining an import license enables the importer to obtain import permits, which begins on the first of next Muharram, stressing that no shipment of fresh vegetables and fruits can enter the Kingdom without prior import permission, noting that one of the conditions of the import license is that the importer must be a Saudi person licensed to engage in the activity, or a foreign investor licensed to engage in the activity according to the foreign investment system, and is financially solvent.<The Ministry stated that the health conditions of the shipment are that it must be free of pests listed in the lists of quarantine pests in the Kingdom, free of pesticide residues or within the limits allowed by law in the Kingdom, and conform to the provisions of the Agricultural Quarantine Law and its executive regulations in the Kingdom, and conform to the requirements of the technical regulations and specifications approved by the Ministry The Ministry has the right to verify the quantities imported according to the issued import license, as well as revoke the license or permit and stop the shipment if epidemic diseases appear in the country of export.<It is noteworthy that the Ministry of Environment, Water and Agriculture had launched a new mechanism to apply the conditions and controls for the import of vegetables and fruits, with the aim of supporting the sustainability of local production, quality control, protection of plant wealth, and the continued flow of fresh vegetables and fruits to enhance food security, noting that the mechanism was based on the agricultural quarantine system in the Gulf Cooperation Council countries, which stipulates that: “No shipment shall be allowed to enter the country without an import license and a phytosanitary certificate issued by the competent authorities in the exporting country,” in addition to the Kingdom's executive regulations for the GCC Agricultural Quarantine System, which states: “An entity wishing to import plants, plant products or materials subject to phytosanitary regulations requires an import permit to apply to the competent authorities”, and a reference to the international standards of the Commission on Phytosanitary Measures (CPM) that allows countries to set requirements on imported goods.
