Monstera, Philodendron and Anthurium from Thailand: Shipping Variegated Aroids to Buyers Abroad

Which USDA rules apply to Monstera, Philodendron and Anthurium from Thailand?

One set of rules covers all three genera. ACIR, the USDA import requirements database, lists Anthurium and Monstera in two Araceae documents and Philodendron in a Certain Genera document. The Import Requirements text is identical in the three. The genus changes the paperwork, not the rule.

Sources: Araceae Doc 1, Araceae Doc 2 and Certain Genera, USDA APHIS ACIR, acir.aphis.usda.gov, read on 3 November 2026.

Thailand is not on the APHIS list of countries infested with potato cyst nematodes. So the Non-PCN documents apply. The permit rule is the same in all three.

An Import Permit is required. To obtain a permit, go to APHIS eFile and submit a PPQ 587 application.

Source: Generally Admissible Herbaceous Plants for Planting, Family Araceae from Non-PCN Countries Doc 1, USDA APHIS ACIR, acir.aphis.usda.gov.

Shipments of 12 or fewer plants for planting do not require a permit or a Green and Yellow Label (PPQ 508).

Source: Generally Admissible Herbaceous Plants for Planting, Family Araceae from Non-PCN Countries Doc 1, USDA APHIS ACIR, acir.aphis.usda.gov.

The 12-plant line holds only when no specific restriction applies. The three documents list none. ACIR does not say whether 12 counts per parcel, per consignment or per order. A buyer should not plan on splitting an order.

A permitted shipment is presented for inspection at the USDA Plant Inspection Station. A parcel sent by express carrier carries a Green and Yellow label. The address of the plant inspection station is the only address on the package. 12 or fewer plants can enter through any port.

The phytosanitary certificate must be an original issued not more than 15 days before shipment. It must identify the genus, and the species or cultivar is “strongly preferred” when the genus has no extra restrictions.

For a hybrid the certificate lists the parent taxa when they are known. Where the parents cannot be fully listed, the certificate "may state that the parents of the hybrids do not include a restricted taxa". The Phytosanitary Certificate in Thailand is issued on the Thai side before the box leaves.

Guide: phytosanitary certificate in Thailand

Each genus raises one practical point. Monstera: the cultivar. The packing list gives the scientific name to the lowest plant taxon. A plant sold as a variegated Monstera is listed as Monstera deliciosa 'Thai Constellation' or whichever cultivar it is. Philodendron: the hybrid. A named or unnamed hybrid carries its parents on the certificate when they are known.

For Anthurium, the paperwork is the same. Its narrow temperature band is covered in the guide on which plants survive the flight from Thailand. The documents set no separate rule for variegated forms. State rules, including Hawaii, were not reviewed for this guide.

Guide: which plants survive the flight from Thailand

Are Monstera, Philodendron and Anthurium CITES-listed?

No. The Species+ checklist returns no listed taxon in the family Araceae on 3 November 2026. The CITES Appendices valid from 5 March 2026 contain no Monstera, Philodendron or Anthurium entry. The three ACIR documents carry no CITES permit line, no designated port and no Protected Plant Permit.

Araceae is not on the ACIR family level restriction list, which names ten families, orchids among them.

The difference matters for a grower who sells more than aroids. Three Tillandsia species are Appendix II and need a CITES export permit, as the guide on Tillandsia from Thailand explains. Orchids are regulated as a family. Monstera, Philodendron and Anthurium sit outside both.

Source: Plants For Planting - Plant Family Specific Restrictions, USDA APHIS ACIR, acir.aphis.usda.gov; Appendices I, II and III valid from 5 March 2026, CITES Secretariat, cites.org; Checklist of CITES Species, family Araceae, CITES Secretariat and UNEP-WCMC, checklist.cites.org.

Guide: tillandsia from Thailand

How big can a Monstera, Philodendron or Anthurium be to enter the USA?

The USDA height limit for whole plants is 18 inches (457 mm) or less from the soil line. This stops very tall pole-grown plants well before CITES comes into play. Cuttings and root crowns have their own limits, set out in the table.

Whole plants are admissible if they show 18 inches (457 mm) or less from the soil line.

Source: Generally Admissible Herbaceous Plants for Planting, Family Araceae from Non-PCN Countries Doc 1, USDA APHIS ACIR, acir.aphis.usda.gov.

Source: Import Requirements 7, Size and Age, in the three ACIR documents above.

The documents do not define an epiphyte. Whether Monstera, Philodendron and Anthurium count as epiphytes for the cutting lines is a question for the Plant Inspection Station. No age limit appears in the three documents. A grower with a leafy cutting near 18 inches should measure it before the certificate is requested.

The growing media rule is plain. Bare root is the usual answer.

All plants for planting at the time of importation into the United States must be free of sand, soil, earth, and other growing media, unless meeting an exception to these conditions.

Source: Generally Admissible Herbaceous Plants for Planting, Family Araceae from Non-PCN Countries Doc 1, USDA APHIS ACIR, acir.aphis.usda.gov.

Sphagnum moss is on the approved packing material list. But "Plants must not be established or growing in any packing material." A rooted plant lifted from moss it has grown into does not meet the rule. A plant packed in new moss for the journey does.

Can tissue culture Monstera, Philodendron and Anthurium ship in flasks?

ACIR accepts plants growing solely in agar but gives aroid flasks no special treatment. They follow the same route as other plants: certificate required, no permit needed for 12 or fewer, PPQ 587 for more. The only exception from the permit requirement is for orchids.

Plants growing solely in agar or in other agar-like tissue culture media

Source: Plants for Planting - General Restrictions, Growing Media exceptions, USDA APHIS ACIR, acir.aphis.usda.gov.

The list of plants that need no import permit ends with a single sterile-culture entry.

Sterile cultures of orchid plants.

Source: Plants for Planting - General Restrictions, Exceptions to Import Permit Requirement, USDA APHIS ACIR, acir.aphis.usda.gov.

The APHIS page for online buyers repeats it as "Sterile orchid plant cultures". The exceptions to the phytosanitary certificate are four: plants from the Canadian greenhouse certification program, Canadian seeds, small lots of seed, and bulbs for travelers returning from the Netherlands. Tissue culture is not among them.

No ACIR or APHIS sentence names aroid flasks. Please contact the Plant Inspection Station for routing confirmation before your first shipment. CITES annotation #4 on sterile in vitro cultures does not apply here, as these genera are not listed.

The Thai Department of Agriculture texts found for this guide cover orchid flasks, not aroid flasks. The grower should say how a flask is inspected and certified. The guide on orchid flasks from Thailand to the USA covers the orchid exception.

Guide: orchid flasks from Thailand to the USA

Is Thai Constellation monstera really a Thai tissue culture cultivar?

The cultivar is real, but no authority source documents a Thai origin. The USDA germplasm record leaves its origin field blank. The University of Florida paper found describes the plant and its micropropagation without saying where it began.

Sources: GRIN-Global accession detail, USDA ARS, ars-grin.gov; Micropropagation and Acclimatization of Monstera deliciosa Liebm. 'Thai Constellation', Jing, Beleski and Vendrame, doi.org.

Received as Monstera deliciosa 'Variegata'. From Homestead Gardens, acquired in 2014. This was reidentified as 'Thai Constellation' in 2025 based on its yellowish-cream variegation and lack of all-green sectors

Source: Monstera deliciosa Liebm., 'Thai Constellation', NA 82422, USDA ARS National Plant Germplasm System, ars-grin.gov.

However, limited studies exist on its propagation, and growers have difficulties in achieving large-scale production.

Source: Micropropagation and Acclimatization of Monstera deliciosa Liebm. 'Thai Constellation', University of Florida, Horticulturae, doi.org.

Neither record names Thailand or a laboratory as the source. The buyer should ask the grower if the plant came from a flask or from a mother-plant cutting, which cultivar name goes on the packing list, and who holds the propagation record. A cultivar name on a label is a trade name, not proof of origin.

What duty do Monstera, Philodendron and Anthurium pay from Thailand?

Live aroids, Monstera, Philodendron and Anthurium included, are in HTS heading 0602. Rooted plants are in 0602.90.40 at 3.5 percent or 0602.90.90 at 4.8 percent. Unrooted cuttings are in 0602.10.00 at 4.8 percent. Section 301 adds 12.5 percent on products of Thailand, except on the cuttings line.

Sources: Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States, Revision 21 (2026), hts.usitc.gov, USITC.

the Trade Representative has determined to impose 12.5 percent tariffs on products of Thailand

Source: Notice of Actions in Section 301 Investigations, Office of the United States Trade Representative, federalregister.gov.

The HTS has no line for aroids, for flasks or for in-vitro plants. No CBP ruling on the current subheading for a Monstera, Philodendron or Anthurium was found. The broker classifies the line. The unrooted-cuttings line is the only one of the three on the exemption list.

A CBP rule of 24 June 2026 requires formal or informal entry for goods valued at $800 or less arriving by any mode except the international postal network. For more information on what the suspended de minimis means for a parcel from Thailand please see our guide.

Guide: what the suspended de minimis means for a parcel from Thailand

What should a shop, importer or collector ask a Thai grower before ordering?

What is the exact name of every plant line, the plant count, the plant height and the form: rooted plant, unrooted cutting or flask? Each question maps to a USDA rule. The answers decide whether the buyer can use the 12-plant line or needs PPQ 587.

Public Thai export data will not size a supplier. Thai Customs reports HS 0602 in 8-digit lines, and none names Araceae. The nearest residual lines are 06021090 "Other" for cuttings, which recorded 88,280,783 baht in 2025, and 06029090 "Other" for plants, which recorded 1,446,468,676 baht and holds every other live plant. Which line a Thai exporter declares an aroid under is not published. Neither figure is an aroid figure.

Sources: USDA APHIS ACIR documents above; Thai Customs export statistics, customs.go.th, HS 0602, copy read on 3 November 2026.

APHIS puts the responsibility on the buyer's side.

Are you buying plants or seeds through an e-commerce site? If so, you are considered an importer and most likely need a permit.

Source: How To Buy Plants and Seeds Online, USDA APHIS, aphis.usda.gov.

Buyers are responsible for ensuring sellers follow all shipping and labeling requirements listed in the permit.

Source: How To Buy Plants and Seeds Online, USDA APHIS, aphis.usda.gov.

Only U.S. residents may apply for the permit. APHIS says the process "can take up to 2 months, so plan accordingly with your exporter."

We have guides for sending plants from Thailand to the USA, Europe and many other markets. We also have a guide to wholesale plant orders, where mixed cartons are declared genus by genus.

Guides: sending plants from Thailand to US buyers, wholesale plant orders from Thailand, importing plants from Thailand: rules by country

How Dragon Courier ships aroids from Thailand

Dragon Courier sends plants from Bangkok to the USA, Canada, the UK, the EU, Singapore and Hong Kong. We provide the Phytosanitary Certificate free of charge for the USA and UK. We have our own delivery duty paid plant service to the USA.

We hold an import permit for each market. Ask for a copy of the plants on our permit and check that Monstera, Philodendron and Anthurium are on it before you book.

Plants go bare root with new sphagnum moss. Each plant has different requirements, so we recommend that the plant seller packs the box.

We collect in an air conditioned van made for plants and keep temperature control door to door. If customs holds a box we work closely with USDA and the plant seller in Thailand to get an urgent release.

Source: Dragon Plant Export Rate, valid 10 June 2026, inclusive of fuel surcharge.

Billed weight is the actual weight or the volumetric weight, whichever is greater. Volumetric weight is length times width times height in centimeters divided by 5,000.

Source: Dragon Plant Export Rate, valid 10 June 2026.

Europe has a minimum weight of 2 kg and Hong Kong 5 kg. The shipper alone is responsible for declaration, value and compliance.

How claims and delays on live plants are handled is set out in the terms and conditions. Import rules for the UK, Canada, the EU, Singapore and Hong Kong are not covered here. The rules by country guide linked above covers them.

Claims and delays on live plants: terms and conditions. Guides: plant export from Thailand, plant export from Thailand in 2026, the numbers, shipping to the USA

About Dragon Courier

Dragon Courier is a family owned courier in Thailand with British heritage. More than 30 years of experience in logistics. Sends more than 20,000 shipments a month to over 200 destinations.

Contacts and drop-off

Please message the team or call the office on +66 2656 9019. Or message Justin on LINE or WhatsApp +66 6-5937-0812. The email is info@dragoncourier.com. Mention the item you would like to send. The weight and dimensions of the box set the shipping cost.

Last time for drop off is 17:00, Monday to Saturday. We can pick up on a specific date and time. Our Bangkok office is located at 217/3 Crystal Garden Building, 3rd floor, Sukhumvit Soi 4, Klongtoey, Bangkok 10110.

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