Plant Export From Thailand: 2026 Numbers

What are the key numbers on Thai plant exports in 2026?

Thai live plant exports reached THB 2.19 billion in 2025 and fell 11.3% in January to August 2026, when the USA became the top buyer. A US shipment needs a certificate issued within 15 days of shipment, a permit for most plants and, since 24 July 2026, a 12.5% duty.

Sources: linked in each row. Thai Customs figures are FOB baht and may be revised. Comtrade figures are US dollars.

How much does Thailand export in live plants, cut orchids and orchid seedlings?

In 2025 Thailand exported live plants (HS 0602) worth US$66,793,408, up 24.3% in dollars on 2024. In baht the value was THB 2,190,080,326, up 16.4%, and the weight was 54,454 t. Cut flowers (HS 0603) were worth US$78,022,974. Cut orchids (HS 0603.13) were US$70,127,586 of that.

Source: Thai Customs data as reported to UN Comtrade, HS 0602, exports to the world, one query per year: 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024, 2025. Comtrade flags the weight as estimated.

Most of the live-plant line is Other plants. In 2025 tariff line 06029090 was THB 1,446,468,676, 66.0% of HS 0602. Edible-fruit and nut trees were 21.2% and orchid seedlings 7.4%. A flowering orchid in a pot has no tariff line of its own and sits in Other. Thai Customs publishes no figure for mature live orchids.

Source: Thai Customs Department, exports by tariff classification, HS 0602, January to December 2025, FOB baht.

The baht value of live plants rose from THB 1,882,065,564 in 2024 to THB 2,190,080,326 in 2025. It fell to THB 1,191,456,251 in January to August 2026, against THB 1,343,029,291 a year earlier, 11.3% lower. Cut orchids held up: their 2025 value rose 5.3% while the weight fell 1.5%, and their January to August 2026 value rose 1.5% while the weight fell 3.8%.

Source: Thai Customs Department, exports in FOB baht, latest released month August 2026.

Orchid seedling exports fell 10.9% in value in 2025 and 36.4% in units in January to August 2026. The average value per seedling rose from THB 34.8 in 2025 to THB 49.5 in January to August 2026. The decline in baht value could be due to price, volume, mix or exchange rate. Customs does not say which. Customs does not define a seedling, so the line is not a count of flasks or of mature plants.

Source: Thai Customs Department, statistic-code pages 06031300 and 06029020.

Three sources agree on the 2024 cut-orchid series. Thai Customs 19,128,557 kg and THB 2,181,343,641. Ministry of Commerce 19,129 t and 2.18 billion baht. UN Comtrade 19,128,557 kg.

Orchids comprised the main flower export, with 19,129 tons and valued at 2.18 billion baht (62.1 million USD).

Source: Thai Flower Exports Flourish worth USD71.3M in 2024, Ministry of Commerce, published by the Government Public Relations Department.

Guides: orchid export from Thailand, exporting live plants from Thailand

Which countries buy Thai plants, and where does the USA rank?

The USA is the second largest market for Thai live plants with an 11.5% share in 2025, behind the United Arab Emirates with 23.7%. In January to August 2026 the USA was the largest market with a 14.8% share because UAE purchases dropped 39.2% in baht while US purchases dropped 2.9%.

Source: Thai Customs data as reported to UN Comtrade, HS 0602, all partners. The USA was also second in 2024, with 13.0%.

Source: Thai Customs Department, HS 0602 by destination, FOB baht. In January to August 2025 the order was the UAE at THB 276,064,142 (20.6%), the USA at THB 181,697,274 (13.5%) and the Netherlands at THB 136,691,044 (10.2%).

The USA takes 11.5% of Thai live plant value but 0.8% of weight, 443 t of 54,454 t. The UAE takes 23.7% of value and 42% of weight. The value per kilogram was US$17.3 to the USA and US$0.69 to the UAE. This points to small high-value parcels going to the USA. Comtrade flags world weight as estimated, so weight shares are indicative.

The USA is the number one market for Thai cut orchids. It took 26.5% of value in 2025 and 32.7% in January to August 2026, when shipments to the USA rose 18.3% in weight and 15.2% in value on the same months of 2025. Vietnam is second and Japan third.

Source: cut orchids, HS 0603.13, 2025 in dollars from UN Comtrade; January to August 2026 in baht from Thai Customs Department. Customs gives the USA 26.5% of 2025 value in baht, and the 0.1 point gap is the baht-to-dollar conversion and rounding.

The number of orchid seedlings sold to the USA fell by 51.3% to 124,613 units in 2025 compared to 2024. January to August 2026 saw 59,848 units sold, 33.9% less than a year earlier. In 2025 the USA took 2.7% of the total Thai seedling units and 10.3% of value. The average value per seedling sold to the USA was THB 133 in 2025, THB 186 in January to August 2026, against THB 35 on average in 2025.

Thai Customs and US Customs do not record the same figure for the same trade. The Thai and the US numbers are shown separately.

Source: UN Comtrade, reporter Thailand and reporter USA. The US-recorded weight of live plants is 1,525 t against 443 t reported by Thailand.

What does a plant shipment need to leave Thailand?

To leave Thailand a plant shipment needs a phytosanitary certificate issued by the Department of Agriculture (DOA). The certificate costs 100 THB, or 50 THB for a replacement. Orchids under CITES also need an export permit, 100 THB. The DOA Director-General sets the fees, published in the Government Gazette.

Source: Plant Quarantine Act B.E. 2507 as amended to B.E. 2551, Thailand DOA, for the fee-setting rule and for the rule that only authorised plant quarantine officials issue the certificate. The Thai fee pages carry a 2023 date, so the current fee is confirmed with the DOA before it is quoted.

Thailand does not set a validity period for its certificate. The Plant Quarantine Act as amended to B.E. 2551 has no validity rule. ISPM 12 leaves duration to each plant protection authority. The importing country decides. The USA allows 15 days between issue and shipment.

Phytosanitary certificates may have a limited duration of validity. The NPPO of the exporting country or the importing country may make relevant stipulations.

Source: ISPM 12 (2014), section 1.6, IPPC Secretariat, FAO.

The DOA has issued e-Phyto for all goods and countries since 1 July 2022. The USDA APHIS trading-partner table, last modified 30 September 2026, does not list Thailand among its 126 partners. APHIS accepts a signed original, a scan uploaded to CBP ACE, or an electronic certificate from a participating country. For a USA shipment, plan on the paper original or a scan.

Orchids are CITES Appendix II unless they are listed in Appendix I. The Appendix I orchids are Aerangis ellisii, Cattleya jongheana, Cattleya lobata, Dendrobium cruentum, Mexipedium xerophyticum, Paphiopedilum spp., Peristeria elata, Phragmipedium spp., Renanthera imschootiana. For Appendix II species an export permit from the exporting country is required, and the USA needs no import permit.

Sources: CITES Secretariat, Appendices valid from 5 March 2026; US Fish and Wildlife Service, 50 CFR 23.92; US Fish and Wildlife Service, CITES appendices.

Guides: phytosanitary certificate from Thailand, orchid flasks from Thailand to the USA

Can you ship plants from Thailand to the USA?

Yes. Most plants for planting need a PPQ 587 permit, which only a US resident can apply for. APHIS says processing can take up to 2 months. The Thai phytosanitary certificate must be issued not more than 15 days before shipment and must name the genus.

The phytosanitary certificate must identify the genus of the plants for planting it accompanies.

Source: 7 CFR 319.37-6(a), USDA APHIS, eCFR current to 16 October 2026.

Source: USDA APHIS pages and eCFR text current to 16 October 2026. The ACIR documents, Plants for Planting - General Restrictions published 12 September 2026 and the commodity document published 22 May 2026, were read on 21 October 2026.

APHIS lists shipments of 12 or fewer plants, only if no specific restriction applies, among the items that need no permit, and it lists sterile orchid plant cultures there too. The limit is not in 7 CFR 319.37, which sends exceptions to the Plants for Planting Manual (now in ACIR). The counting unit is not defined in the sources read, whether per parcel, per consignment or per year. ACIR wording removes the need for a permit and the Green and Yellow Label (PPQ 508). It excludes taxa that are NAPPRA, prohibited, need precautionary treatment or post-entry quarantine, or need an additional declaration on the phytosanitary certificate. A traveller carrying plants follows a different rule: 12 or fewer bare-rooted plants with a phytosanitary certificate.

Guide: wholesale plant orders from Thailand

The USA excludes soil. Plants must arrive free of sand, soil, earth and other growing media, except where paragraph (b), (c) or (d) of the rule allows. APHIS allows epiphytic plants, including orchid plants, on coconut husks, coconut fibre, new clay pots or new wooden baskets. It also allows plants growing solely in agar. Approved growing-media programmes are authorised country by country. The latest decision, dated 22 July 2025, covers Phalaenopsis orchids from Germany and the Netherlands only, and no notice names Thailand.

Epiphytic plants (including orchid plants). These may be imported on the following growing media

Source: Plants with special requirements, USDA APHIS, page last modified 12 January 2026.

The buyer is the importer of record. APHIS says a package may be seized and destroyed at the port of entry. Plants denied entry are destroyed or shipped outside the USA at the importer's expense. APHIS operates 16 plant inspection stations. Most imported plant material for propagation must move through one.

As a package's intended recipient, you are considered the official importer of record and are legally responsible for it.

Source: Shipping plants, food and other agricultural items by express courier, USDA APHIS, page last modified 25 January 2026.

Guide: sending plants from Thailand to US buyers

What duties and fees does the USA charge on plants from Thailand in 2026?

A Thai plant pays the general duty for its HTS line, plus 12.5% under Section 301 since 24 July 2026, plus a merchandise processing fee. Orchid plants carry a general duty of Free, so 12.5% is the whole duty. Fresh cut orchids carry 6.4%.

Sources: general duty from the USITC Harmonized Tariff Schedule, Revision 21 (2026), pulled 21 October 2026; the 12.5% from heading 9903.05.77. The sum is arithmetic on the two published rates. It rests on a reading of U.S. note 52(b), in which 0602.10.00 is the only chapter 6 line excluded, and no customs ruling or broker confirmation is cited. Thailand is not in a special-rate country list for these lines.

This 12.5% is the Section 301 action of the Office of the US Trade Representative. It is in effect for goods entered on or after 12:01am Eastern Time on 24 July 2026. It is printed as heading 9903.05.77 in the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS) Revision 21. It replaces IEEPA reciprocal tariffs, which Executive Order 14389 ended on 20 February 2026. A check of USTR documents from 29 July to 21 October 2026 found no notice changing the Thai rate.

the Trade Representative has determined to impose 12.5 percent tariffs on products of Thailand, except as provided in Annex I and Annex II, Part A, of this Notice.

Source: Notice of Actions in Section 301 Investigations, Office of the United States Trade Representative, federalregister.gov, 28 July 2026.

For a formal entry the merchandise processing fee from 1 October 2026 is 0.3464% of value, minimum US$34.58, maximum US$670.86 per formal entry. For an automated informal entry, available up to US$2,500, the fee is US$2.77. De minimis ended for all countries on 29 August 2025. Since 24 June 2026 entries of US$800 or less outside the international postal network must use formal or informal entry procedures.

Guide: US de minimis suspended, what it means for a parcel from Thailand

What changed in 2026 for plant shipments from Thailand?

There are six dated changes for plant shipments from Thailand in 2026: end of IEEPA tariffs in February, indefinite de minimis suspension in June, Section 301 duty in July, ePhyto table refresh in September, new fee limits in October, and the cut-flower rule in November.

Source: linked in each row. Dates are effective dates, except the 30 September 2026 refresh of the APHIS table.

How to cite this data

Cite as: Dragon Courier, "Plant export from Thailand: 2026 numbers", https://dragoncourier.com/guides/plant-export-from-thailand-2026-numbers, data checked 21 October 2026. Figures from Thai Customs are in baht and may be revised.

How Dragon Courier ships live plants from Thailand to the USA

Dragon Courier is a Bangkok courier. We offer a live plant service from Bangkok to USA, Canada, Europe, UK, Singapore and Hong Kong. In USA we offer bare root delivery with new sphagnum moss. Transit time 2 to 5 working days.

Plants are priced based on weight and dimensions using our Plant Export Rate list. We provide the phytosanitary and CITES certificates for USA free of charge. The declared value is limited to US$1,000 per shipment.

Source: Dragon Courier Plant Export Rate, inclusive of fuel surcharge, list valid from 10 June 2026. The list was issued before the Section 301 duty began on 24 July 2026, so the team confirms the rate for a new booking.

Guide: Dragon Courier live plant export service

About Dragon Courier

Dragon Courier is a family owned Bangkok courier. We have been in business for more than 30 years and send more than 20,000 packages a month to over 200 destinations. We are the largest sender for eBay sellers located in Thailand.

Contacts and drop-off

We need the contents of the package and the receiver's name, address and contact number. Contact our office +66 2656 9019. Message Justin on LINE or WhatsApp +66 6-5937-0812. Email: info@dragoncourier.com.

Please bring the package to our Bangkok office on Sukhumvit Soi 4, 217/3 Crystal Garden Building, 3rd floor, Klongtoey 10110. Drop-off until 5pm Monday to Saturday. Pickup at a date and time that suits you.

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