Lophophora seed allowed thru customs or not?

[applesnail]

Can someone please tell me the specifics on lophophora seed,wondering if I can order from these guys?

http://www.koehres-kaktus.de/shop/index.php

I have read in the legislation thread it says something like, that you cant export any part of these cacti, and in importing it states only drugs listed eg: mescaline, nothin bout cacti or parts. Being in Victoria where one can grow it, is it possible to order seed from overseas, I think the above place is in germany im pretty sure?

Anyone had success with loph seeds getting thru customs @ all?Just dont wanna order and get burnt, if anyone has the knowledge on this matter, or has successfully acquired seed from overseas with no hassles I would greatly appreciate it, if you could let me know...cheers.

[Blood Trance Fusion]

Don't sweat it. They won't be checked and even if they are, provided there's no invoice stating the species, they're not going to pick them. There're plenty of seeds of dodgier plants that slip through customs internationally. I'd ask the shop if they can hold back on invoicing and labelling. Maybe start with a smaller order to save your pocket - not your neck, because I don't think they'd issue a siezure notice/warning for some non-identified seeds. Good luck!

Checked SeedsAustralia.net first?

[Torsten]

Bad advice IMO. Lophs are customs prohibited drug scheduled species. Importing them is the same as importing cannabis seeds. So yeah, if you feel comfortable doing that then the above advice is good. if you prefer not to risk a federal drugs importation charge then the above advice is probably crap.

Blood Trance Fusion - just what would be a more dodgy seed in your opinion? There is no greater seed import charge than a federal drugs importation charge.

As for seizure notice, if it is not identified then QUARANTINE will seize it [if they open it]. If it is identified then customs will seize it.

[bℓσωηG]

yeah, hell i wouldn't risk it , not worth it...plenty of seed in oz

[applesnail]

Thanks for all the replys....I have heard of them getting thru, but knowing my luck I may be exempt from that privilege, had enuf probs in aus in my younger days with the bob marley to risk it, I am thinkin it would or may usually end in more financial pain and lack of freedom(then the cost of aussie loph seed) guessin gonna have to support our own AUD sources, bit of a difference tho, and they got some varietys that aussie stockists dont have, thats what interested me in the first place.If they seize are charges likely to follow? or do they give one a nice, silent confiscation, a warning? or a summons to appear do you think? Torsten seems to be quite knowledgeable bout this stuff, so I think I will take his advice.....cheers...I got some blue lily seeds thru not long ago, but I dont know their stature either in regards to the law,whether they are prohib or not?(If one gets em they assume its legal and has been scrutinzed by the nice guys at customs and stamped with a sweet approval(that was my impression when they arrived)and one hears of loph seeds arriving they assume its ok. But I did get an email from the place in mention that I was considering gettin them from and the responder told me it pays to read the conditions of business to find the answer for what they say a portion is,it states 10 seeds and they think,but are not certain they are not allowed into Aus, also they didnt say they wont send.....so ??????????

[Torsten]

the people who open your mail at customs aren't terribly bright, so a lot of mail gets opened and if they don't recognise what it is then is passes through anyway. They recognise pot seeds, but probably not Loph seeds. however it is much more likely your item is opened by quarantine first and they won't let anything through unless it is identified.

I don't know how often I have to say this, but it seems a really complex concpt to many that quarantine and customs are two separate departments, authorised by two separate acts of legislation, and run by different branches of government. Saying they are the same thing is like saying the police and firebrigade are the same. You need to think of them as two completely separate units that SOMETIMES work together.

So, when people talk about getting a friendly letter and that's the end of it then they are usually referring to quarantine. If you imported something that was quarantine restricted then you will be given 30 days notice to destroy or re-export.

If you import something that customs takes exception to then there are many ways this can play out.

If they don't think they have a good chance of prosecution they will send you a registered mail letter to let you know they have seized and which laws you have broken. That way, if you do it again they can easily nail you in court as you can't plead ignorance.

If they can show you were being deceptive [eg mislabelling, no invoice, etc] they will seize and then gather their evidence. This may include getting the seeds grown out for full ID [this is standard procedure with poppy seeds], investigating your credit card transactions, contacting the vendor, looking at any other mail you get in the next 6-12 months, etc.

If they are sure they can successfully prosecute then they will. Even if it is your first time.

[tripsis]

Applesnail, read this thread.

[Blood Trance Fusion]

just what would be a more dodgy seed in your opinion? There is no greater seed import charge than a federal drugs importation charge.

They recognise pot seeds, but probably not Loph seeds.

 

That's what I mean. I understand from a legal retribution perspective they're on par but from a popularity perspective I don't think they'd set alarms off. Either end up in the bin or in your letterbox sans notice.

If they are sure they can successfully prosecute then they will. Even if it is your first time.

 

I'm not being contrarian but are you sure? I've read one gets a few warnings before prosecution - depending on what/how much. If it's "bad"/alot; look forward to a search warrant. I'm not speaking from first-hand experience because, touch wood, someone I don't know has never had anything stopped.

Sorry if I was leading you up the path to gaol, applesnail but if you have safe payment methods and a safe address, you'd be surprised what gets through. In this instance, I'd possibly pay the premium to buy nationally.

[Torsten]

I'm not being contrarian but are you sure? I've read one gets a few warnings before prosecution - depending on what/how much. If it's "bad"/alot; look forward to a search warrant. I'm not speaking from first-hand experience because, touch wood, someone I don't know has never had anything stopped.

 

yes, I am sure, but I'd be interested to hear instances where this is not the case.

[qualia]

i once tried ordering some contraband mushroom spores from over seas,

can't remember if it was customs or quarantine which seized it but i got the box,

empty with a blue notice saying they'd been seized by whatever authority it was,

that was the last i'd heard of it,

i don't see why you wouldn't order from seeds australia,

or if you look around you may find a loph in a specialist cactus nursery

somewhere in vic,,

[Torsten]

blue and yellow are quarantine. green is customs.

[Magicdirt]

the people who open your mail at customs aren't terribly bright, so a lot of mail gets opened and if they don't recognise what it is then is passes through anyway. They recognise pot seeds, but probably not Loph seeds. however it is much more likely your item is opened by quarantine first and they won't let anything through unless it is identified.

 

So does quarantine open mail/packages as well ?

Do they get a crack at the mail before or after customs, I thought if it got through customs it was just despatched like any other mail.

I was under the impression that customs screen the mail and quarantine was more for declared goods or legal goods customs had identified and passed on to quarantine.

[etherealdrifter]

hi applesnail,

you've heard the advice and so .....you should know what to do now.

why give yaself an almighty headache. just go local.be vigilent and many horizons will open up to you without having to guess,wonder/wait for an adverse outcome to your application

all good

ethdtr

[Torsten]

So does quarantine open mail/packages as well ?

Quarantine opens first. In the old days they were not trained to spot customs prohibited things, so very often customs prohibited items would arrive with a quarantine sticker on them. This has changed the last few years. Quarantine staff now routinely hand items to customs if they think customs might be interested. This is how I got into trouble for iboga seeds and for Convolvulaceae seeds [that weren't even mentioned in the schedule].

Customs also spot checks independently [after quarantine]. Their main targets are larger parcels and parcels of greater value as these are more likely to attract customs duties, but they also open up small stuff [especially express mail]. Certainly once your name is down with customs they'll even open plain letters if they feel like it.

I like telling my iboga seed story as it shows how this system can work in your favour [although i wouldn't rely on it]. This is more than 10 years ago and I was quite naive about the laws. Quarantine had seized my seeds and as the species hadn't been assessed yet they held onto them for further investigation. In the meantime customs sent me a letter advising me that the seeds had been seized and that they will prosecute for importing ibogaine after analysis is complete. I agonised over this and decided to take a chance and sign the destruction form for quarantine. 500 seeds . By the time my solicitor contacted customs a month later to get an update they informed him that quarantine had accidentally destroyed their evidence before they could analyse it and hence there is no case .

[applesnail]

Thanks everyone some great info here now, especially that link you gave me tripsis...very helpful.

[herbal_hindsight]

Just thought I would mention on several occasions now I have ordered s.divinorum [labelled as speckled candle making incense, or just plain 'for incense use only]

not one occasion has it been blocked and most of the time i was importing from an ebay seller in washington

on one occasion i found an ebay seller in hungary who was selling all sorts of entho's and i ordered some more s div with great success but interestingly enough in the same package i had 3.5 kgs syrian rue seeds [yes yes i know foolish to attempt such a large import but it cost $15 so i thought i'd try]

the s div was labelled as salvia and i also had some blue lotus which was not labelled and was confiscated

now i think i was very lucky in this regard i got a letter from quarantine telling me they had destroyed the un-identified herb [lotus] and a letter of warning from customs telling me i had attempted to import an illegal narcotic with a list of other known narcotics also banned for import but.... i got the sally d :-p

i stopped importing anything for a few months after that and im now at a different address so hopefully not being monitored

but yeh just an example of what you can and can't get away with and that sometimes you do get warnings!

[Hyphal]

I had a package containing a spore syringe intercepted, the empty box arrived with a letter from the AFP! Lets just say I never bothered following it up.

[BushCactus]

On 08/02/2011 at 7:03 PM, Torsten said:

So does quarantine open mail/packages as well ?

Quarantine opens first. In the old days they were not trained to spot customs prohibited things, so very often customs prohibited items would arrive with a quarantine sticker on them. This has changed the last few years. Quarantine staff now routinely hand items to customs if they think customs might be interested. This is how I got into trouble for iboga seeds and for Convolvulaceae seeds [that weren't even mentioned in the schedule].

Customs also spot checks independently [after quarantine]. Their main targets are larger parcels and parcels of greater value as these are more likely to attract customs duties, but they also open up small stuff [especially express mail]. Certainly once your name is down with customs they'll even open plain letters if they feel like it.

I like telling my iboga seed story as it shows how this system can work in your favour [although i wouldn't rely on it]. This is more than 10 years ago and I was quite naive about the laws. Quarantine had seized my seeds and as the species hadn't been assessed yet they held onto them for further investigation. In the meantime customs sent me a letter advising me that the seeds had been seized and that they will prosecute for importing ibogaine after analysis is complete. I agonised over this and decided to take a chance and sign the destruction form for quarantine. 500 seeds . By the time my solicitor contacted customs a month later to get an update they informed him that quarantine had accidentally destroyed their evidence before they could analyse it and hence there is no case .

Torsten that story is Hilarious,  quarantine done stuffed up bigtime, i bet someone got fired over that, a gold streak of luck for you however!