International shipping of moss and terrarium materials
On this page, we explain how to buy moss and moss terrarium materials from Seiyo Moss Garden if you live outside Japan.Moss is a live plant, so every shipment goes through plant quarantine in Japan and leaves with a phytosanitary certificate.
Moss leaves Japan only with a phytosanitary certificate
Moss is a plant, so it goes through plant quarantine procedures in Japan before it can be shipped overseas. Depending on the destination country, you may also need to apply for an import permit in advance.
In many countries, shipments can be made by obtaining and attaching a Japanese phytosanitary certificate.
Moss is shipped as a live plant. If it is shipped without a phytosanitary certificate, there is a very high possibility that it will be discarded during quarantine in your country.
The first time you import moss
If you are importing moss for the first time, we need to check the conditions under which your country imports moss at your country's Plant Protection Station. It takes a minimum of one week, and usually about one month, to confirm the regulations of your country regarding the import of moss from Japan.
As soon as we confirm the conditions of the phytosanitary inspection that apply in your country, we carry out the inspection within one week and ship the moss to you.
Once your country has imported our moss
From the second time onwards, even when you order a new kind of moss, we carry out the phytosanitary inspection in Japan within one week and we are able to ship it immediately.
Countries we have already shipped to
These are the countries that have received moss from Seiyo Moss Garden. A destination on this list has already gone through a phytosanitary inspection in the past, so we can ship to you smoothly.
- EU member states
- Taiwan
- Singapore
This list grows as we complete inspections for new destinations.
Import permits, duties and taxes in your country
Most of the procedure happens on our side in Japan, but two things depend on where you live. Please check both of them before you place an order.
- Import permit
- In many countries, you can import your goods by simply attaching the phytosanitary certificate we obtain in Japan. In some countries, however, you may not be able to receive your goods until you obtain an import permit in your own country, and we may ask you to obtain one before we ship. The required procedures vary from country to country, so please contact us in advance.
- Customs duties and VAT
- When moss is imported into your country, the customs authorities may charge you a customs duty or VAT upon receipt. The conditions and the amount vary from country to country, so please check with your country's customs office in advance.
How to order from outside Japan
We take orders by e-mail. Tell us which products you want, and we calculate the total, issue the invoice and guide you through every step until the package reaches you.
Please order the products you want from the product list by e-mail. Include your name, address and phone number with your order, either by e-mail or from the contact page.
Payment
The payment method is PayPal or Western Union. Based on the details of your order, we calculate the shipping and handling fees, create an invoice and share it with you online.
All prices are shown and calculated in JPY, and the amount is automatically converted into your country's currency when you pay by PayPal or Western Union.
Steps from order to delivery
- 1. Order by e-mail
- Send us the products you want from the product list by e-mail, and include your name, address and phone number. You can also write to us from the contact page.
- 2. Quotation
- Depending on your order, we issue an official invoice that covers the cost of the products, the handling and the international shipping.
- 3. Import permit (if required)
- Depending on the country you are shipping to, you may need to apply for an import permit in advance. When that applies, we tell you how the application works.
- 4. Payment
- Once we have confirmed that the import is possible, we guide you through the PayPal or Western Union process, and you pay the amount shown in the estimate.
- 5. Phytosanitary certificate
- We follow the procedure to obtain a phytosanitary certificate in Japan. Confirming the moss import conditions your country requires can take up to a week, and in the first case it can take up to a month or so.
- 6. International shipping
- On the day we obtain the phytosanitary certificate in Japan, we arrange the international shipping with Japan Post. Once the shipping procedure is completed, we notify you of the tracking number.
- 7. Receiving
- The package is delivered by airmail. The number of days it takes to arrive varies depending on the country where you receive it.
Shipping and tracking
We ship from Japan with Japan Post's international airmail service, and you can follow the package from our workshop until it arrives at your door.
Shipping from Japan is basically done by International ePacket. You can read the details of the service, and check the rates and the delivery days for your country, on the Japan Post pages.
All packages can be tracked for shipping status. You will be notified of the tracking number and the tracking URL once the shipping process is complete, and as soon as the tracking status moves you will be notified by e-mail, so you can watch over the shipment until it arrives.
You will also be notified by e-mail when the moss passes the phytosanitary inspection and the certificate is issued in Japan. We keep you informed of the progress of your transaction as needed.
At Seiyo Moss Garden Japan, we always place the utmost importance on honest and transparent communication, so that our customers can feel secure in their transactions.
Fees added to the item price
Shipping and handling fees are charged separately from the product price. Both of them are itemised in the quotation we send you, so you know the total before you pay.
- Shipping feeYou can check the rates and the delivery days for your country on the Japan Post page linked above.
- Processing fee for the phytosanitary certificateThe cost associated with the phytosanitary inspection is 10,000 JPY.
If your purchase does not contain moss, for example if you buy only a moss terrarium container, the processing fee for the phytosanitary certificate is not charged.
Moss we ship overseas
These are the packs you can order from outside Japan. Each page shows the photographs, the size of the plants and how to grow them after they arrive.
700 JPY
Rhizogoniales cultivated 8cm container pack
1,925 JPY
Climacium japonicum (treemoss) 5 plants pack
1,650 JPY
Rhodobryum giganteum 5 plants pack
Prices do not include the shipping fee or the processing fee for the phytosanitary certificate.
Talk to us before you order
The quarantine conditions, the import permit and the duties differ from country to country. Tell us where you live and what you would like to buy, and we will tell you exactly what applies to you.