Liberia
Key documents required for timber legality and trade of Liberia
Documents at company level
| Key document | Explanation | Validity | Legal authority | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Legal registration | Business registration certificate | Annual certificate confirming legal registration as commercial business in the country. | Annual | Ministry of Commerce and Industry (MOCI) |
| Tax, fees and royalties | Receipt of payment of the area tax | Certificate confirming payment of relevant taxes and fees. Duration of the certificate depends on the type of business. | Duration of the certificate depends on the type of business | Ministry of Commerce and Industry (MOCI) |
| Sawmill permit fee | ||||
| Receipt of payment of Timber Export License Fee | An Export Permit can only be issued when all taxes and fees relating to the forest products subject to the permit have been paid. | Forestry Development Authority (FDA) | ||
| Receipt of payment of Waybill Fee, Log and wood product export fee | Invoiced by the LVD (Legality Verification Department of the FDA) using LiberTrace. | |||
| Processing | Sawmill permit | Annual permit that is required for all mechanized wood processing facilities in Liberia. | Annual | Forestry Development Authority (FDA) |
Documents at FMU level
| Key document | Explanation | Validity | Legal authority | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Forest use rights |
Forest license (FMC / TSC / CFMA) | Forest logging contract or agreement signed between the FDA and the contract holder. The example document is an example of an FMC. | Forestry Development Authority (FDA) | |
| Forest Management Contract (FMC) | It is a concession agreement between the Government of Liberia and the concessionaire. A license issued for forest exploitation over land areas between 50’000 and 400’000 ha that excludes private land. |
25 years | ||
| Timber sales contract (TSC) | License issued over a land area of not more than 5’000 ha that excludes private land, for a (renewable) period of 3 years. | 3 years (renewable) | ||
| Community Forest Management Agreement (CFMA) | License issued to communities for the purpose of community-based forest management over an area smaller than 50’000 ha, to enter into small-scale commercial contracts for harvesting timber and non-timber forest products. | Depends on the contract | ||
| Forest management | Management plan | All source types except Community Forest Management Agreement (CFMA), covering the area to be harvested. | 5 years | Forestry Development Authority (FDA) |
| Annual operations plan (AOP) | AOP shall be issued and signed by the FDA TSC holders are required have at least the annual operation plans, while FMCs are required to have a detailed plan. The AOP shall specify the volume and species of the annual coupe, or the annual blocks of harvest, in case of FMCs. |
Annual | Forestry Development Authority (FDA) | |
| Timber harvesting permits and activities | Annual Harvesting Certificate (AHC) | Certificate allowing the contract holder to fell trees based on, among others, an approved Annual Operation Plan (AOP) and for FMCs an approved Management plan. | Annual | Forestry Development Authority (FDA) |
| Special felling / special entry forms | These forms are used under particular circumstances. | |||
| Tree Data Form (TDF) or “Felling Registration Form” in LiberTrace | Detailed record of felled trees approved for felling, including location, species, DBH and height, submitted for stumpage invoicing and traceability. Data from TDFs is submitted by the Operator through Libertrace. | |||
| Log Data Form (LDF) or “Cross-cut Form” in LiberTrace | Record of harvested logs to be conveyed from the forest to the log yard. This document needs to be completed by the forest company and is verified by the LVD in the log yard before exportation. Data from LDFs is submitted by the Operator through Libertrace. | |||
| Environmental and social | Environmental and social impact assessment | All source types except Community Forest Management Agreement (CFMA). | ||
| Social Agreement (SA) | FMC and TSC holding companies sign Social Agreements (SAs) with affected communities within 3.0 km following advanced notice. A SA attested to by the FDA is a pre-felling requirement and a condition for an AHC and an Export permit. A SA includes: code of conduct for the parties; dispute resolution mechanism; financial benefits payable to the community through quarterly payments to an escrow account. | |||
| Forest tax, fees and royalties | Receipts of payment of forest fees | Forest tax and fees: Area Fee, Chain of Custody Registration Fee, Annual Contract Administration Fee, Annual Coupe/ Block Inspection Fee, Barcode Issuance Fee, Block Inspection Fee, Stumpage Fee, Forest Product Fee. Invoiced by the LVD (Legality Verification Department of the FDA) using LiberTrace (CFMA excluded) |
Annual |
Documents at chain of custody level
| Key document | Explanation | Validity | Legal authority | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| National traceability system | CoC Information System (COCIS, known as LiberTrace) |
The contract holder must uniquely number, label (tree ID tag) and record all trees above 50 cm DBH (Diameter at Breast Height) on a Stock Survey Form (SSF) and a Block map. | ||
| Forest traceability | ||||
| Transport / Trade / Export | Annual export registration | Annual registration of an exporter of wood products. | Annual |
Forestry Development Authority (FDA) |
| Waybill form (for logs) | Transport document for logs from the forest to a processing facility or the log yard. A booklet is obtained from the FDA. This document needs to be completed by the forest company and shall correspond with the LDF. The waybill is verified by the forest authorities. | For all logs | ||
| Waybill form (for wood products) | Transport document of wood products. A booklet is obtained from the forest authorities. This document needs to be completed by the company and is verified by the forest authorities. | For all wood products | Operator | |
| Export permit | The Export permit (EP) is required by law (NFRL 2006) to export Forest Products. EPs are issued for each export shipment on the basis of attested compliance with a certain number of traceability, fiscality and legality requirements. | Per product | Forestry Development Authority (FDA) | |
| Certificate of origin (COO) | A COO is issued to certify the origin of exported wood products, applying to logs, sawnwood and other wood products. | Per product | Forestry Development Authority (FDA) | |
| Processing | Export shipment specification (SPEC) | The SPEC is the ‘Product Description’ section of the EP, listing the export shipment in a format obtained from the FDA. It needs to be completed by the company and will be checked at the point of export. | Per export shipment | Operator |