Many countries have enacted log export ban policies to protect forests or to bolster their domestic timber industry. Below is a non-exhaustive list of export bans, the product scope that the export ban covers, the current status of the ban, when the information was last reviewed and updated, and the source of the information.
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| COUNTRY | PRODUCT SCOPE | STATUS | SOURCE | LAST UPDATED BY WRI |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Albania | Ban of logging in all forests and the export of timber. | 2016 - Present | The Balkan Investigative Reporting Network. 2015. | May 2016 |
| Belarus | Exports of saw-logs are banned unless otherwise stated by the President of Belarus Republic. | 2016 - Present | The European Organisation of the Sawmill Industry. 2016. | December 2017 |
| Belize | All raw rosewood exports in 1992,but lifted the ban in 1996. A new ban on the harvest and export of rosewood in 2012. | 1992 - 1996; 2012 - Present | CITES CoP17 Prop.55. 2016. | August 2017 |
| Brazil | Exports of logs from natural forests are banned,but plantation logs are allowed for export. | 1996 - Present | Illegal Logging Portal. 2013. | August 2017 |
| Bolivia | Export of unprocessed forestry products is subject to restrictions and highly regulated (forest certification mainly). | 1996 - Present | WWF. 2015. | May 2016 |
| Cambodia | Complete ban on exports of logs and rough timber since 1996, followed by a logging ban within the Permanent Forest Estate in 2002. January 2016 embargo on all timber exports to Vietnam. | 1996 - Present | USITC. 2010; CDC. 2002; Channel News Asia. 2016. | August 2016 |
| Cameroon | A partial log export ban scheduled in 1999 on more than 20 species of raw logs excluding Ayous. 20% tax on exports of logs since 2017. | Export ban first enacted in 1999, but lifted now | Cameroon Government. 1999; GWMI 2018. | May 2018 |
| Canada | Restrictions on log exports from British Columbia. There are a variety of federal and provincial regulations regarding log exports. | 1906 - Present | Shinn. 1993. | May 2016 |
| China | Complete ban on commercial logging in all natural forests. | 2017 - Present | State Forestry Administration. 2017. | April 2017 |
| Colombia | Restrictions on log exports from natural forests. Only roundwood from planted forests can be exported. Restriction have not been well enforced, and large amounts of logs are still exported. | 1997 - Present | WWF. 2015. | May 2016 |
| Costa Rica | Log export ban, and export ban on roughly squared wood from specific species. | Undetermined (First enacted in 1986) | Kishor et al. 2001. | May 2016 |
| Cote d'Ivoire | Export ban on logs from natural forest. A ban on harvesting, transporting, and trading of Pterocarpus spp. | Ban on natural log exports: Undetermined – Present; Ban on Pterocarpus spp.: 2013 - Present | ETTF. 2016. CITES. 2017. | March 2018 |
| Croatia | A two-year export ban on oak logs and oak timber with a moisture content of more than 20%. The regulation applies to both trimmed as well as untrimmed products. | 2017 - Present | EUWID Wood Products and Panels. 2017. | August 2017 |
| Ecuador | Roundwood export ban, except in limited quantities for scientific and experimental purposes. Semi-finished forest products exports are allowed only when “domestic needs and the minimum levels of industrialization have been met.” | 2005 - Present | TRAFFIC. 2014. | May 2016 |
| Fiji | Log export ban in place since 1997. Certain wood and wood products are prohibited for export unless the specified requirements are met. | 1997 - Present | Fiji Government. 2010; Whiteman. 2005. | August 2016 |
| Gabon | A full ban on exporting logs. | 2010 - Present | Karsenty. 2016. | August 2017 |
| Ghana | A ban on felling, harvesting, and exportation of rosewood in 2014. A national ban on rosewood export was announced in early 2017, but is lifted now. | First enacted in 2014; Reactive in early 2017; Currently lifted | GhanaWeb. 2017; GWMI. 2017. | March 2018 |
| Guatemala | Exports of logs of more than 11 cm in diameter are banned, unless they originate from plantations. Ban does not apply to furniture and processed products made from wood. Guatemala established a national red list of trees to protect in 2006. The 81 species in Category One are banned from export and commercial uses. | 2006 - Present | Vivero et al. 2006. | May 2016 |
| Honduras | Export ban on hardwood and sawnwood. | 1998 - Present | Tacconi, L. Illegal logging: law enforcement, livelihoods and the timber trade. Earthscan, 2012. | August 2017 |
| Indonesia | Log export ban first issued in 1985 until 1992. Raw log export ban re-activated in 2001, expanded to sawnwood in 2004. Plantation log exports are allowed since 2017. | First enacted in 1985; Reactive 2001 - 2017;Currently lifted for plantation log exports | USITC. 2010; Sudoyo. 2015;ITTO. 2017. | December 2017 |
| Laos | A total logging ban in natural forest areas, a harvesting ban for protected species (see citation for a list) and a ban on exporting roundwood from natural forests, but plantation-grown timber can be harvested and exported with the proper paperwork. | First enacted in 1989; Reactive 2015 - Present. | Notice No. 1360. 2015; Decree No. 15. 2016. | August 2016 |
| Madagascar | Prohibition on logging, transport, and export of rosewood and ebony (Decree 2010-141) and on the export of logs and unworked palisander (Decree 2007-10885) . | First enacted 1975, followed by multiple fluctuations. Reactive 2010 - Present | CITES SC66 Doc. 46.2. 2016. | December 2017 |
| Malaysia | In Peninsular Malaysia, a ban was imposed on the export of ten species in 1972, and expanded to a complete ban in 1985. In Sabah, a temporary log export ban from 1993-1996, reactive since May 2018. Malaysia banned the export of rubberwood in 2017. | Peninsular Malaysia: 1972- Present; Sabah: 1993-1996, 2018 - Present; Rubberwood: 2017 - Present | USITC. 2010; Tachibana. 2000; ITTO. 2018; The Star Online. 2017. | June 2018 |
| Mozambique |
An export ban on raw logs. Logging and collection of Pterocarpus tinctorius specie (nkula), Swartzia madagascariensis (ironwood), and Combretum imberbe (mondzo) are banned. An export ban on three species: Chanfuta, Umbila, and Jambire. |
Export ban on raw logs: 2007 - Present; Other bans: March 2018 - Present | Hubert. 2014; Club of Mozambique. 2018. | April 2018 |
| Myanmar | An export ban on raw logs of all species since 2014. Raw timber from private forest plantations can be exported since July 2018. | 2014 - Present | UNODC. 2015; Moe Aung. 2018. | July 2018 |
| New Zealand | Export ban on indigenous timber (native species from natural forests) logs and woodchips, with certain exceptions outlined in the 1949 Forestry Act and its 1993 and 2004 Amendments. | 1993 - Present | New Zealand Government 1949. as amended. | August 2016 |
| Nicaragua | Precious hardwoods export ban (mahogany, royal cedar and pochote). Mahogany exports are allowed only in the form of sawn wood, plywood or veneered wood. Sawn wood exports require a license. | 1997 - Present | World Rainforest Movement.1999. | August 2017 |
| Nigeria | Log export ban. | 1976 - Present | FAO. 2001. | May 2016 |
| Panama | Export ban of logs, stumps, roundwood or sawn wood of any species from natural forests, as well as from wood submerged in water. | 2002 - Present | WWF. 2015. | May 2016 |
| Papua New Guinea | Export ban on round logs for selected species since 1990. Logs can be exported from concessions given before 2010. There is ban on the export of logs from concessions given after 2010. | First enacted in 1990; Reactive 2010 - Present | Australia, Department of Agriculture and Water Resources. 2015; Guyana Forestry Commission. 2016.(Page 10) | August 2016 |
| Peru | Log export ban. Export of forest products “in their natural state” is prohibited except when they originate from nurseries, forest plantations, and if they do not require processing for final consumption. | 1972 - Present | TRAFFIC. 2014. | May 2016 |
| Philippines | A ban on cutting and harvesting in natural and residual forests throughout the country. | 2011 - Present | Philippines, the President's Executive Order No.23. 2011. | August 2017 |
| Sri Lanka | Logging ban in all natural forests. | 1990 - Present | FAO. 2002. | August 2017 |
| Thailand | Ban on timber harvesting and raw log exports from natural forests. | 1989 - Present | USITC. 2010. | August 2017 |
| Ukraine | 10-year ban on the exports of all types of raw logs. | 2015 - Present (applying to pine exports from 2017) | Fordaq. 2015. ENPI FLEG II Program. 2017. | April 2017 |
| United States | Ban on export of spruce and hemlock logs from federal lands in Alaska since 1926; An export ban on unprocessed timber from federal lands west of the 100th meridian, except where there is timber surplus to domestic needs, since 1990. | 1926 - Present | Hines. 1987; U.S.Congress. 1990. | July 2018 |
| Vietnam | Log export ban; export ban on sawn timber from natural forests. | 1992 - Present | USITC. 2010; FAO. 2001. | August 2016 |
