cham exportation, not as easy as one might think !
not to rain on the parade but i have been down this road before and imo you will not likely get chams from the us to korea. chams are controlled by an internatiomnal trade agreement known as cites.
http://www.cites.org/eng/disc/what.php
imo in order to get merus from us to korea you would need a usdfw wildlife exporters license form 3-200-3 ($100) which can take mths by the way (90+ days according to the form). in fact if you are unfamiliar with it, expect every step of the process to be a battle and take significant time+$.
several years ago, i sent in my $100, never heard from them, pointed it out to them, sent a copy of the cashed check, never did hear back from them, sent them a letter explaining the situation, they replied said they would be in touch, still never heard back from them. after 6 mths of dealing with it, finally gave up.
form; 3-200-3;
http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&ved=0CFQQFjAA&url=http%3A%2F%2Fforms.fws.gov%2F3-200-3.pdf&ei=-rXZT8z6GYqQ8wS8pPHqBQ&usg=AFQjCNEMLyNsU28y8C5mQqBpiqlAj1hN4A&sig2=zy7c_oP_C0FOvkWPGCloOA
and or form 3-200-52
http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=...g-rfNq8-1rhzLFc_w&sig2=TRW5HAH7upip7Pogc3jPyw
thats not even including the export permit itself or any other required documentation, cites or otherwise.
also im not sure, but, since it is a federal license, you may need to be a us citizen to complete the process from the us side. they require a stateside address. to quote the form,
"all applications submitted to the DMA (DEPARTMENT OF MANAGEMENT AUTHORITY), a physical us address is required. province and country blocks are provided for those usfws programs which use foreign addresses and are not required by the dma
". /// they also want us social security# and such.
if you dont have a wildlife exporters license, then you will need to get one, or have somebody with one broker it for you. in addition, imo, the us would likely require documentation from both the importing and exporting countries plus, if they are supposedly captive bred, the breeder will likely need to show a documented trail, back to the time when the original parentage was imported into the country, to prove that they originated from cites legal stock. also, the animals would have to leave the us from a designated port of wildlife departure.
i dont know how things work in korea, but the us is also likely to want documentation from the receiving country before issuing an export permit. also, be aware that you could be subject to vet inspection/quarantine or even treatment fees at either the exporting or receiving end, plus likely confiscation and possibly destruction of the animals if all is not in order.
if the links dont work, you can just google the form #s and the usdfw links will be the first in search results.
sorry, not trying to dash your dream, just trying to give you a realistic heads up of the situation, so you have a realistic idea of what you are up against,
so you dont waste a 100 hrs on it like i did. if i can help please pm, if you succeed please fill me in on the details.
ps, not that you were considering it, but i wouldnt try to "sneak" them in, penalties can be severe
(on the us side, i think max fine is $100,000 + plus possible jail. )
* if you could find a pair in canada, you might be able to get tamara deschamps of chameleon nation, to broker it for you,
http://www.trinitychameleons.com/shipping_policies.html
i believe she probably has more experience than anyone i know of in international export of chams. she would probably be a good one to talk to about the whole process.
http://www.trinitychameleons.com/contactus.html
im fairly sure she has had merus before ? and i know she sometimes does custom importing, maybe you could make future arrangements for her to eventually get/send you a pair, once you are over there. i wouldnt expect any part of the process to be cheap or guaranteed.
if you are able to make arrangements with her, imo, that would be your best bet. she has a reputation for obtaining only the finest specimens and offering only the very best care, and she has an extensive history of dealing in difficult cham import/exportations.
other; "general permitting procedures in 50 CFR 13 (US code of federal regulations) address the permitting process"
general provisions see 50 CFR 10.
WILDLIFE PROVISIONS; (import/export/ transport) see 50 CFR 14
more; in addition, they often require applicants to have a registered stateside facility for housing care and quarantine of all animals (Can be a residence, that is open to inspection by usdfw field agents). not sure how that would apply in your case.
imo, technically, it is possible, but be prepared for a frustrating, expensive, and likely unsuccessful process. imo, its just not something that is likely to happen unless said person is already an experienced reptile exporter. jmo
hope that helps. just my 2 c worth. must be nap time lol
