Rules & Regulations

The Ministry of Agriculture and Animal Welfare issues Live Fish Export Permits and International Veterinary Health Certificates for ornamental and marine aquarium fish exports from the Maldives. Applications are submitted through the Agriculture Online System (AOS) and typically take 2–3 working days. An official veterinary inspection is conducted before shipment and issuance of the health certificate.

Comesay Aquarium provides full CITES documentation for all regulated marine species, ensuring smooth customs clearance at destination. Export of CITES-listed species is conducted strictly within permitted quotas and documentation requirements set by Maldivian authorities.

Every shipment is inspected by a licensed veterinarian prior to export and includes an official International Veterinary Health Certificate, issued following inspection under the Ministry of Agriculture and Animal Welfare's process. All shipments are backed by a 5-day quarantine guarantee.

All livestock is packed to IATA Live Animals Regulations (LAR) standards, using appropriately sized, insulated, and oxygenated bags and boxes suited to species type, order size, and transit duration, to ensure survivability during international transport.

Minimum quantity: 50 pieces per species Minimum shipment value: USD 3,000

All shipments depart from Velana International Airport (MLE), Maldives, and are dispatched via air freight to the destination airport. We ship to any country that permits marine ornamental fish imports, subject to destination-country import regulations.

All species are collected using sustainable, non-destructive hand-collection methods within EPA-approved quotas. Comesay Aquarium does not use cyanide or any destructive collection practice, and does not collect, trade, or export species prohibited under Maldivian law — see our full Prohibited Species list.