I'll check the length tomorrow deema
re BRW
Up until now Brazilian rosewood already in the U.S. was legal to buy, sell, use, and ship interstate even without documentation (much old lumber and many vintage guitars lack paperwork, since it wasn’t previously required). But as of June 26th, as a CITES Appendix I species (like elephant ivory) and in conjunction with the new total ban on all elephant ivory, it will become a felony to buy or sell anything containing Brazilian rosewood unless it has proper documentation (
http://www.fws.gov/international/pdf/re ... import.pdf). To qualify for the exception: “If the [rosewood] was lawfully imported…before the species was listed…you may continue to use the [rosewood]…provided you can clearly demonstrate (using written records or other documentary evidence) that your [rosewood] was imported prior to the CITES listing, with no restrictions on its use after import. If you are unable to clearly demonstrate that this exception applies, the [rosewood] may be used only for noncommercial purposes.” Good luck to you all trying to get acceptable paperwork for old wood stocks and all those guitars out there...
Ok US but CITES [not CITIES] applies equally to all countries
For any pre-ban (July 11, 1992) BRW material or instruments that will be sold domestically, no permit is necessary as long as some sort of informal evidence can be produced verifying it's pre-ban status. This would include things such as dated receipts, invoices, cancelled checks, emails, letters, personal notes, journal entries, photos, price lists, published articles, internet forum posts, magazine articles, a certifying letter from the guitar builder, or other associated documents. Lacking these, it would be necessary to apply for and receive an exemption permit for unpapered BRW guitars or woods, for which USFWS may be willing to accept nothing more than a notarized personal account of the pre-ban history.
Can't remember where now but exactly similar was stated for UK Prrove you had it before '92 and nicer required.Proof ≤o
So I can make the required segment of ownership pre CITES and not a problem to own.