The Galapagos Biosafety Sworn Declaration – all you need to know 

Share this post:

Large Ground Finch

Controlling invasive species in the Galapagos Islands is an ongoing battle for authorities and one way they do this is to ensure travellers don’t unwittingly carry seeds or other biological items with them which could affect the delicate environmental balance of the Islands.

To this end, the Galapagos Biosafety and Quarantine Control Agency has always required guests to complete a biosafety sworn declaration before entering the Galapagos Islands. Until now this has been a paper form which guests complete on the flight out to Galapagos. As from the start of December 2024, the authorities introduced a new digital process requiring all travellers aged 18 and over to complete and submit an online Sworn Declaration form.

How to complete your online Sworn Declaration Form

You can complete this online form up to 48 hours before your flight to Galapagos and it only takes a few minutes to do. Once successfully submitted, you will receive a confirmation QR code to your email address and this must be presented on arrival in Galapagos, at either San Cristóbal or Baltra airport.

The declaration form is available in Spanish and English at the following link:
https://declaracion.abgalapagos.gob.ec/

Alternative ways of submitting your Sworn declaration

1. At the airport on the day of your flight

If you can’t access a computer to complete your declaration online before your flight, scan the QR code available at Quito or Guayaquil airports on the day of your flight to Galapagos.

If you can avoid it, we don’t recommend doing this as you will have other paperwork to organise such as your Galapagos Transit Control Card, which you may have to queue for (for most Think Galapagos guests we will process the transit control card in advance). But we are always of the view that the less you need to do in the airport on the day of travel, the better!

2. The old paper system on your flight

Until March 2025 they are allowing the old system to run alongside the new one. This means you can complete the traditional paper form provided during your flight prior to arrival. However we aren’t exactly clear when they will have this parallel system running until so if you can, better to complete in advance.

What do I need to declare on my Sworn Declaration form?

Both the digital and physical submission processes require travellers to:

  • Provide basic personal and flight details
  • Click ‘yes’ or ‘no’ on three oaths regarding the transport of any animal or plant products to the islands

Items to Declare:

You will need to declare if you are carrying any of the following items:

i) Processed, fresh, or cooked food, plants, flowers, seeds, or biological products, live animals, wood, handicrafts, or minerals

ii) Camping equipment (e.g., tents, sleeping bags, hiking boots)

iii) You will also need to indicate if you have visited places with concentrations of domestic or wild animals, such as farms, zoos, or protected areas  – within the 72 hours prior to your trip.

Advice on how to fill out the form

Oath 1

Processed, fresh or cooked food: any snacks that are processed and packaged are OK to bring with you, even granola bars or similar. As long as it is a sealed product, it’s fine. You can’t bring fresh fruit or vegetable snacks as these will contain live seeds. If you are bringing any food, please tick ‘si’ on the form.

Raw wood, for example wooden handicrafts, is not allowed as it could contain burrowing insects.

Biological products: this refers to plants, seeds, insects, or animals that are alive and could germinate/hatch/reproduce in the islands. Therefore natural and organic products (like creams, deodorants and soaps) made from plants are fine to bring and don’t need to be declared.

Oath 2

The authorities in Galapagos don’t want diseases from domestic and wild animals from the mainland to be spread to those in Galapagos. However, most travellers won’t have come into close contact with any animals so should answer ‘no’ to this question, even if you’ve just been in the Cloud Forest or Amazon Rainforest. Only consider answering ‘si’ if you’ve been in very close contact (ie touching!) with high concentrations of domestic or wild animals in the last 72 hours.

Oath 3

Camping in Galapagos is not allowed so authorities don’t want people to bring camping equipment. Most of our clients however bring hiking boots but these are not for camping purposes, therefore we recommend you answer ‘no’ to this question. However it is very important that you clean your hiking boots before travelling to Galapagos, especially the soles of your boots which may have mud containing seeds in the treads.

If you want more advice on travelling to Galapagos, read our blog‘Arriving in the Galapagos Islands – A Step by Step Guide.’

Not sure what to pack for your Galapagos holiday? Read our Ultimate Packing Guide!

Reviews

Get in touch:

tg banner accent
ATOL Protected
Give Rachel a Call

Company founder and Galapagos expert, Rachel is on hand to help you plan your trip of a lifetime!

01482 887 453

Rachel
tg banner accent

Why choose us?

We listen to you. We take the time to understand what you want your Galapagos trip of a lifetime to be. We then we use our decades of experience and unrivalled network of local contacts and team of top guides to make it happen.

ATOL Protected