Can you still get a Siberian chipmunk in 2026? What the rules actually say
Published by Planète Pets · managing editor: Clément Lacaille · how our guides are written
“Where can I buy a Korean chipmunk?” remains a very common question. In the European Union, the answer fits in one line: nowhere legally, since 3 August 2016. Here is the legal regime that applies, and — far less widely known — what it does not change for someone already keeping one lawfully. Our other safety benchmarks sit in the rodent travel and safety section.
Contents · 4 sections
An EU-wide ban in force since 2016
Regulation (EU) No 1143/2014 of 22 October 2014 on invasive alien species prohibits, in its Article 7, keeping, breeding, transporting, placing on the market, exchanging and intentionally releasing species included on the Union list. Implementing Regulation (EU) 2016/1141 of 13 July 2016 established that first list: 37 species, applicable from 3 August 2016. Tamias sibiricus (Laxmann, 1769) — the Siberian chipmunk, sold in the pet trade as the Korean chipmunk — was on it from the start. Widened several times since, the list now holds 114 species.
In France, the order of 14 February 2018 prohibits, in its Article 3, introduction into the territory, keeping, transport, sale and purchase of the species in its Annex II, where the Siberian chipmunk is listed among mammals. The French Office for Biodiversity publishes a reference page on the species.
What the regulation does not say: a lawful keeper keeps the animal
A frequently misread point: Article 31 of the regulation allows a pet kept before its species was listed to be kept until it dies of natural causes. No euthanasia, no compulsory surrender — but cumulative conditions apply:
- Contained keeping: the animal must never be able to reach the outdoors.
- Measures preventing any reproduction and any escape: no litters, no possible getaway.
- In France, a declaration to the prefecture of the département where the animal is kept, required before 1 July 2019 by Article 4 of the 2018 order (conditions of point I of Article R. 411-39 of the environment code).
On the trade side, Article 32 gave existing commercial stocks two years to be sold off or transferred to research institutions, sales to non-commercial keepers being allowed for one year only — deadlines that expired long ago.
Why a 2026 sale listing should raise a flag
Simple reasoning is enough. The species lives six to ten years, and an animal covered by the derogation was already in the home before August 2016, so it would be at least ten years old today. That cohort is arithmetically all but extinct, and by design it cannot breed. A 2026 advert offering a chipmunk or a litter for sale therefore points either to an illegal practice or to a country outside the European Union. This is not an official statistic, but a deduction drawn straight from the texts.
The ban has ecological roots: Chapuis described in 2005, in the Revue d’Écologie (La Terre et la Vie), how populations descended from released pets became naturalised in France. That side of the story is covered in our article on the consequences of an escape. These legal texts say nothing about the welfare of the species, however: our guide to the Korean chipmunk aviary covers that ground.
Frequently asked questions
Can a Korean chipmunk still be bought in 2026?
No. Buying, selling and breeding have been banned across the European Union since 3 August 2016, and are prohibited in France by the order of 14 February 2018.
Must I give up a chipmunk acquired before 2016?
No: Article 31 of the regulation allows it to be kept until it dies of natural causes, subject to contained keeping that prevents reproduction and escape, and to the declaration required by the French order.
Can this legal status still change?
The Union list is revised regularly: better to check with EUR-Lex, Légifrance or the French Office for Biodiversity than to rely on a web page. Find all our guides on the rodent hub.
See it in the Planète Pets shop: Double-layer plush hammock for rats, squirrels or ferrets (€18.90) · the whole shop
This guide is part of Planète Pets’s Rodents universe. Our advice is general in nature: for any health concern, your veterinarian remains the only reference.