• Prepare to import goods from the EU to Great Britain from i January 2020
• UK Guidance note on plant trade if there’s no withdrawal deal
• Trader Notice 04/2019 – Disorderly Brexit Trader Notice 2 (pdf 374Kb)      ‌
• Trader Notice 02/2019 – Disorderly Brexit Trader Notices (doc 85Kb)
• DAFMs Videos on Import Control Procedures
• Bord Bía customs training workshops (dates and registration details)
  • Regional workshops
  • Dublin workshop
• FAQ¿s
• Customs Brexit Information Seminar presentation
• Preparing for Brexit

Personal consignments of plants and plant products have the potential to endanger plant health as well as impact the biodiversity and wider environment if the goods brought into the State do not meet EU requirements. Regulation (EU) 2016/2031 is the overarching plant health legislation that governs the movement of plants into and within the European Union by either commercial or private means. Regulated plants, parts of plants, fruit, vegetables, cut flowers, seeds and grain may not be brought in to the State without a valid phytosanitary certificate (with the appropriate declarations) being presented to the Dept of Agriculture, Food and the Marine at the point of entry.

Department of Agriculture, Food & the Marine Personal Consignments of plants and plant products Information – Don’t Risk it!

UK government Brexit No-Deal website here regarding their requirement for personal consignments entering the UK

• Registering as a professional Operator

Import Procedures for plants and plant products from Third Countries

In preparation for Brexit, registered exporters may apply for phytosanitary certification of consignments of plant and plant produce to the UK. DAFM requires a minimum of 14 days notice prior to export to enable inspectors to arrange an inspection and allow for any laboratory testing that may be required to be completed. Applicants are required to complete and submit the following information via our online Export Certification System (ECS):

1) Access online Phytosanitary Certificate application form here

• ECS User Manual
• Video tutorial for ECS system.

2) Enter the text that matches a CAPTCHA image and click on Proceed to continue; The Request Certificate screen will display Certificate Types which can be applied for from the list on the dropdown options.

3) Select certificate type “Phytosanitary Plant & Horticulture Certificate” which will then display the fields relevant to the Certificate.

4) Complete online application form (mandatory fields are indicated with * and must be completed).

5) Upload written confirmation from the NPPO (National Plant Protection Organisation) of the country of destination confirming the Phytosanitary Import requirements.

• Scanned copies of emails in PDF or Excel format are acceptable.
• UK government Brexit No-Deal import procedures for plant and plant products can be accessed here.

Please note: Phytosanitary certificates should only be issued for plants, plant products and/or other regulated articles. Written confirmation shall confirm the requirement for a Phytosanitary Certificate for the plant, plant product or other article concerned and should also detail any additional declarations that are required.

6) For Export of Potatoes Only

 Potato Export Grower Information Form

Please complete the attached form and upload with your online application together with the other appropriate documentation where required.

7) Click on Submit to submit the request for processing. Note: prior to clicking on Submit, the user may also upload any documents (must be in PDF and/or Excel format) to support the application. 

If all is in order, a message is displayed to the user:

• informing the applicant that the request has been logged with the Department for processing;
• informing the applicant that they will be contacted in due course using the email address provided/retrieved;
• advising the applicant of the reference number for tracking purposes (e.g. ECS000180).

Contact:

Technical support       agfood@agriculture.gov.ie

Export queries             plantandpests@agriculture.gov.ie

Wood packaging material such as pallets, crates and dunnage, that move between third countries is regulated under ISPM 15 (international standard for phytosanitary measure).  This is an international phytosanitary measure developed by the International Plant Protection Convention (IPPC) that sets down standards for treatment and marking of Wood Packaging Material (WPM).

• Details of WPM requirements when importing or exporting goods
• Wood packaging material requirements in the event of a “No-Deal”

For all queries in relation to Wood Packaging Material please send them to ISPM15@agriculture.gov.ie

• Plant Health Legislation

The Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) are obliged, under Article 13(d) of Directive 2000/29/EC on protective measures against the introduction into the Community of organisms harmful to plants or plant products, to apply a system of charges for inspections carried out on regulated plant and plant products introduced into the State from Third Countries. A list of the plants and plant products which come under the remit of this Directive are listed in Annex A of this notice.

All consignments of plants and plant products listed in Annex A of this notice entering the State from Third Countries will be subject to an Inspection Charge, based on the schedule of charges as set out in Annex B of this notice. The charge will apply to imported consignments arriving in both Dublin Port and Dublin Airport.

Application of Fees:

Each Inspection Charge comprises (a) documentary check fee, (b) an identity check fee and (c) a plant health check fee based on the volume/quantity of material as set out in Annex B of this Notice. Note: A consignment is defined as per Article 2(1) (p) of Directive 2000/29/EC.

“consignment shall be considered to mean: A quantity of goods being covered by a single document required for customs formalities or for other formalities, such as a single phytosanitary certificate or a single alternative document or mark; a consignment may be composed of one or more lots.”

Invoicing:

To reduce administrative burden, registered importers will be invoiced once in the second week of the month for all consignments inspected in the preceding calendar month.

Payment:

Details of the methods by which payments can be made shall accompany each invoice. A remittance slip will be provided with each invoice for your convenience. Please ensure that you quote your customer number, located at the top left of the invoice, together with the invoice number when completing the remittance slip.

Payment by cheque, draft or money order (in Euro only) should be made payable to:

The Accountant, Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine

The remittance slip together with payment should be forwarded to:

Remittances should be sent to this address only. Failure to do so may result in delays in the registering of payments (see non payments below).

EFT/Credit/Debit Card Payments:

A facility to make payments by EFT or credit/debit card can only be made in accordance with a set protocol.

Information on payment by EFT can be obtained by contacting +353-(0)49-4368239

Details on payment by credit/debit Card can be obtained by contacting +353-(0)49-4352053.

Non-payments:

As provided for under Regulation 16(2) of SI 894 of 2004, the Department reserves the right to refuse to carry out inspections of plant and plant products where registered importers have failed to clear outstanding accounts within an eight-week period from the date of the relevant invoice date.

Phytosanitary Certificates:

Registered importers are reminded of the provisions of Trader Notice 4 of 2015 and specifically; the requirement of ensuring that the original Phytosanitary Certificate for each consignment is received by DAFM within five working days of DAFM issuing the associated Clearance Certificate. Failure to do so may result in delays further applications for importation of plants and plant products.

Queries

In the event that you have any queries in relation to this matter, please contact this office either by emailing plantandpests@agriculture.gov.ie or alternatively by telephone (01)5058885.

The following are some examples of the fees that will be applicable based on the schedule set out in Annex B below.

• Annex A Plants and Plant Products subject to charges
• Annex B Fees Schedule

Q: What is a Phytosanitary Certificate?

A: A Phytosanitary Certificate is a legal document issued by the NPPO (National Plant Protection Organisation) of the country of export for goods and commercial consignments of plant origin certifying that they are free from certain / specified harmful and quarantine pests and diseases. Click here to see an example of a Phytosanitary Certificate.

Q: I wish to import regulated plants and plant products into Ireland from a third country and I want to get a Phytosanitary certificate for these products.  Who do I contact?

A: Contact the competent authority or NPPO (National Plant Protection Organisation) of the country of origin of the goods? A link to contact details can be found here.  Alternatively your seller in the country of origin can arrange this locally with the competent authority.

Q: What is a third country?

A: A third country is referred to in EU treaties as a country that is not a member of the European Union.  When the UK leaves the European Union it will become a third country.

Q: I am working for a retail multiple and we import a number of consignments of plants per week into Ireland from the UK.  Do I need to get a phytosanitary certificate from each of my suppliers of plants in the UK?, or will one phytosanitary certificate cover the entire consignment?

A: It is the NPPO (National Plant Protection Organisation) of UK who issue phytosanitary certificates for consignments of plants and plant products for export to countries outside their jurisdiction.  Consignments of plants and plant products travelling from third countries are typically accompanied by one phytosanitary certificate that covers the entire consignment.  However, it is up to the UK authorities to decide how many phytosanitary certificates they issue.  Please note that in situations where we receive multiple phytosanitary certificates for a consignment, that it will result in processing delays.

Q: My company imports plants for planting from the UK in grouped consignments.  When the UK leave the EU, will I be charged fees for the entire consignment?

A: No, you will only be charged for the plants and plant products element of the consignment as set out in the fees section on this page.

Q: My company imports plants for plating from the UK and EU member states in grouped consignments.  When the UK leaves the EU, will I require a phytosanitary certificate for the entire consignment?

A: No, a phytosanitary certificate will only be required for the plants and plant products that were produced in the UK.  The plants and plant products that were produced in another EU member state will be considered to be transit goods and will continue to be covered under the plant passport system.

Q: My grouped consignment containing regulated plants and plant products has been called for a physical examination.  What can I do to ensure the fastest processing time as possible to enable me to deliver my consignment to its intended point of destination?

A: In the event of a grouped consignment containing regulated plants and plant products DAFM may have to carry out a full strip/breakdown of the container/side curtain/refer.  To ensure speedy processing we encourage importers to ensure that the regulated plants and plant products in the consignment are easily accessible to enable the phytosanitary inspectors to carry out their work in an efficient manner and avoid having to carry out a full strip/breakdown.

Q: Do I have customs obligations when importing plants and plant products from the UK? If so, where do I find out what I need to do?

A: Yes, when importing plants and plant products from the UK you will have certain obligations to fulfil from a customs perspective.  Please click here for more details.

Q: What is a SAD?

A: SAD stands for Single Administrative Document which is a form used for customs declarations in the EU. Please click here for more details.

Q: What is a CN code?, and where can I find the correct CN code for my product?

A: CN stands for combined nomenclature.  It is the common nomenclature of the EU and is an 8 digit product classification of goods in export declarations to meet the requirements of Common Customs Tariff and the EUs external trade statistics. To find out what CN code applies to your commodity, using the advanced search option, you can access the EU database for CN codes here.

Bord Bia are running Regional and Dublin workshops on customs training please follow the highlighted links to register for these events.

Q: I am a non-commercial importer and I wish to bring cut flowers home from a third country (non-EU) what do I need to do?

A: There are many thousands of species of cut flowers, some are regulated others are not, so it’s not possible to tell you until we know the specific details.  Please submit your query via email to plantandpests@agriculture.gov.ie

Q: Post import checks I noted unusual occurrence of harmful organisms (pests or diseases) on my consignment. Who do I contact?

A: Immediately contact the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine at email address plantandpests@agriculture.gov.ie  or by telephone 01-5058885.

Q: What is a Plant Passport?

A: A Plant Passport is an official label issued by producer and authorised by the competent authority or NPPO, with gives evidence that the provisions of the EU Directives relating to plant health standards and special requirements are satisfied and which are:

Standardised at Community level for different types of plants or plant products, and Issued in accordance with the implementing rules governing the details of the procedure for issuing plant passports.

Q: What does a Plant Passport look like? And where can I find it on a consignment of plants?

A: Typically a plant passport can be attached to the plant in the format below or referenced in the associated documentation i.e. the invoice or the delivery docket.

Q: What is a protected zone?

A: A zone in the Community, which has been recognised by the EU as being: One in which one or more harmful organisms referred to in the Plant Health Directive, which are established in one or more parts of the Community, do not occur despite favourable ecological conditions for them to establish.  In which there is danger that certain harmful organisms will establish themselves, given propitious ecological conditions, for particular crops despite the fact that these harmful organisms are not endemic or established in the European Community.