Additional guidance notes for breeders
You should read these guidance notes together with the general guidance notes for importers and
exporters (GN1), and the general guidance notes for commercial use within the European Union (GN2), where appropriate. Tortoise breeders should also read GN3, while bird of prey breeders
should read GN6 and parrot breeders should read GN14, which contain more specific guidance
These notes are only for guidance and are not a full statement of the law. If you need points of law to be explained, you should get independent legal advice.
This page is available as a downloadable document here 
- Introduction
- Specimen specific certificates for specimens bred in captivity
- Semicomplete certificates
- Marking requirements
- Gifts
Introduction
To use Annex A specimens commercially you must be issued with a certificate. These are
generally known as Article 10 exemption certificates. Specimen specific certificates (Article
10s) issued to breeders are valid for all sales and commercial uses. These must be passed on
with the specimen to the person buying them.
We may also issue breeders with certificates for certain commonlybred
species, which the
breeder can fill in with relevant details when the animals hatch or are born. Again these
certificates are passed on with the specimen and are known as Preissued
or Semicomplete
Article 10 certificates.
You must not use any Annex A specimen for commercial purposes unless a valid certificate has been issued, but you do not need certificates to advertise specimens that have not hatched.
Specimen specific certificates (SSCs)
You may apply for a certificate to sell any Annex A specimen that has been bred in captivity. These are called Specimen specific certificates (SSCs) and are issued for the specimen not for the breeder.
You can get application forms from the enquiries desk, or you can download them
from our website.
When you apply please remember the following points :
- You must have valid certificates for the parental stock if they are being used for commercial purposes, for example, breeding for sale.
- The specimens sold must have been bred from parents that were bred in captivity, or from stock that has produced (or is able to produce) secondgeneration offspring (or further generations) in a controlled environment.
- SSCs cannot be reissued if they are lost or destroyed. If this happens you will need to reapply.
You should say whether you need the certificate to authorise:
- buying or offering to buy the specimen for commercial purposes;
- displaying the specimen for commercial purposes;
- using the specimen for commercial gain (including hire); or
- selling, keeping for sale, offering for sale or transporting for sale the specimen.
You may apply for a single certificate that covers all of the above.
Semicomplete certificates
We may also issue you with a limited number of semicomplete certificates. The number we issue will depend on the particular species. The description, purpose, quantity, CITES appendix and, in exceptional circumstances, the scientific and common name will be left blank for you to type in when you sell the specimens.
To qualify for these certificates, you should keep uptodate breeding records and make them available to us, if necessary. An example of the preferred form is attached.
- The species to which the certificate applies should be entered in boxes 17 and 18.
- Details of any microchips, closering numbers or other identifying marks must be included in the description box 4.
- Only your name, your reference number and ‘UK’ will be included in box 1 of the printed certificate.
- You should complete the certificate which is carbonised, in typescript, and return the pink part to us as soon as you use them. You should also keep a photocopy for your own records. If you do not return the pink parts to us, we may not issue you with more semicomplete certificates. You must not complete details by hand.
- These certificates should stay with the individual specimens when they are sold, and will stay valid for each future sale, as long as the details remain the same.
Semicomplete certificates will not be valid unless you have included all the relevant information.
Marking requirements
You can only sell live Annex A vertebrates (animals with a backbone) if they are marked as described in the detail of Guidance Note 2. In general terms this means a closed ring for captive bred birds, or a microchip for other animals including tortoises.
Gifts
There are currently no controls on keeping Annex A specimens for noncommercial purposes, and you do not need a certificate if you plan to give these specimens away. However, if the person receiving the specimen plans to use it for commercial purposes, he or she will need to apply for a certificate for that purpose. We cannot backdate these certificates, so they must apply for them before they receive the specimen. Anyone who receives a specimen as a gift should ask the person who gave it to them for written details of its origin, including details of the parental stock, such as ring numbers and and hatch dates, as we will need this information if the new owner ever applies for a certificate.
Page last modified:22 February 2008
Page published:22 February 2008