Information to be Included on Phytosanitary Certificates Accompanying Consignments Imported into England and Wales
The EC Plant Health Directive (2000/29) requires that plant health controlled material, and accompanying phytosanitary certificates, imported from outside the EU be inspected on arrival. In broad terms this includes plants, potatoes, the major fruit other than bananas and grapes, cut flowers and some leafy vegetables.
To enable the Plant Health and Seeds Inspectorate (PHSI) to undertake the necessary scrutiny of phytosanitary certificates, details of the quantity of material within the consignment should be included on the certificate under the heading ‘Quantity declared’. This information is additional to the number of packages, which should also be included under the heading ‘Number and description of packages’. Container numbers should also be included here, if appropriate.
The unit of quantity used should reflect those specified in the Plant Health (Import Inspection Fees) Order 2006; i.e.:
- For fruit, vegetables, potatoes, grain and soil (where not prohibited) - the weight in kilograms.
- For cut flowers - the number of stems
- For branches with foliage - the weight in kilograms
- For plants for planting the unit depends upon the nature of the material. Bulbs, corms & rhizomes, plants in tissue culture and seeds should be specified by weight. For other planting material the number of items should be included.
Where this information is missing from the phytosanitary certificate the PHSI have been using information from other commercial documentation to check that the weights or numbers are correct. However, as from 1 June 2008 consignments will be held if the required information is not included pending submission of a fully completed certificate.
Page last modified:
12 May 2008
Page published: 12 May 2008