Importing bees into Scotland: guidance

Border Control Posts

All bees imported from countries outside of the EU must enter through an approved border control post (BCP).

You must give at least one working days’ notice of the consignment’s anticipated arrival date to the APHA office responsible for the BCP. This should be done via the IPAFFS system. Information about the system and details regarding how to register is available.  A Common Health Entry Document (CHED) must be submitted with part 1 completed. Please copy the documentation to the National Bee Unit (NBU) -NBU Contacts. Verbal or telephone notifications are not acceptable. Details of BCPs approved for bees are on gov.uk – you will need to look for an entry which contains the code LA-O and check the comments column to see if bees (invertebrates) are accepted.

Guidance on UK border control posts: animal and animal product imports

Please note that consignments arriving by airmail are sent to the Parcelforce depot at Coventry and then returned to the BCP for the necessary veterinary checks to be carried out. In order to avoid these transit delays, consignments should be sent by cargo as these will be transported directly to the BCP on arrival at the airport.

On arrival at the BCP, the original health certificate will be retained and part 2 of the CHED will be completed by the official veterinarian confirming that all the veterinary checks have been carried out. The consignment will then be released. A copy of the completed CHED should accompany the consignment to its destination.

Charges for veterinary checks

The costs of the checks carried out on imports of live animals from third countries are recovered from the importer under the provisions of the official control regulations. To find out how much the BCP check is, you should contact the relevant BCP.