Plant Health Guide: passporting and marketing requirements
This guide offers details about plant passporting - moving plants within the European Community - and marketing regulations.
The Single Market
Within the Single Market, plant health checks are focused on the place of production. There are no border checks for plants and plant products travelling between EC countries, although spot checks may take place anywhere in the trade chain. A limited range of material which hosts the most serious ("quarantine") pests and diseases requires a plant passport to facilitate its movement.
If plant passports are required, you need to issue them even if you only trade with businesses in the UK: they are not restricted only to plants sent to other EC member states. As there are no plant health inspections within the EC at national borders, it is important that plants leave production nurseries in a healthy condition to prevent the spread of quarantine pests and diseases. Plant passports are intended to ensure that only plants free from quarantine pests and diseases are traded. Phytosanitary ("plant health") certificates are not required for EC trade.
In addition to the plant passporting requirements, plants and plant propagating material of certain genera which host significant ("quality") pests and diseases must be accompanied by a supplier document. This document confirms that the material being traded is substantially free of quality affecting organisms. In the majority of cases this document will be the same as the plant passport, and separate arrangements will only need to be made if passports are not already being issued.
Single Market arrangements do not affect exports to non-EC countries. If you require advice or assistance with exports of plants and plant products to countries outside the EC please contact the SERPID Horticulture and Marketing Unit. All plants and some plant products imported into the United Kingdom from countries outside the EC require phytosanitary certificates and are inspected either at the point of entry or (by arrangement) at an approved destination. For further details, refer to The Plant Health Guide for Importers.
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