On January 1st 2021, the United Kingdom became a third-country outside of the European Union. This significantly changed the animal health certification requirements for consignments of live fish and live bivalve molluscs being exported to Great Britain, and also for those which transit through Great Britain to continental Europe i.e. via the ‘UK landbridge’ route.
Procedures for importing fish and/or shellfish from/through Great Britain have also changed. All consignments of fish and/or shellfish travelling from GB must enter the island of Ireland through a border control post (BCP) certified to accept live fish. On the island of Ireland these are: the ports at Dublin, Rosslare, Larne & Belfast; and Dublin Airport. Further details can be found at trading with the UK on www.gov.ie.
Please follow the links below for details of the certification processes in each scenario.
Please also note the advance notice periods necessary to accommodate these requirements.
Moving fish/shellfish to mainland Europe via Great Britain (UK Landbridge route)
Moving Fish/Shellfish directly to Great Britain
NB: There are no new requirements for loads travelling directly to continental Europe e.g. by direct ferry from Ireland to France, as these will be travelling between member states without leaving the EU.
There can be significant delays involved in transporting fish and shellfish through Great Britain to continental Europe. The Marine Institute strongly advise operators and transporters to consider using direct-route options to avoid potential delays in-transit.
If you export fish or shellfish to Great Britain but have not previously required health certification, please contact the Fish Health Unit at notification@marine.ie.
*For the purposes of the new trading arrangements, Great Britain can be defined as England, Scotland, Wales, the Isle of Man, and the Channel Islands.
Useful Links:
Brexit and the Agri-Food Sector – are you ready?
Register to Import or Export with DAFM
Trading in animals and animal products