Phytosanitary Certificate (PC) and pre-notification requirements for registered Place of Destination (PoD) users and multi-drop options
- PoD = Place of Destination
- PP = Plant Passport
- PC = Phytosanitary Certificate
- RoRo = Roll On Roll Off
- Exporter = a person, or company, that sends goods to another country for sale
- Importer = a person, or company, that brings goods in from another country for sale
- Consignment = a batch/lots of goods, listed and covered by a single PC.
- Consignee = the person, or company, in the importing country responsible for the consignment
- Competent authority = the local or national government department or agency that oversees the legislative and legal requirements to ensure they are fulfilled. In England and Wales this is APHA. In Scotland this is SASA. For wood, wood products, and isolated bark this is the Forestry Commission (including Scotland).
- 1 x PC per consignment
- 1 x Pre-notification per consignment
- If your good are moving onwards from the PoD, then you need plant passport authorisation
Multi-drop scenarios
- There must be clear labelling of consignments in the lorry and once the consignment arrives at a PoD, it cannot be broken down until the necessary checks have been completed.
- The lorry does not have to wait at a PoD until plant health checks have been completed.
- If non-compliance is found and statutory action is needed, it is the importer’s responsibility to arrange for any necessary logistics to fulfil this e.g. destruction/re-export of the consignment.
- When submitting a PEACH/IPAFFS application as part of the pre-notification process, include a delivery note/invoice that is specific to each portion of the multi-drop, including the one to the declared PoD. This provides a means for traceability and helps inspectors plan the most efficient inspection route.
Scenario 1: a single lorry contains plant consignments* for multiple importers each destined for different PoDs
In this scenario, a single lorry contains multiple consignments, each for a different importer and destined for different PoDs. A PC and pre-notification is required for each consignment on the lorry. In practice, this means the lorry can drop each distinct consignment covered by its own PC and pre-notification at PoDs along a route.
PC, pre-notification and Plant Passporting requirements for Scenario 1:
- 1 x PC per consignment
- 1 x Pre-notification per consignment
- If your good are moving onwards from the PoD, then you need plant passport authorisation
Scenario 2: a single lorry contains plant consignments* for a single importer intended from multiple customers/retail stores, under the ‘distribution centre’ logistics model
In this scenario, a single lorry, containing plants for one importer, is routed to a distribution centre which acts as a single PoD. A PC and pre-notification is required for each consignment that is destined for the distribution centre PoD. Plant health checks of each consignment are undertaken at the single distribution centre PoD, where once inspected they can then continue onwards to customers/retail stores.
The distribution centre acting as the PoD would not qualify as a retailer selling goods directly to customer, therefore the distribution centre will need to be Plant Passport authorised for any onward movement of plant passported goods. For more information on issuing Plant Passports visit gov.uk.
This scenario could cover large scale retailers, or large-scale growers who take on importing responsibilities on behalf of their customers.
- 1 x PC per consignment
- 1 x Pre-notification per consignment
- If goods are moving onwards from the PoD, then you will need plant passport authorisation
Scenario 3: a single lorry contains plant consignments* for a single importer intended for multiple PoDs, under the ‘direct delivery’ logistics model
In this scenario, a single lorry, containing a single consignment of plants for a single importer, is split and dropped off to multiple PoDs along a route (which may or may not be retail stores). The consignment must have its own PC and pre-notification made to only one PoD. Which PoD the pre-notification is made to is dependent on whether there are higher-risk species (i.e woody plants, seeds (including seed potatoes), or Xylella hosts) in the lorry or not.
- If there are no higher risk species in the lorry, the importer must pre-notify the first customer/retailers PoD in the sequence of deliveries (see scenario 3a).
- If there are higher risk species in the lorry, the importer must pre-notify the first customer/retailers PoD that those higher risk species are delivered to (see scenario 3b).
- The PEACH application number covering the consignment, and;
- The Phytosanitary Certificate identification number
- 1 x PC per consignment
- 1 x Pre-notification per consignment made to one PoD (see A & B)
- If goods are moving onwards from the PoD, then you will need plant passport authorisation
Scenario 4: a single consignment* for a single importer is transported via multiple lorries intended for multiple PoDs under the ‘direct delivery’ logistics model
In this scenario, a single consignment for a single importer is transported via multiple lorries due to the size of the load. The consignment is then split and dropped off to multiple PoDs along a route (which may or may not be retail stores).The consignment must have a PC**(which will cover the whole consignment being transported via multiple lorries) and a pre-notification made to only one PoD. Which PoD the pre-notification is made to is dependent on whether there are higher-risk species (i.e woody plants, seeds (including seed potatoes), or Xylella hosts) in the lorry or not.
- If there are no higher risk species in the lorry, the importer must pre-notify the first customer/retailers PoD in the sequence of deliveries.
- If there are higher risk species in the lorry, the importer must pre-notify the first customer/retailers PoD those higher risk species are delivered to.
- The PEACH application number covering the consignment, and;
- The Phytosanitary Certificate identification number
- 1 x PC per consignment (even when transported via multiple lorries)
- 1 x Pre-notification per consignment made to one PoD (see A & B)
- If goods are moving onwards from the PoD, then you will need plant passport authorisation
Scenario 5: a single consignment for a single importer is transported via multiple lorries destined for a single PoD
In this scenario, a single consignment for a single importer is transported via multiple lorries due to the size of the load. The consignment must have a PC** (which will cover the whole consignment being transported via multiple lorries)and a pre-notification made to the PoD the lorries will deliver to.The pre-notification should be made at least 4 working hours in advance of the first lorry landing in GB.
The full consignment, across all lorries, must be made available for inspection at the PoD in order for the inspector to undertake checks. If one of the lorries is delayed, the importer is responsible foralerting the competent authority of any delays, to ensure the inspector does not arrive on site before all goods are available and can be presented for inspection. The goods must remain on site until the whole consignment is present and the inspector has passed the checks.
- 1 x PC per consignment
- 1 x Pre-notification per consignment (even when transported via multiple lorries)
- If goods are moving onwards from the PoD, then you will need plant passport authorisation
* from either one or multiple exporters. If it is multiple exporters, then each consignment must be covered by its own PC and pre-notification.
**The PC is only valid for 14 days after issuance by the exporting country and all parts must arrive into GB within this time frame.