In September, the Government announced full EU to GB sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) import controls would begin on 1 July 2022.
Defra aims to take a pragmatic approach when introducing import controls, balancing the need to allow more time for businesses to recover from the pandemic and maintaining the high biosecurity standards of Great Britain.
In line with this, full sanitary and phytosanitary import controls will be introduced by commodity group for animal products, plant and plant products, and phased in from 1 July 2022 to 1 November 2022.
Timeline for phasing in of controls on SPS imports
Import controls will be introduced in three phases:
From 1 July 2022
All certification, physical and identity checks will be introduced for:
- All remaining regulated animal by-products
- All lower risk plants and plant products
- All meat and meat products
- All remaining high-risk food not of animal origin.
From 1 September 2022
- Certification and physical checks will be introduced for dairy products.
From 1 November 2022
- Certification and physical checks will be introduced for all remaining products of animal origin, including composite products and fish products.
From 1 July 2022, checks on high-priority plants and plant products will transfer from place of destination to designated BCPs and control points.
Live animal physical checks will take place at designated border control posts where a facility is operational at the point of entry. Where there is no designated BCP, checks will remain at destination for other points of entry until sufficient BCPs are operational. Checks at Sevington inland BCP and designated airport BCPs will commence from 1 July 2022.
DEFRA
