Planning to import

Plants and other plant products must meet the regulatory requirements when imported into the European Union. These apply to:

  • Plants for planting are seeds and seedlings that are by type of plant:
    • annual and biennial herbaceous plants,
    • perennial grasses,
    • herbaceous and woody perennials,
    • young trees,
    • underground parts of plants as rhizomes and tubers,
    • and also pot plants;
  • food of plant origin:
    • fruit and vegetables
    • nuts
    • grain of cereals and legumes
  • wood, sawn or rounded, without further processing
  • wood packing material

This site gathers the prerequisites that the importer and his agent must know in order to complete the import process.

Phytosanitary certificates are issued by the plant health competent authority (National Plant Protection Organisation) of the exporting country after export certification confirming compliance with phytosanitary import requirements of the importing country. The import requirements of the EU are:

  • Absence of Union quarantine pests (Annex II of PCR, 2022) for the imports to territory of the EU;
  • Absence of Protected Zone quarantine pests (Annex III of PCR, 2022) for the imports to territory of the EU protected zone;
  • Zero tolerance for Regulated non-Quarantine Pests (Annex IV of PCR, 2022);
  • The plant goods are not listed among banned for import to the EU, either temporary as high risk plants (Regulation 2018/2019), or permanently in Annex VI (PCR, 2022), or banned for certain EU protected zone by Annex IX (PCR, 2022);
  • The plant goods fulfil special requirements for the import to the EU territory (Annex VII of PCR, 2022), or for the import to certain EU protected zone (Annex X of PCR, 2022).

Mandatory channelling of consignments to border control services and uniform frequencies for checks apply to live animals, products of animal origin, plants and plant products because of the risk those commodities might pose in relation to animal or plant health respectively. Regulated plants, plant products and other articles, listed in Annex XI.A (PCR, 2022) and those, regulated by emergency measures have to be prenotified at the border control post of the first arrival to the EU, where in principle also a documentary, identity and plant health checks are done for all consignments (100%) by national plant health officers (phytosanitary inspectors).

Prior to the EU market access the non-EU countries have to notify in writing to the Commission their pest status, used for export of host plants and plant products to the EU for the following pests:[1]

  • Agrilus planipennis (Annex VII, point 87 – wood, chips and bark of Fraxinus L., Juglans ailantifolia Carr., Juglans mandshurica Maxim., Ulmus davidiana Planch. and Pterocarya rhoifolia originating in Canada, China, Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, Japan, Mongolia, Republic of Korea, Russia, Taiwan, and the United States)
  • Agrilus planipennis (Annex VII, point 88 – Canada, China, Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, Japan, Mongolia, Republic of Korea, Russia, Taiwan, and the United States)
  • Anthonomus quadrigibbus (Annex VII, point 65 – Fruits of Malus Mill. and Pyrus L., originating in third countries)
  • Bactericera cockerelli (Annex VII, point 67 – Fruits of Solanaceae originating in Australia, the Americas and New Zealand)
  • Botryosphaeria kuwatsukai (Annex VII, point 64 – Fruits of Malus Mill. and Pyrus L., originating in third countries)
  • Candidatus Liberibacter africanus, L. americanus and L. asiaticus (Annex VII, point 51)
  • Grapholita packardi (Annex VII, point 63 – Canada, Mexico and the United States)
  • Grapholita prunivora, Grapholita inopinata, and Rhagoletis pomonella (Annex VII, point 66 – Fruits of Malus Mill., originating in third countries)
  • Neoleucinodes elegantalis (Annex VII, point 68 – Fruits of Capsicum annuum L., Solanum aethiopicum L., Solanum lycopersicum L. and Solanum melongena L., originating in third countries)
  • Phyllosticta citricarpa (Annex VII, point 60)
  • Pseudocercospora angolensis (Annex VII, point 59)
  • Tephritidae (non-European) (Annex VII, point 61)
  • Thaumatotibia leucotreta (Annex VII, point 62 – countries of the African continent, Cape Verde, Saint Helena, Madagascar, La Reunion, Mauritius and Israel)
  • Thrips palmi (High risk plants of Momordica fruits by Regulation (EU) 2018/2019)
  • Xanthomonas citri pv. aurantifolii and Xanthomonas citri pv. citri (Annex VII, points 54 & 58).

[1] Declarations of pest status under Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/2072 are collected at European Commission: https://ec.europa.eu/food/plants/plant-health-and-biosecurity/trade-plants-plant-products-non-eu-countries/declarations-non-eu_en

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