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Regulations and Assessments

International Animal Export Regulations

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Notice:

If you have any questions or concerns regarding these regulations for exporting animals or animal products to a foreign country, you should contact the APHIS-VS Area Office in the State from which the animals or products will be exported.

European Union - Summary of Requirements

The Member States of the European Union are: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, the Republic of Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, and the United Kingdom.

Bilingual health certificates are available for some species/commodities. Please refer to the link for the individual Member State for available bilingual health certificates. It is the responsibility of the exporter to obtain a bilingual certificate if it is not available on the Member State link.

SPECIES - MOST RECENT UPDATE

Bovine:

Bovine Embryos

Additional information about exporting bovine embryos to the EU

List of EU-approved bovine embryo collection and production teams (click on "United States" at bottom of the page)

Bovine Semen

Additional information about exporting bovine semen to EU.

List of EU-approved bovine semen collection centers and bovine semen storage centers (click on "United States" at bottom of the page)

Horses

Note:
Effective May 1, 2012, due to detection of vesicular stomatitis in New Mexico, horses and equine semen/embryo donors for export to the European Union must be tested for vesicular stomatitis as follows:

  • Registered horses and horses for breeding/production:  within 21 days of export 
  • Temporary admission horses:  within 10 days of export
  • Equine semen donors:  within 14 days prior to entering the center
    • if already a resident stallion, then test once
    • if a temporarily absent stallion (i.e., resident but leaves for less than 14 days), then no additional testing after initial testing
    • if a walk-on stallion, then must always be tested within 14 days of entering the center.
  • Equine embryo donors:  within 30 days prior to collection

Live equine

Note:
You may be asked to provide additional documentation at the time of certificate endorsement to support the fact the horse will only be in the EU temporarily (less than 90 days).

Additional information about exporting live horses to the EU.

Equine Semen:

Additional information about export of equine semen to the EU

List of EU-approved equine semen collection and storage centers (click on "United States" at bottom of page)

Equine Embryo:

Additional information about export of equine embryos to the EU.

Ovine and Caprine

Ovine/Caprine semen:

Additional information about export of ovine/caprine semen to the EU.

Ovine/Caprine embryos:

Additional information about export of ovine/caprine semen and embryos to the EU.

Swine

Live Swine

Swine Semen

Additional information about export of porcine semen to the EU.

List of EU-approved porcine semen collection centers (click on "United States" at bottom of page)

Poultry

Note:
Part II of the day-old chick certificate must be issued by an accredited veterinarian within 10 days prior to export and must be endorsed by APHIS. Part III of the certificate must be issued on the day of hatch and does not need APHIS endorsement. The accredited veterinarian must apply a stamp to Part III containing his/her name, company name, and accreditation number. The original copy of Part III must be attached to Part II of the certificate

Captive Bred Birds:

Defined as "birds that have not been caught in the wild but have been born and bred in captivity from parents that mated or had gametes otherwise transferred in captivity." This does not apply to poultry (fowl, turkeys, guinea fowl, ducks, geese, quail, pheasants, partridges), pigeons, ratites, birds for conservation programs, pets, or birds intended for zoos

Pigeons

  • Breeding pigeons (intended for production of hatching eggs from which pigeons kept for production and/or slaughter will be raised) - Health certificate - February 2013 (108 kb)
  • All other pigeons*  - Health certificate - February 2013 (64 kb)

*Notes:

Pigeons are defined by the EU as poultry; therefore, pigeons may not be classified as pets.

The import conditions for racing pigeons (defined as imported from a neighboring country and intended to be immediately released for racing purposes) are established by the individual EU Member State.  Therefore, the importer/exporter must obtain the requirements for racing pigeons in writing from a government official of the Member State of destination.

Additional information about exporting pigeons to the European Union (scroll to bottom of page)

Use this link for additional information:  http://ec.europa.eu/food/international/trade/poultry/index_en.htm

Pets

Pet dogs, cats, and ferrets must be identified with a microchip compatible with ISO standard 11784 or 11785 or the appropriate microchip reader must be provided along with the pet. Microchip implantation must occur PRIOR to rabies vaccination. Any rabies vaccination that occurs prior to microchip implantation is not considered valid regardless of whether the animal was up-to-date on its previous rabies vaccines. In this case, the animal must be revaccinated. 21 days must have elapsed after the first (primary) vaccination after implantation of the microchip before the animal is eligible to enter the European Union. A rabies vaccination is considered primary if either: (1) an animal was up-to-date on its rabies vaccination but vaccination occurred prior to microchip implantation, (2) vaccination was not carried out within the period of validity of a previous vaccination, or (3) the animal was vaccinated for the first time. 

Rabies vaccination is not required for pet dogs, cats and ferrets under 3 months of age, but not all EU Member States allow import of such animals. Import of unvaccinated animals must be authorized by the EU Member State. The exporter should contact the animal health authorities in the Member State for authorization, and documentation of authorization should be attached to the export certificate.

  • Pet Dogs, Cats and Ferrets - Health Certificate (Non-commercial movement of five or less animals) - August 2012 (pdf 49kb)
    • Annotated certificates with explanatory notes
  • Pet Dogs, Cats and Ferrets - Health Certificate (Movement of commercial or more than five non-commercial animals) - August 2012 (pdf 50kb)
    • Annotated certificates with explanatory notes
  • Pet Birds - Health Certificate - effective through December 31, 2013 (pdf 46kb)

Aquaculture

NOTE: Effective March 1, 2013, new health certificates are required for live aquatic animal exports.  The significant change is the removal of epizootic ulcerative syndrome (EUS) from the European Union’s regulated disease list.

NOTE: Effective July 6, 2007, exports of mollusks and their eggs and gametes (*with the exception of manila clams, see below) to the European Union for further growth, fattening, or relaying are suspended.
*Export of manila clams may be authorized by individual EU Member States. Exporters should confirm with the government of the individual EU Member State.

Commission Regulation (EU) No 1012/2012 - February 2013 (pdf 1.39 mb)
Commission Regulation (EU) No 346/2010 - April 2010 (pdf 1.49 mb)
Commission Regulation (EC) No 1251/2008 - May 2009 (pdf 37kb)

Commission Regulation (EC) No 1250/2008 - May 2009 (pdf 3900kb)

For species not listed, the requirements are not known. However, exporters wanting to ship livestock or germplasm whose requirements are not listed in the IREGS, should have the interested party (importer/buyer) in the country of destination apply for an Import Permit at the appropriate ministry. This Import Permit will most likely outline the specific requirements.

 

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Last Modified: March 1, 2013