Statutory guidance

Import of pet birds - Import Information Note (IIN) PBTC/2

Published 2 December 2024

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This publication is available at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/birds-and-poultry-live-and-products-import-information-notes/import-of-pet-birds-import-information-note-iin-pbtc2

1. Important information 

Import Information Notes (IINs) are technical documents containing import requirements and are for use by importers and border officials. 

Please be aware that import conditions may be updated due to changes in policy or legislation. Please ensure that you check the current version of the IIN as well as the IIN specific to your commodity. 

Importers should note that the information given relates only to animal health and public health conditions of import. It does not give guidance on other conditions that may need to be met. 

References to European Union (EU) legislation within this document are references to direct EU legislation which has been assimilated in Great Britain (assimilated direct legislation), as defined in the Retained EU Law (Revocation and Reform) Act 2023 and can be viewed on the UK legislation website. 

Please note that any links to legislation provided in this document are for information purposes only and may not be the most recent version. 

References to imports into Great Britain (GB) in any IIN also include imports into the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man.  

References to trading partners include non-EU, EU and European Free Trade Association (EFTA) countries.  

The Border Target Operating Model (BTOM) is the new approach to importing into GB that will be progressively introduced from the end of January 2024.

2. Scope 

The conditions for imports of pet birds into GB.

“Pet birds” are considered to be all species of birds (except poultry as detailed below) which are accompanying their owners, or a natural person responsible for such animals on behalf of the owner, within not more than 5 days of their movement and are not intended to be sold or transferred to another owner. 

The maximum number of pet birds that can travel with one owner or their representative is 5 in accordance with Decision (EC) 2007/25. 

“Poultry” is defined in Regulation (EC) 798/2008 as ‘fowls, guinea fowl, ducks, geese, quails, pigeons, pheasants, partridges and ratites (Ratitae) reared or kept in captivity for breeding, the production of meat or eggs for consumption or for restocking supplies of 2 game.’ These species are not normally permitted to be imported as “captive or pet birds” unless they are not for the production of meat or eggs for consumption or for restocking supplies of game. They must instead meet the requirements laid down for imports of live poultry - see IIN PTTC/2. 

Species of birds listed as species of special concern under the Regulation (EU) 1143/2014 on the prevention and management of the introduction and spread of invasive alien species cannot be imported as pets. See section 10 for more information.  

For non-pet birds of prey and other captive birds that come under the Balai regime see IIN CBTC/2.  

3. Country of origin 

Imports are permitted from trading partners listed in Decision (EC) 2007/25.  

Full list of members of the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH - formerly OIE)

4. Health certification and documentation 

Consignments imported from any trading partner must be accompanied by:

  • a health certificate conforming to the GB model certificates for birds (live), which is signed by an Official Veterinarian (OV) or inspector of the veterinary authority in the country of origin

  • a ‘Declaration of the owner or representative of the owner’ as referred to in Article 1(3) of Decision (EC) 2007/25

  • for pet birds imported from non-EU trading partners into GB, an import licence which is issued by the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) Centre for International Trade (CIT) imports (see section 13 for contact details). 

Until late 2024, pet birds imported from EU trading partners, Greenland and EFTA countries into GB do not need to be accompanied by an import licence. 

5. Identification and container for travel 

Pet birds must be individually identified bearing a number which permits tracing to their premises of origin. The identification may be by clip, leg band, microchip or tag.

The container should be International Air Transport Association (IATA) compliant and should be cleansed and disinfected before use.

6. Ports of entry 

Pet birds from non-EU trading partners may only enter GB via an approved point of entry as specified in the import licence. The approved points of entry for pet birds are Edinburgh, Gatwick, Heathrow and Glasgow airports. 

Contact details for the approved pet points of entry are available on the Guidance for the Import of Pet Birds from third countries form (IB38) available from the CIT imports team (see section 13 for contact details).

Until late 2024, pet birds from EU trading partners may enter GB via any point of entry. 

Pet birds that require import or export permits from the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) would need to enter GB via a CITES designated point of entry. 

7. Veterinary checks on imports

The importer must give notification of the import of pet birds from EU and non-EU trading partners to the APHA CIT Imports (see section 13 for contact details) at least one working day before the expected arrival into GB, but longer notification would be desirable.  

Checks on pet birds from non-EU trading partners will be carried out by APHA staff at the approved pet point of entry.

Checks on pet birds from EU trading partners may be carried out at a point agreed with APHA staff, so these imports must be notified to the APHA CIT – Carlisle. Where such checks have been agreed, birds must not be removed until the checks have been completed. This point does not apply to birds that require CITES checks. 

8. Welfare of animals during transport

Importers are reminded that they must comply with the rules on the welfare of animals during transport.  

9. Northern Ireland, the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man

Existing controls continue to apply, and therefore these movements must be in accordance with the General Licence. Consignments must comply with the conditions in the licence which may require it to be accompanied by a health certificate. 

Captive or pet birds from Northern Ireland, the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man (IMP/GEN/2017/02) (PDF, 550 KB, 4 pages).

10. Endangered species

The import of some species of animals may require export and import certificates under CITES. 

CITES permits must be issued in advance of import and can take up to 30 days to process. Applicants should be aware of this when applying for their permits. Those species requiring CITES permits must be moved in compliance with CITES guidelines for the transport and preparation for shipment of live animals. 

For more information contact the APHA – CITES team: 

Centre for International Trade - Bristol
Horizon House
Deanery Road
Bristol
BS1 5AH

Tel: +44 (0) 3000 200 301

Email: wildlife.licensing@apha.gov.uk

11. Invasive non-native (alien) species

It is the importer’s responsibility to check whether their species of pet is included on the list of species of special concern under the Regulation (EU) 1143/2014 before importation takes place.

The import of pet (companion) animals that are listed as species of special concern under this Regulation is prohibited by law.

Check the list of invasive alien species of special concern

12. Safeguard measures

Emergency safeguard action can be taken at very short notice to prohibit or restrict the importation of certain products from certain countries following an outbreak of disease or a public health issue. 

Updates on disease outbreaks which may affect imports into the UK

Further information on the international and UK monitoring of animal diseases may be found on the animal disease monitoring website. 

Importers can get the latest news about exotic notifiable disease outbreaks from the APHA exotic notifiable disease outbreak subscription service.

13. Legislation.gov.uk

Consolidated legal texts, which integrate the basic instruments of assimilated EU legislation with their amendments and corrections in a single, non-official document, are available. Each consolidated text contains a list of all legal documents taken into account for its construction.

You can search for consolidated texts by inputting the ‘document number’ and ‘year’ and then clicking the option ‘All UK Legislation (including originating from the EU)’ on legislation.gov.uk.

Once you press ‘search,’ you can find the relevant legislation listed with the full title of the legislation. Once you have selected the legislation, you may see the following message at the top of the page:

“Changes to legislation: There are outstanding changes not yet made to XXX. Those changes will be listed when you open the content using the Table of Contents below. Any changes that have already been made to the legislation appear in the content and are referenced with annotations.”

Please note that the consolidated text may not contain the latest amendment to the legislation, as it takes several weeks for this to be updated. EU Exit amendments to legislation may take several months too. We advise to read the legislation alongside the EU Exit amendments made in the below UK laws:

Texts provided in this section are intended for information only. Please note that these texts have no legal value. For legal purposes please refer to the texts published on legislation.gov.uk.

Further information on changes in relation to EU legislation and UK law can be found on legislation.gov.uk. Please continue to use legislation.gov.uk to find EU retained law applicable to GB. Please avoid using the EU Commission website for information on imports into GB.

14. Contact for further information  

For more information about import requirements, contact the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) imports team:

Centre for International Trade - Carlisle
Eden Bridge House
Lowther Street
Carlisle
CA3 8DX

Email: imports@apha.gov.uk 

Telephone: 03000 200 301

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