Businesses wanting to export fish to the EU after 29 March 2019 should sign up to the new digital services to make sure they are able to continue trading fish with the EU in the event of no deal.

Leaving the EU with a deal remains the Government’s top priority. This has not changed. However, should the UK leave the EU without a deal, UK exporters will be required to obtain a validated catch certificate for most fish and fish products exported to the EU (excluding some aquaculture products, freshwater fish, some molluscs, fish fry or larvae).

Catch certificates prove that fish has been caught in line with established conservation and management measures. All non-EU countries are required to present catch certificates when trading with the EU.

To be ready for leaving the EU, fish exporters should familiarise themselves with the new services to generate the necessary export documentation, including:

• catch certificates
• processing statement
• storage document
• prior notification form
• pre-landing declaration

To access the service you’ll need to sign in or create a new Government Gateway user ID. Make a note of your Government Gateway user ID and password so you can sign in next time. You’ll then need to create a business Defra account using your business contact details. You’ll only need to register once.

To register, visit the gov.uk guidance page on creating a UK catch certificate.

Registering early gives exporters time to test the new service before the UK leaves the EU. Any sample documents created before 29 March 2019 will not be valid for export.

To check what documents you need to export fish to the EU if there’s no Brexit deal, visit the gov.uk guidance page on exporting and importing fish if there’s no Brexit deal.

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