Register with the Forestry Commission to move wood within the UK and EU
26 February 2020The law has changed which means businesses may have to register and be authorised with the Forestry Commission to continue moving wood, wood products and bark.
In December 2019 Plant Health Regulation (PHR) and Official Control Regulation (OCR) were introduced to modernise protection against tree pests, as part of the EU's Smarter Rules for Safer Food (SRSF) package.
Businesses are legally required to register and be authorised with the Forestry Commission if they wish to move any of the following material under the new PHR:
- Conifer species with bark
- Christmas trees and foliage/tops taken from conifer trees over 3 metres tall
- Sweet chestnut with bark
- Plane, walnut or wingnut (with or without bark)
For all these species, the wood products that require a plant passport include roundwood, wood chipped at a felling site or points of aggregation, brash and isolated bark.
Registration takes around 20 minutes. Businesses can start the process by clicking this link. Log in as a guest and select the ‘Plant Passport’ module.
