Poultry Health Scheme: membership and fees

Members of the poultry health scheme (PHS) are known as approved poultry establishments.

Who needs to join

YouYour premises must be aan approved member of the PHS if you keep poultry and want to:

• export or move more than 20 birds or hatching eggs from Great Britain to the EU or Northern Ireland
• sell birds or hatching eggs to other PHS members
• sell birds or eggs to a Northern Ireland Poultry Health Assurance Scheme (NIPHAS) member
• export birds or hatching eggs to certain non-EU countries that require compliance (in full or partially) with EU Regulation 2019/2035, Council Directive 2009/158/EC or equivalent

MembersYou ofmust thebe PHSa aremember approvedif poultrythe establishments.

Exportingrelevant to non-EU countries

Check your export health certificate (EHC) to export to non-EU countries.  You must be a member if the EHC says your premises must be part of a government supervised Poultry Health Scheme.

You mustdo complynot withneed to join the rulesPHS setif outyou:

• keep inpoultry theused relevantonly for exhibitions, shows or contests
• produce table eggs or poultry meat
• export healthor certificate.
  move less than 20 birds or hatching eggs at a time from Great Britain to the EU or Northern Ireland

How to join the Poultry Health Scheme

You can join the scheme as an individual poultry producer or as a poultry company. You must have a registered business address.

If you have several poultry premises you must join the scheme for each one.

There are different categories of membership, depending on your type of business. They are:

• flockfarm
• hatchery (including egg distribution centres)
• combined flockfarm and hatchery

Contact the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) to request an application form to join the Poultry Health Scheme.

Poultry

APHA Healthwill Schemesend handbook

you:

Read

• an theapplication form
Poultry
• a Healthcopy Schemeof membersthe handbook (PDFPHS, 514member’s KB,handbook
• information 47about pages).
  how to pay the membership fee

After you’ve applied

The PHS team will contact you to arrange for an APHA vet to inspect your premises.

You’llIf the APHA vet approves your premises and working methods you’ll need to pay the annual membership fee and vet inspection feefee. if the APHA vetwill approvesthen yoursend premisesyou anda workingmembership methods.number and certificate.

APHA will add you to the PHS list of approved poultry establishments once you’re a member. An official vet will refer to this list when completing the export health certificate.

Renew

Newly approved premises cannot export to the EU and Northern Ireland until they have been members of the PHS for at least 6 weeks (known as the ‘6 week wait period’). Read the PHS handbook for more information on the 6 week wait period.

You must also comply with the rules set out in the relevant export health certificate.

Manage your membership

Membership lasts for one year. It does not automatically renew.

If a member’s premises is sold or transferred, the premises will not automatically continue to be a member of the scheme. The new occupant must apply to become a member of the PHS.

Renew your membership

You canhave to renew your membership annually.annually to stay part of the scheme. APHA will send you a reminder letter one month before your renewal is due.

TheBefore firstthe inspectionend willof your annual membership, you must:

• complete and send a renewal form to APHA
• pay APHA the annual membership fee
• be doneinspected by an APHA vet,vet butor aftertrained that,private vet

When APHA has received your renewal inspectionsform canand befee, donethey bywill send you a renewal letter which is valid for the next year.

Leave the Poultry Health Scheme

You must give written notice to APHA orif you want to leave the scheme.

You can leave the scheme at any time, but you will not be entitled to a suitablyrefund trainedon privateyour vet.approval or membership fees.

If you want to rejoin the scheme, you will need to reapply and pay a further registration fee.

FeesRead the handbook for approvalPHS members

You should read the poultry health scheme handbook for information on:

• what happens after you apply (including the initial inspection visit, testing and the 6 week wait period before you can export)
• annual inspection requirements
• requirements you have to joinfollow as a member of the PHS (including biosecurity, facilities, medicines and vaccinations)
• tests and samples you must take and how often

Fees: membership fee, approval and renewal inspections

You must pay:

• a fixed annual membership fee
• a fee for approval or renewal inspections
• a variable fee to cover the inspection and travel time if you are inspected by an APHA vet

Some fees will increase on 1 July 2024.

How APHA charge for time spent

You must pay £22 per quarter hour or less for APHA’s time spent inspecting your premises.

APHA calculates your inspection and travel fees to the next full quarter hour of work. For example, if APHA spends 20 minutes on your inspection, you will pay for half an hour.

Travel time is capped at 45 minutes each way, so you will not pay more than £132 for travel costs.

Fees

Service	Fees from 1 July 2023	Fees from 1 July 2024
Veterinary officer time for licensing or approval	£22	£22
Veterinary officer travel time	£22	£22
Registration fee	£82	£108
First year approval of a scheme member’s flock or hatchery, or combined flock and hatchery on one site, where the inspection is carried out by an APHA vet	£49	£71
Annual renewal of a scheme member’s flock or hatchery or combined flock and hatchery, on one site, where the inspection is carried out by a veterinary surgeon who is not an APHA vet	£61	£67
Annual renewal of a scheme member’s flock or hatchery or combined flock and hatchery, additional site, where the inspection is carried out by a veterinary surgeon who is not an APHA vet	£34	£39
Annual renewal of a scheme member’s flock or hatchery or combined flock and hatchery, on one site, where the inspection is carried out by an APHA vet	£62	£67
Annual renewal of a scheme member’s combined flock and hatchery, additional site, where the inspection is carried out by an APHA vet	£35	£39

Fees for laboratory operators to get approval

LaboratoryAPHA operatorsapproves mustlaboratories payto feescarry toout applydiagnostic testing for approvalthe Poultry Health Scheme. Each laboratory is approved to carry out testingspecific types of tests for the purpose of the PHS.

See Youthe mustlist payof forPoultry renewalHealth everyScheme 2approved years.laboratories. 

Laboratory APHAoperators approvesmust laboratoriespay forfees carryingto carry out testing asfor partthe ofPHS. theYou Poultrymust Healthpay Scheme.for renewal every 2 years.  

ApprovedOfficial laboratories must also pay fees for carrying out proficiency tests.

See the list of Poultry Health Scheme approved laboratories.

Service	Fees from 1 July 2023
Application for an initial laboratory approval or renewal	£86
Proficiency test for Salmonella bacteriology (pullorum, gallinarum and arizonae)	£158 per test
Proficiency test for Salmonella serology (pullorum, gallinarum)	£310 per test
Proficiency test for Mycoplasma chicken serology (gallisepticum)	£310 per test
Proficiency test for Mycoplasma culture (gallisepticum and meleagridis)	£280 per test
Proficiency test for Mycoplasma turkey serology (gallisepticum and meleagridis)	£310 per test

Leaving the Poultry Health Scheme

You can leave the scheme at any time, but you will not be entitled to a refund on your approval or membership fees.