2022-08: European Union: Fish: Paperless trade eCert commences from 31 May 2022

Date of issue: 27 May 2022

Date of effect: 31 May 2022

Reference Number: MAA2022-08

Related MAAs: 2021-16, 2021-18, 2021-23, 2021-27, 2021-29, 2022-03, 2022-04, 2022-06

Attention

Industry bodies - Seafood Export Consultative Committee, Seafood Trade Advisory Group, Seafood Industry Australia

Export establishments

Exporters, AEPI and EXDOC users

Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment —central and regional offices

Purpose

To notify exporters the commencement of paperless trade via electronic certification (eCert) for the export of fish and fish products from Australia to European Union (EU) countries and associated changes to the Request for Permit (RFP) process.

Summary of key points

• From 31 May 2022, export certificates for fish and fish products exported to the EU will be issued via eCert to the EU Trade Control and Export System (TRACES-NT). This will replace printed health certificates currently required to export these products to the EU.
• Certificate extracts will still be printed, but as they cannot be used for clearance.
• There are additional information requirements for the Request for Permit (RFP).

Changes to the RFP process for eCert

• From 31 May 2022, if you have an RFP in progress, you may receive an error indicating the template code is incorrect. If an RFP has the paper template code, you will need to amend your RFP to update the certificate template code to the new eCert codes listed in the table below (Changes to template names). If you encounter further issues, please contact exdoc.helpdesk@awe.gov.au.
• Information included in the RFP will be transmitted to TRACES-NT via eCert and made available to border control posts in their official language. The EU border control post will have access to the full eCert in TRACES-NT, removing the need to present a paper certificate at entry.
• The eCert extract will not be required or accepted if presented to an EU border control post for clearance – please advise your importers of this change.
• For record keeping and commercial purposes only, an extract of the information transmitted by eCert will be printed. You will be able to remote print the extract.
  • If you would like further information or wish to obtain an application form to register for remote print, please contact foodexports@awe.gov.au.
• Please note that all RFPs must be completed (to “COMP” stage) and have the extract issued for the eCert to be triggered and sent.

New information that needs to be an RFP

The request for permit (RFP) process will require additional information to enable the eCert to be successfully sent. This includes:

• New certificate template code
• TRACES-NT ID for exporter (consignor)
• TRACES-NT ID for importer (consignee)
• TRACES-NT activity identifier (ID) for place of destination
• CN code
• Airline name
• Nature of commodity
• Treatment type

Valid EU TRACES-NT IDs

For an eCert to be lodged successfully, valid exporter (consignor), consignee (importer), and Place of Destination TRACES IDs must be supplied. You should work closely with your importer to ensure you have the correct TRACES-NT IDs for the Consignee and the Place of Destination.

Exporters can apply for an EU TRACES-NT user ID to search operator records and confirm the approval number (identifier).

See Attachment A for tips on how to register and search.

Check your Exporter (Consignor) EU TRACES-NT ID

• For an eCert to be lodged successfully, exporters (consignors) must have a valid TRACES-NT ID. eCert will use the exporter TRACES ID linked to the exporter’s EXDOC registration and send this as part of the eCert. EU TRACES-NT will then verify whether the ID is valid before accepting the e-Cert.
• Please check that you have a valid exporter activity identifier in
  EU TRACES-NT. If you do not, please register for an identifier and the department will validate it.
• If you need to update your exporter registration details in EXDOC please Email exdoc.helpdesk@awe.gov.au. Please include both your identifier and address these need to match for an eCert to lodge successfully.

Check the Consignee (Importer) EU TRACES-NT IDs

• You will also be required to enter a TRACES-NT ID for the Consignee in the TRACES Consignee ID field. You must also ensure that the Consignee TRACES-NT ID is recorded entered into your RFP in EXDOC.  You can request this by emailing exdoc.helpdesk@awe.gov.au.
• Both EXDOC and the EU TRACES-NT systems will check the Consignee TRACES ID.
• Before lodging your first EU e-Cert RFP for an importer, check that the consignee has a valid importer activity identifier in EU TRACES-NT.
• Email exdoc.helpdesk@awe.gov.au with the name, country and identifier details so that they can register the Consignee TRACES ID in EXDOC.

Place of Destination EU TRACES-NT IDs

• A valid EU TRACES-NT activity identifier (ID) is also required for the Place of Destination. This must be supplied in the ‘Approval Number’ field within the Place of Destination section of the RFP.
• EU TRACES-NT will reject the eCert if a valid Place of Destination identifier is not entered.
• EU TRACES-NT will also check the name and country details for the Place of Destination TRACES ID

CN code

• The EU uses the Combined Nomenclature (CN) to categorise commodities for tariff purposes. The CN code is entered as a 6 or 8 digit number as stipulated in Chapter 3 of Part 2 of Annex I in Council Regulation (EEC) No. 2658/87.
• You will be required to enter an appropriate CN code into ‘import authority code’ for each line of product in the RFP.
• Exporters should ensure when entering details for an RFP that the correct CN code for their commodity is entered. A detailed list of EU CN codes along with information and descriptions for the associated products is available at Council Regulation (EEC) No. 2658/87.

See Attachment B for examples CN codes that corresponds to the product to be exported.

Country fields

• For an eCert to be lodged successfully, the ‘Place of Destination’ and  ‘Country of Destination’ must be the same. For example, if the consignment will be unloaded at a cold store in Germany, then Germany should be listed as the country of destination in the RFP.
• If different country codes are entered in these fields the eCert will fail to validate in TRACES-NT. The country code selected for these fields should reflect the final intended destination of the product.
• Similarly, the ‘Border Inspection Country’ and the ‘Discharge Country’ must be the same, or TRACES-NT will reject the eCert. They should reflect the location of product inspection upon entry to the EU.
• ‘Discharge Country’ and ‘Border Inspection Country’ must be a member of the EU or a user of the TRACES-NT system (e.g. Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway or Switzerland).

Airline name (For Airfreight Only)

If the consignment is sent by air then the name of the airline must be provided in the ‘Flight Details’ field (the equivalent of the ‘Vessel Name’ field for sea freight).

Nature of commodity and treatment type

• From 31 May 2022, fish exporters will need to enter a single descriptor for ‘nature of commodity’ and single descriptor for ‘treatment type’ value for each product line when completing an RFP. This information is for the products listed within the RFP.
• You will need to select from the drop-down list for ‘nature of commodity’ and ‘treatment type’.
  • Possible values for nature of commodity are: ‘aquaculture’ and ‘wild origin’
  • Possible values for treatment type are: ‘chilled’, ‘frozen’ and ‘processed’
• Without this information your certificate will not be accepted by
  TRACES-NT.

Package type changes

• The TRACES-NT system will only accept UNECE some package types. Most package types previously used for the EU will still be available. The main impact on fish exports to the EU relates to polystyrene boxes. Instead of using ‘PB-Polystyrene Boxes’, exporters should use ‘QR-Plastic Expanded Box’.
  • If you receive an error advising that package type is not valid for the EU, please email exdoc.helpdesk@awe.gov.au.

Changes to template names

• Certificate templates have been re-named due to the move to eCert and the template equivalents are detailed in the following table:

Commodity	Previous template name	eCert template name
For the export of non-viable finfish, crustaceans and cephalopod molluscs that are packaged for retail sale e.g. Frozen yellowtail kingfish, frozen octopus, fish oil.	FXEUA	EUFXA1
For the export of live crustaceans packaged for retail sale	FXEUC	EUFXA2
For the export of live marine gastropod molluscs not susceptible to listed diseases	BMEUA	EUFXB1
For the export of non-viable bivalve molluscs ready for direct human consumption (Harvest area class A)	BMEUB	EUFXB2
For the export of non-viable marine gastropods, echinoderms and tunicates ready for direct human consumption (No harvest area class selection required)	BMEUB	EUFXB3
For the export of live bivalve molluscs not susceptible to listed diseases	BMEUC	EUFXB4
For the export of live bivalve molluscs packaged and labelled for human consumption and packaged for retail sale	BMEUD	EUFXB5

Countries included in the move to eCert

• The eCert arrangement extends to all countries in the EU (Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Republic of Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain and Sweden).
• It also includes other countries in the EU single market (Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland).
• Exports to Northern Ireland require EU certificates, however these are available in paper only. Please contact foodexports@awe.gov.au if you intend to export to ports in Northern Ireland.
• The Manual of Importing Country Requirements (Micor) will be updated to reflect this market access advice. We encourage users of Micor to subscribe to the Micor update service for a commodity-specific email that lists changes made in the preceding week.
• The department encourages all exporters to work with their importer to ensure that product meets the current importing country requirements.

Registering for and checking for IDs in TRACES-NT

The information provided in this advice is current at the time of writing and is intended for use as guidance only and should not be taken as definitive or exhaustive. The Commonwealth endeavours to keep information current and accurate, however, it may be subject to change without notice. Exporters are encouraged to verify these details with their importers prior to undertaking production/exports. The Commonwealth will not accept liability for any loss resulting from reliance on information contained in this notice.
 

Further information

Contact ExportStandards@awe.gov.au if you have any queries.