Points of Entry (PoE)
From 01 January 2021, all agri-food goods, plants and animals entering Northern Ireland from all third countries including GB, must do so via a Northern Ireland Point of Entry (POE) which has been approved by the European Union (EU).
DAERA has worked with the Food Standards Agency (FSA), local Councils, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) and the EU to designate the following as POEs for the purposes of (SPS) checks:
- Belfast Port;
- Larne Harbour;
- Warrenpoint Port;
- Foyle Port; and
- Belfast International Airport (designation suspended on 02 June 2025).
Further details on the POEs, their inspection facilities and the category of goods that may be inspected at each of these facilities is available at Points of Entry listings.
Live animals
The Points of Entry for live animals are Belfast Port and Larne Harbour. More details about these Points of Entry are available at Points of Entry listings.
Notification of imports to a Point of Entry
Advance notice of the products arriving at the Point of Entry must be given using TRACES NT (Trade and Control Expert System).
Importers or their agents must register as "Economic Operators" before they can use the system.
Please note that this link is to a non Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs site.
We are not responsible for the content or reliability of the linked website. Listing should not be taken as endorsement of any kind. We cannot guarantee that the link will work all the time and we have no control over the availability of linked pages.
Useful links in relation to Portal Inspection
Useful links in relation to the work of Portal Inspection, such as imports, exports, disease control and animal welfare.
European Union (EU) Websites
- EU Legislation Website
- Third Country Establishments Lists for Semen and Embryos - Approved to export Semen and Embryos to the EU (EU Legislation website)
- Third Country Establishment Lists for other animal products - Approved to export other animal products to the EU (EU Legislation website)
Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (United Kingdom)
World Organisation for Animal Health
- English language homepage of the World Organisation for Animal Health
- Recent worldwide disease information
Please note that these links are to non Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs sites.
We are not responsible for the content or reliability of the linked websites. Listing should not be taken as endorsement of any kind. We cannot guarantee that these links will work all the time and we have no control over the availability of linked pages.