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Protected zones and points of entry

Protected zones

Import requirements of the Netherlands only differ from other Member States concerning protected zones. No protected zones are established in the Netherlands. Therefore plants or plant products from third countries destined for the Netherlands need not comply with these EU requirements for protected zones as described in the plant health regime of the European Community. However in case consignments first arrive in the Netherlands and are then moved to other Member States having protected zones, requirements for protected zones are applicable.

Points of entry

All points of entry of the Netherlands can be used for the import of plants or plant products for which a phytosanitary certificate is required. The following main points of entry are in use in the Netherlands:

  • The Rotterdam harbour area
  • The Amsterdam harbour area
  • The Vlissingen harbour area
  • The Airport of Amsterdam - Schiphol
  • The Airport of Rotterdam
  • The Airport of Maastricht

According to EU Council Directive 2000/29/EC, a point of entry shall be considered to mean: The place where plants, plant products or other objects are brought for the first time into the customs territory of the Community: the airport in the case of air transport, the port in the case of maritime or fluvial transport, the station in the case of railway transport, and the place of the customs office responsible for the area where the Community inland frontier is crossed, in the case of any other transport.

Specific points of entry

The following harbour areas are authorized as points of entry for the entry of ware potatoes from Egypt (Commission Decision 2011/787/EC) and Lebanon (Commission Decision 2013/413/EC):

  • Eemshaven
  • Harlingen
  • Beverwijk
  • Amsterdam
  • Rotterdam
  • Vlissingen.

The following harbour areas are authorized as points of entry for citrus for industrial processing into juice, in accordance with article 11 of Decision 2016/715:

  • Rotterdam
  • Vlissingen

List of importers and approved places of inspection

Import of regulated objects and making sure that import formalities are complied with can only take place through an authorised importer. All importers of regulated plants, plant products or other objects (see Annex V, part B of Council Directive 2000/29/EC) in the Netherlands are included in an official register. Upon entry all regulated objects are subject to inspections by the Netherlands Plant Protection Service. Inspections are carried out at an 'approved place of inspection'. In the Netherlands most of these inspections are carried out at the place of destination, such as a place of production, approved by the Netherlands Plant Protection Service, in line with Council Directive 2000/29/EC.