Apply for a Special Import Certificate

Important

Application deadlines for Christmas period 2024

Our offices will be closed on Wednesday 25, Thursday 26 December and Wednesday 1 January.

Special Import Certificate and Wholesale Dealer Import Certificates

Applications requiring assessment, that is, not available instantly online, your application must be received by 13 December to ensure it is dealt with during the Christmas period.

Requests received after this date will be dealt with from 2 January 2024. If you have an urgent clinical need requiring an import certificate prior to this date, please email importcert@vmd.gov.uk identifying your application as urgent.

For further information, please read our news story here: Authorisation application deadlines for Christmas period 2024 - http://GOV.UK or send any general enquiries to postmaster@vmd.gov.uk , using key words in the subject heading.

Special import certificates

Only eligible veterinary surgeons can apply for a Special Import Certificate (SIC). Eligible surgeons must appear in the RCVS 'UK-practising' registration category. View RCVS category information.

SIC applications must be made by the prescribing veterinary surgeon, for medicines to treat animals under their care only.

Veterinary surgeons are not permitted to apply on behalf of others.

Before you apply for a Special Import Certificate

Ask your supplier:

• the medicine's name and country of origin
• the total amount of medicine needed for the certificate
• who the importer will be

If import certificates are not currently issued for the product, you will need the medicine's data sheet and copies of the packaging, ask your supplier for them.

Before you can apply for any import certificate

All applications are tied to an organisation account. Each individual practice must have its own organisation account.

You must register your practice on the Veterinary Medicines Digital Service, even if it was previously registered on the Special Import Scheme

How to apply for an organisation account

1. Choose someone in your organisation who will control which staff are associated with your organisation account. For veterinary practices it can be any member of your organisation. Your organisation is the practice from where you operate.
2. Ask the chosen person to apply for an organisation account, that person will become the account’s administrator. The role of administrator can be transferred to another registered staff member at any time.
3. Once the organisation account is set-up, the account administrator invites their colleagues to associate with the organisation account.
4. To apply for certificates veterinary practices need at least one veterinary surgeon associated with their practice’s organisation account.

Veterinary surgeons will need access to their personal RCVS membership area when they create their account.

If your practice already has an organisation account, ask the account's administrator to invite you to join.

Already have a Veterinary Medicines Digital Service account?