Passport scheme changing

[Franglais24]

Hi,

We have just received a letter from our UK vet advising that the pet passport/travel scheme is changing.

The letter explains that in order for them to issue a PETS PASSPORT, to replace the PETS1, we need to make a treble appointment with them.

I'd be grateful to hear of your interpretation of what's required, where the dogs are in France and their jabs are up-to-date.

Merci!

F24.

[Russethouse]

Have you looked at http://www.defra.gov.uk/animalh/quarantine/quarantine/regulation/eu_reg.htm ??

It looks like this is alll pretty new and Defra will be updating info.
Hope that helps

Gay
http://www.quimperclub.org/

[Grumpy]

My current vet has not yet found out what is required , but it seems that others have. My wife works for Brittany Ferries and has seen people in possession of this new passport. If it works as I hope, it sounds as though it will be very good indeed.

[Verap]

We have just returned from France with our 2 dogs.

We used the vets in Bellac (behind garden centre opposite Champion supermarket)who are fully aware of the old and new systems, as people alreaday using new system have visited them this year.

Vets in Bellac speak good English and are recommended

 Our current certificates expire in January and our UK vets are already aware and already issuing new passports

 

[Monika]

We have just changed our PETS 1 for a  Pet passport (blue and a little bigger than a human passport). It cost around £11   (in actual fact we received all the forms (A4) back). As before: on returning to this country we have to obtain a tick and tapeworm treatment by an official veterinarian 24 - 48 hours prior to the return journey, this must be entered into the new blue passport.

[I1]

My vets (I live permemantly in France) are really good and "one-the-case" with regard to going to/from the UK with your pet. My first trip home (with dog) was really easy - they had all the correct paperwork, knew timescales for "tick and tap", etc. they even told me last Christmas that it "was all changing".

I now have a 2nd dog, microchipped, vaccinated and blood tested but they cannot get any of the paperwork to issue a passport.

DEFRA's web site stated starting X, then a few days after X it changed to "now delayed", then a few days later it chnaged back to X with a comment about not really being sure.

I cannot at present get a passport for my 2nd dog.

The new passport is a much better scheme than the previous one as it is pretty well across europe. No 2ndry forms for "tick & tape", all in the one sensible sized "passport.

I often reflect that a busines managed in the same "style" as a government department would go "out-of-business" very quickly.

[Stocky]

We fianlly got the new version of the Pet Passport the day before our last trip.  Very good system with all details of the dogs historey.  Only problem was that the Vet in Ceauce had not seen one and still filled out the old paper work, and the ticket girl at Cherbourg complained that we were rather late in booking in due to the work she had to do (normally we sail past).

[YCCMB]

Seems that the various agencies/authorities are all a bit confused on this one! Having come back from France last week on Eurotunnel, the (French) lady on the pet check-in told me that the new passports are due to come in as from October, and inferred that we needed to change our documents before this, as French vets will no longer be able to get the forms from the Ministere d'Agriculture et de la Peche, so they'll only be able to stamp the new passports! In a slight panic (as the Eurotunnel lady pointed out, October includes half term week, so lots of people will be travelling to France with pets) I rang my UK vet. Yes, they knew all about the new passports, no, they didn't believe anyone with the old documents needed to change them until they expired, and had I phoned DEFRA?

Rang DEFRA and explained what had happened. Before completing my sentence, the lady on their helpline completed it for me..."and they said you needed to change to a new passport because yada yada yada". Clearly, Eurotunnel's prepared speech had been delivered to quite a few people!!

Anyway, according to DEFRA last Friday, there's no requirement to change to a new passport if your animal's existing documents are still valid. As she pointed out, some people are blithely living in France, Spain, etc., with these documents and won't necessarily use them to travel back on a regular basis. HOWEVER, she did say (twice, and very emphatically) that DEFRA STRONGLY recommend changing to a new passport as soon as you can.

Am a bit cheesed off, however, having phoned back my vets, that changing the documents will undoubtedly incur another fee which shouldn't really be necessary until, in our case, the middle of next year.

Jane