Issuing plant passports

Prior to the performance of activities, an issuer of plant passports must acquire a permit for issuing passports from the relevant competent authority.  When performing activities, they must take into account the obligations with regard to beneficiaries for the issuing of plant passports and enable the performance of the mandatory phytosanitary check by a competent phytosanitary inspector during vegetation.

Plant passports are issued for plants, plant products, and controlled items from the V.A. List and for some plants and plant products that are not on this List.

The V.A. List is divided according to phytosanitary danger, namely into very risky and less risky plants:

• in the event of the shipment of plants from Lists V.A.I./1 and V.A.II./1 (for protected areas), a plant passport must accompany shipments until they reach the final recipient;
• in the event of the shipment of plants from Lists V.A.I/.2 and V.A.I/3 as well as V.A.II./2 (for protected areas), a plant passport must accompany shipments only until they reach commercial producers.

A plant passport is an official document certifying that plants, plant products, and controlled items meet EU requirements concerning plant health protection. For this reason, plants must undergo a phytosanitary check before a plant passport is issued. Plant passports are only issued for movements within the EU.

A plant passport may be composed of one or multiple parts. A one-part plant passport is an official label including all of the required data. In the event that a passport consists of multiple parts, the content is divided between the official label and the accompanying document, whereby the label only includes part of the required information and the accompanying document must include all of the required information.

An official label may be placed either on an individual plant, plant product, or controlled item or on its packaging or means of transportation, in a manner that prevents re-use. It may not have been already used and it must be made of suitable material with regard to durability, water resistance, and other environmental impacts. Self-adhesive labels may also be used, but they must be approved by a competent authority beforehand.

A plant passport must include the following data, depending on the type of plant passport or the place of origin of the shipment of plants, plant products, and controlled items:

• the indication "EU Plant Passport";
• the country code "SI"; 
• designation of the competent authority;
• holder's registration number;
• an individual serial or weekly or batch number;
• botanical name;
• quantity;
• distinct indication "ZP", in the event of shipments sent to a specific protected area;
• distinct indication "RP", in the event of a substitute plant passport;
• name of the country of origin in the event of plants, plant products, and controlled items from third countries.

Plant passports may be issued prior to movement, provided that plants, plant products, and controlled items have not been contaminated with quarantine pests and that they meet the special phytosanitary requirements.