Guides / Importing honey from the EU · Updated 30 September 2026

Importing honey from Poland and the EU into Great Britain

Honey for the table and honey for the hive follow different border rules. Here is what gov.uk requires for each, and how to label EU honey for sale in Great Britain.

This guide is also available in Polish.

Start with one question: who will use the honey?

Honey is a product of animal origin, so it sits inside the sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) regime for imports into Great Britain, not just the ordinary customs rules. The paperwork you need depends on the risk category that the UK government assigns under the Border Target Operating Model (BTOM), and for honey that category turns on the intended use of the product.

The official risk category tables for goods moving from the EU to Great Britain split bee products into separate lines:

So a pallet of jarred Polish acacia or buckwheat honey destined for UK shop shelves is a very different consignment, in legal terms, from honey or other bee products that a beekeeper intends to feed to colonies. Check the current risk category spreadsheet on gov.uk for your exact commodity before every new product line, because the tables are the source that decides your documents.

Low-risk honey: what the importer and exporter must do

For honey intended for human consumption coming from the EU, gov.uk guidance on importing animal products for human consumption sets out the low-risk requirements. Three things matter in practice.

1. An IPAFFS import notification

The importer, or an agent acting for them, must submit an import notification on IPAFFS (the Import of Products, Animals, Food and Feed System) to tell authorities in Great Britain about the consignment. The guidance says this must be done at least one working day before the goods are expected to arrive at the point of entry. If you have never used the system, our IPAFFS pre-notification guide walks through registration and the notification itself. Access is through Government Gateway sign-in details; existing Defra service users can add IPAFFS by registering for more services.

2. A commercial document from the exporter

Low-risk products of animal origin from the EU do not need a health certificate. Instead, the exporter must provide a commercial document. According to gov.uk, it should include:

• a description of what is in the consignment
• volume or quantity information, or a copy of the food label
• the names and addresses of the sender and the recipient
• a reference identifying the lot, batch or consignment
• the date the consignment was sent
• transporter details and shipping information

Agree the format with your Polish or other EU supplier before the first load. A commercial invoice that happens to be missing the batch reference or dispatch date will not do the job this document is meant to do.

3. Possible checks at the border

Low risk does not mean no controls. Honey is subject to no routine inspections, but intelligence-led checks can still happen, and the general guidance notes that there may be checks at the border on imports of products of animal origin (Ireland being the stated exception). Keep the commercial document and the IPAFFS reference together so that whoever is presenting the goods can answer questions quickly.

Honey and bee products for beekeeping use

If the product is intended for use in apiculture, for example honey or other bee products destined for hives, it falls under the animal by-product (ABP) rules rather than the food rules, and the risk category rises to medium. The relevant gov.uk Import Information Note, IIN ABP/13, sets out the conditions. The key points it states for these imports are:

• imports to Great Britain must be accompanied by the appropriate health certificate based on the GB model health certificate;
• the products must come from establishments approved and listed on the EU register of ABP establishments;
• they must derive from Category 3 material under Regulation (EC) No 1069/2009 and be produced in line with Annex XIII, Chapter IX of Regulation (EU) No 142/2011;
• the note sets a temperature treatment condition (subjection to a temperature of -12°C or lower for at least 24 hours);
• beeswax in the form of honeycomb is not permitted.

Because a certificate signed by an official veterinarian in the country of dispatch is part of this route, the planning horizon is longer than for jarred table honey. Talk to your supplier about certification before you commit to a delivery date, and read IIN ABP/13 in full together with the general ABP import note it refers to.

Labelling honey for the GB market

Clearing the border is only half the job. Honey sold in England is governed by the Honey (England) Regulations 2015, which set out compositional standards and reserve certain descriptions. According to gov.uk guidance on food standards, reserved descriptions cover the source (for example blossom or honeydew honey), the method of production (such as drained or extracted) and the presentation (such as comb or chunk honey), and products using them must meet the defined criteria.

Country of origin labelling is where many importers of EU honey trip up. For England and Wales, from 1 January 2024 a blend must be described either as "blend of honeys from more than one country" or by naming each country of origin. The older EU-based wording such as "blend of EU honeys" is no longer an option on labels for England and Wales. A single-origin Polish honey should name its country of origin. Scotland and Northern Ireland have their own wording rules, so check the gov.uk guidance if you sell there too.

Many EU packers print labels designed for the EU single market. Ask for a GB-specific label or an overlabel before the goods ship, rather than relabelling in a warehouse after arrival.

A practical sequence for a first honey import

1. Confirm the intended use (retail food or beekeeping) and look up the BTOM risk category for that exact product.
2. Check the commodity code in the UK tariff so that the customs declaration and IPAFFS notification describe the same goods.
3. For low-risk honey, agree the commercial document content with the exporter; for beekeeping use, agree the health certificate and approved-establishment details.
4. Submit the IPAFFS notification at least one working day before arrival.
5. Arrange the import declaration, either yourself or through an agent; see do you need a broker? if you are unsure.
6. Check the labels against the GB honey rules before the goods are placed on the market.

For a deeper look at the SPS side of other animal and plant products, Easy Clearance publishes a guide to registering animal, plant and food imports in IPAFFS, covering consignment notifications in more detail.

Related guides

• IPAFFS pre-notification: which imports, who submits and how it links to customs

• Border Target Operating Model: risk categories for EU food and plant imports

• Importing Polish food products for UK shops and delis

Sources

• Check risk categories for animals and animal products imported from the EU to Great Britain (GOV.UK)
• Import animal products for human consumption to Great Britain (GOV.UK)
• Import of apiculture products for apiculture use, IIN ABP/13 (GOV.UK)
• Import of products, animals, food and feed system (IPAFFS) (GOV.UK)
• Food standards: labelling and composition (GOV.UK)

General information, not legal, tax or customs advice. Rules change; confirm current requirements on gov.uk or with a registered agent before you ship.