Importing pigs to Sweden from countries outside the EU
There are specific rules that you must follow when importing pigs or semen, ova and embryos from pigs.
Pigs include, for example, domestic pigs, mini-pigs and wild boar.
You are only allowed to bring pigs into Sweden from certain countries outside the EU
Import of live pigs is permitted from the following countries:
- Canada - entire territory, pigs for continued animal husbandry
- Chile - entire territory, pigs for continued animal husbandry
- GB (United Kingdom) - GB-1, GB-2, pigs for continued animal husbandry and intended for slaughter
- Guernsey - entire territory, pigs for continued animal husbandry
- Iceland - entire territory, pigs for continued animal husbandry and intended for slaughter
Special conditions: CSF (Consignments of pigs must have undergone a test for classical swine fever with negative results during the 30 days immediately prior to dispatch to the Union) - New Zealand - entire territory, pigs for continued animal husbandry and intended for slaughter
- US (United States) - entire territory, pigs for continued animal husbandry
Contact us for more information
This page provides an overview of the rules that apply. You are welcome to contact us for more information.
Bringing in pigs from countries outside the EU
The establishment must be registered
If you are receiving pigs to your establishment from countries outside the EU, it is important that your establishment is registered at least 4 weeks before the pigs are moved.
This is because the Swedish Board of Agriculture must enter the information about the establishment in the EU-wide computer system Traces, which is used in connection with the transport of animals.
You must be registered to bring in animals
In order for you to be permitted to bring in animals to Sweden, you must be registered for import with the Swedish Board of Agriculture. You have to register in our e-service at least 30 business days before the expected date of the first occasion of import.
The registration is valid for 2 years from the date on which you are registered. Registration costs SEK 150.
Health certificates and diseases
The EU common health certificate, which must be used for any movement of animals to the EU, certifies that the animals do not carry very serious diseases or diseases that affect different EU regions to variable degrees. It is the responsibility of the official veterinarian in the country of dispatch to ensure that the animals comply with the requirements of the certificate. Sweden does not impose any additional mandatory requirements in addition to those of the EU on the country of dispatch or the dispatching establishment.
When you move pigs into your establishment, the animals must meet the requirements of the national salmonella programme and the national rules for PRRS. If the animals you accept do not have the required status, they must be isolated and tested according to the rules.
National control programme for salmonella
In accordance with the programme, pigs are to be examined for salmonella before they can be introduced to the recipient herd if they are brought in from a country which does not have a salmonella control programme which has been approved by the European Commission and which is equivalent to the Swedish salmonella control programme. Such examination should be carried out in an isolation facility on the receiving establishment. Contact us for more information.
National rules to prevent the spread of PRRS
The national rules apply whether you bring animals from Swedish establishments or from establishments in other countries, but these are not entry requirements; they apply after the animals have entered Sweden, if they are animals from abroad. The requirements differ depending on whether or not the establishment, from which the animals are coming, is free of PRRS. Swedish pig holdings are generally considered free of PRRS. This is true on the condition that any pigs that are brought in from other countries have been taken into the establishment in an epidemiologically safe manner, meaning that they have been introduced in accordance with the national rules.
Animals coming from establishments which are not free of PRRS need to be tested in an isolation facility which must first be approved by the Swedish Board of Agriculture.
More information about the national rules and the criteria for a documented good status concerning isolation for PRRS can be found on the page for diseases, hygiene rules and antibiotic resistance in pigs, as well as in the regulations (SJVFS 2021:24).
It is important that you follow the rules on isolation and testing of animals if you bring in animals from other countries where PRRS is present, as the disease has detrimental impacts on animal health as well as on production. Testing for PRRS and salmonella (in cases where such testing must be carried out) may be advantageously coordinated, where in both cases the animals are to be kept in isolation.
If you have any questions about PRRS, contact us:
Marking and reporting
The animals must be marked with an ID marking which is approved in the country from which the animals are coming.
Upon arrival at the receiving herd in Sweden, the animals must be additionally marked with Swedish ear tags.
Pigs that have been brought into Sweden from a country outside the EU must be reported to the movement registry for pigs at the latest 20 days after they have arrived at the first Swedish establishment (previously called the production facility).
Plan the transport carefully
There may be areas with restrictions on the transport of pigs, due to infectious animal diseases. There may be special rules for the transport of pigs in such areas. You must ensure that you know in advance about these areas, so that the animals are not stopped somewhere along the way.
Registering the transporter for the movement of animals between countries
If you are transporting animals to or from Sweden, you must be registered as a transporter. You register as a transporter using our e-service. Please note that a registration as a transporter is not the same as the transporter’s permit required to transport animals as part of your business activities.
Bring the animals in via a customs post
When the animals pass the border into Sweden, you must also register the import to the customs. Our recommendation is that you notify the customs post well in advance that the transport is on its way, and let them know when it is expected to arrive at the border.
Bring the animals in via an approved border control station
Animals from approved countries outside the EU, except for Norway, Andorra, the Faroe Islands and Switzerland, may only be brought in via an approved border control station.
When you bring in animals, you must notify the border control veterinarian at least one working day in advance of arrival to the border control post. You must also report the animals to the border control post in the Trace system via a CHED (Common Health Entry Document). The person who creates the CHED can be a private person, a company importing the animals, or a company in charge of organisation of shipping.
There is currently no border control station in Sweden that is approved to receive cattle. Therefore, you must bring the animals in via an approved border control station in another country. The transport will then be handled as an import from another EU country.
If the import takes place via another EU country, it must be reported to the border control post where the animals enter the EU.
When the animals cross the border into Sweden, you must report the entry to customs.
If the import takes place via another EU Member State, a notification must be made to the border control post where the animals will enter the EU.
When the animals pass the border into Sweden, you must register the import with the Swedish Customs.
Bringing in semen from pigs from other countries
You may only import semen, ova and embryos from countries or establishments outside the EU if they are approved for import. A list of establishments in countries that are approved for import to the EU is provided on the EU’s website.
When you are importing to Sweden from countries outside the EU, other than Norway, the Faroe Islands, Andorra and Switzerland, the import must pass through an approved border control post. You must notify the veterinarian at the border control post at the latest one business day in advance.
If the import to Sweden takes place from a country outside the EU via another EU Member State, a notification for border control must be made to the border control post where the animals will enter the EU.
