BHA Publishes Brexit Update

The likely new arrangements pertaining to the movement of horses and people to and from the European Union from the UK beginning on Jan. 1 has been published for the British racing and breeding industries by the British Horseracing Authority. The information covers four key areas:

• Health Requirements-what checks your horse will require
• Customs & VAT requirements-what you will need to move horses
• Transport requirements-how to prepare for the transportation process
• Changes to free movement-what this means for movement of people

A timeline for the requirements for horse movement has also been created. Additionally, for the latest Brexit information, please visit the Brexit FAQs document and the www.britishhorseracing.com, as well as the UK Government website.

Julian Richmond-Watson, Chair of the Thoroughbred Industry's Brexit Steering Group, said, “Like many industries, we face a difficult balancing act in light of deciding when the right time is to communicate to our participants with negotiations still ongoing. Nonetheless, deal or no deal, there will be key changes to the way our interconnected industry operates from 1 Jan.

“We are keen to ensure we give participants sufficient time to familiarise themselves with the relevant processes and have aimed to keep the information in as simple, short and engaging a format as possible. Given we still require clarity on a number of key policy areas, it is possible that this guidance may change, but the Steering group felt it was right to be proactive and communicate what we anticipate the likely arrangements to be from 1 Jan. from the information available.

“It remains our advice not to move horses in the first two weeks of January and to engage a shipping and or customs agent to assist you, particularly if you are operating on an individual basis or familiarising yourself with these new processes for the first time. We will continue to press Government for clarification on the outstanding policy areas and communicate further progress to the industry as soon as we are able to.”