Import firewood into England, Scotland or Wales
Source: gov.uk (2025-05-22)

Find out how to import non-regulated firewood, such as logs and kindling, into England, Scotland and Wales (Great Britain).

Importing regulated solid fuel wood

You, your agent or broker must make sure any regulated firewood meets import requirements in England, Scotland and Wales (Great Britain) (https://www.gov.uk/guidance/tree-health-legislation) before it’s exported.

You must also:
- be registered with the Forestry Commission as an importer (https://www.gov.uk/guidance/register-as-a-professional-operator-to-issue-plant-passports#register-as-a-professional-operator)
- complete a notice of landing form (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/notice-of-landing-form) to arrange an inspection of regulated imported timber, if necessary
Importing non-regulated solid fuel wood

You must notify the Forestry Commission separately if you plan to import non-regulated solid fuel wood into England, Scotland or Wales. This helps prevent harmful tree and forestry pests and diseases being introduced.

Solid fuel wood (firewood) includes:
- logs
- kindling
- twigs
- billets
- faggots
We will decide if there’s a risk that your firewood could introduce harmful tree pests or diseases into the UK. We may inspect your consignment before allowing it to cross the border.

Enrol on the Statutory Firewood Notification Scheme

Before you notify us about your non-regulated consignment, enrol on the Statutory Firewood Notification Scheme (https://form.jotformeu.com/52501935220344). You’ll get an enrolment number to use in further correspondence. Enrolment is not compulsory, but you’re encouraged to enrol. You can only do this online.

Notify the Forestry Commission about your import

You must notify us before the non-regulated consignment arrives in England, Scotland or Wales, or no later than 4 days after it’s landed.

You can either:

notify us online (https://form.jotformeu.com/83162268175359) (preferred)

notify us by email or post (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/statutory-firewood-notification-scheme) - complete the excel form

You need to submit a notification for each new consignment.

Once you’ve submitted the notification form, we’ll send an email reply with a unique reference number for that consignment. Use this number in any correspondence with the Forestry Commission.

How to complete the notification form

Most of the information required in the notification form is self-explanatory, but these notes are provided for clarification.

Estimated date of arrival

Enter the estimated date of the material landing at a port or airport in England, Scotland or Wales.

Place of arrival

Enter the specific port, airport or Channel Tunnel terminus in England, Scotland or Wales where the consignment will be arriving. This should be the first point of arrival in the country of final destination.

Specify the exact port if known because some ports cover many locations. This might also be the location of any inspection by a plant health inspector if it’s deemed necessary. Inspections might also take place at the first destination.

Name of importer

Enter the full name of the importer.

Address of importer

Enter a detailed postal address, including postcode.

Address of first destination after landing

Enter the details, including a postcode, of the first destination point after landing at a port or airport in England, Scotland or Wales.

This could be a distribution centre or a final destination for the consignment, depending on the importer’s requirements.

The shipping container

Enter a number or numbers, if appropriate. You can leave this field blank.

Genus and species

State the botanical names of tree species if known. Otherwise, use common names.

You can look up the botanical name in this list of frequently used names for tree species:

*Only conifer wood, that is free from all bark, is unregulated material. For conifer wood with bark use a notification of landing form (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/notice-of-landing-form).

**Ash is always a regulated species. You need to use a notification of landing form (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/notice-of-landing-form).

Type of material being imported

Enter whether the solid fuel wood is in the form of logs, kindling, or other.

Quantity

Enter the quantity in tonnes as accurately as possible.

Country where the material is imported from

Enter the country from where the solid fuel wood was last moved. This is not necessarily the country where the firewood was grown.

Country where the material was grown

Enter the country where the wood was originally grown and harvested.

Phytosanitary treatments

Enter details of the phytosanitary (plant health) treatments, which might have been applied to the solid fuel wood or associated wood packaging material before export.

Example treatments include bark free, heat treatment and kiln drying. These could be treatments that comply with ISPM15 regulation of wood packaging material in international trade (https://openknowledge.fao.org/server/api/core/bitstreams/1c3586f8-1433-4239-a997-cf8e8d34fb97/content).