Guidance

Get a vehicle approved to transport perishable food in or out of the UK by road

How to get refrigerated or heated vans, trucks and trailers approved to transport perishable food in or out of the UK, and the documents you need to have.

From:
Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency
Published
7 February 2013
Last updated
20 September 2022 — See all updates

Applies to England, Scotland and Wales

You need to follow special rules to transport perishable food to or from 50 countries in a UN international agreement known as the ‘ATP agreement’.

There are different rules if you’re only transporting perishable food within the UK.

The ATP agreement sets out:

  • which foods and foodstuffs are covered by the rules
  • the temperatures different foods must be transported at
  • how vehicles, trailers and equipment can be approved
  • what documents you need to prove your vehicles, trailers and equipment meet the standards
  • what signs need to be on vehicles and trailers

It’s illegal to transport perishable food in or out of the countries in the agreement without the right approval. You can be fined by the authorities in those countries. The amounts vary by country.

Which types of food it applies to

The rules apply to transporting:

  • butter
  • concentrated fruit juice
  • deep-frozen and frozen food
  • fish products (including untreated fish, molluscs and crustaceans)
  • fresh dairy products (including yoghurt, cream and fresh cheese)
  • meat products
  • milk
  • poultry
  • ready-cooked food (meat, fish and vegetables)
  • ready-to-eat prepared raw vegetables and vegetable products

The rules do not apply to transporting non-processed food, such as fresh fruit and vegetables.

Where it applies

The rules apply if you want to transport food to or from these countries:

Albania, Andorra, Austria, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Macedonia, Moldova, Monaco, Montenegro, Morocco, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russia, San Marino, Saudi Arabia, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Tajikistan, Tunisia, Turkey, Ukraine, UK, USA and Uzbekistan.

Rules for the vehicle, trailer and equipment

The vehicle or trailer and equipment must meet the rules set out in the ATP agreement.

You get a ‘certificate of compliance’ when your vehicle is approved. When you make international journeys you must either:

  • carry the certificate in the vehicle
  • permanently fix a ‘certification plate of compliance’ to the equipment in a clearly visible place - the ATP agreement sets out how it must look

Your vehicle or trailer can be checked for the certificate or plate:

  • at international borders
  • inside countries in the ATP agreement

External signs (markings)

You must display the following information on the outside of the vehicle or trailer:

You must display this at the top-front corner of the vehicle or trailer, and on both sides of it.

You can buy ‘decals’ (stickers or transfers) showing this information when you get the equipment approved.

Buy a vehicle or trailer

Generally, vehicles and trailers that have been designed to transport perishable food will already have been approved.

You should be given the ATP certificate when you buy the vehicle or trailer.

Contact Cambridge Refrigeration Technology if:

  • you do not think the certificate matches what you’re buying
  • the vehicle or trailer has not been approved

Cambridge Refrigeration Technology
[email protected]
Telephone: 01223 365 101
Find out about call charges

The initial certificate lasts for 6 years. You then need to get the vehicle or trailer retested every 3 years to keep it approved.

Vehicles or trailers that have not been approved

You need to have the vehicle or trailer tested if it does not have an ATP certificate and is not covered by a ‘type approval’.

Older vehicles and trailers are unlikely to pass the test.

Contact Cambridge Refrigeration Technology for advice.

Cambridge Refrigeration Technology
[email protected]
Telephone: 01223 365 101
Find out about call charges

Renew an approval for a vehicle or trailer

You can get your vehicle or trailer retested so it’s approved for another 3 years. The test can be done at either:

  • Cambridge Refrigeration Technology (the site can take one 13.6 metre semi-trailer at a time, so you must book ahead)
  • Conway Bailey Transport in Redruth, Cornwall - contact them directly to book the test
  • Sandy Baird Ltd in Kinross, Perth and Kinross - contact them directly to book the test
  • your own site

Download and fill in the application form to apply to have the test done at Cambridge Refrigeration Technology or your own site.

Application for examination and certification of a unit or batch of transport equipment

PDF, 498 KB, 3 pages

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Request an accessible format.
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Send the form with the application fee.

Refrigerated Vehicle Test Centre
Harvest Way
Cambridge
CB5 8HE

Fees

Fees vary depending on where you have your vehicle or trailer tested.

Tests at Cambridge Refrigeration Technology

Item Cost excluding VAT Cost including VAT
Inspection of one unit of equipment £90 £108
New certificate for each unit that’s been tested £60 £72
New plate for each unit that’s been tested (optional) £10 £12
ATP class and expiry decals (optional) £24 £28.80

Tests at your own site

Item Cost excluding VAT Cost including VAT
Inspection of up to 3 units of equipment together £350 £420
Inspection of each extra vehicle above 3 vehicles £80 £96
New certificate for each unit that’s been tested £60 £72
New plate for each unit that’s been tested (optional) £10 £12
ATP class and expiry decals (optional) £24 £28.80
Saturday or Sunday inspection £100 £120

You have to pay travelling expenses for the tester to get to your site. This is charged at 50 pence per mile from Cambridge Refrigeration Technology’s address. You’ll also need to pay any expenses, for example, a prearranged hotel.

Replace a lost certificate or plate

Email Cambridge Refrigeration Technology if your certificate or plate is lost or destroyed.

Cambridge Refrigeration Technology
[email protected]

You need to pay a fee for a replacement. Cambridge Refrigeration Technology will tell you how to pay when you’ve applied for it.

Fees

Item Cost excluding VAT Cost including VAT
Replacement certificate £40 £48
Replacement plate (optional) £10 £12
Plate holder (optional) £12 £14.40

More information

You can read more about how the ATP system works on the Cambridge Refrigeration Technology website.

Updates to this page

Published 7 February 2013
Last updated 20 September 2022 + show all updates

  1. Added Sandy Baird Ltd, Kinross, to the list of places where you can renew a vehicle's approval after its initial 6-year approval runs out.

  2. Rewrote the guidance to include the list of food it applies to, the countries where the rules apply, what documents must be carried in the vehicle, the markings that must be on the vehicle, how to get a vehicle approved or reapproved and the fees that apply.

  3. First published.

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Contents

Part of Transport goods out of the UK by road: step by step

  1. Step 1 Apply for operator licences and permits

    1. Check if you need a vehicle operator licence
    2. Apply for a vehicle operator licence

    You'll need other licences and permits, depending on the countries you're driving to or through.

    1. Check which licences and permits you need

  2. Step 2 Register and get approval for your vehicle

    You may need to register your trailer to drive through or to the EU if it weighs over 750kg.

    1. Register your trailer to take it abroad

    You’ll need to get specialist vehicle approvals to transport any of the following:

  3. Step 3 Make sure your driver is eligible to drive abroad

    1. Check your driver has the documents they need to drive abroad

    The driver must carry these documents with them.

  4. Step 4 Check the rules for the goods you're carrying

    1. Find out what you need to do if you're exporting your own goods

    There are rules for transporting certain goods. Your driver may need to follow set routes or stop at specific check points. Check the rules for:

    1. Find out what you need to apply for if you’re moving goods temporarily out of the UK

    If you're transporting goods outside the EU they must have been cleared by customs (given ‘permission to progress’). The exporter can tell you if this has happened.

  5. Step 5 Make sure your driver has the right export documents

    Your driver will need copies of:

    • any export licences
    • the road consignment note (‘CMR note’)
    • the Movement Reference Number (MRN) from the export declaration - if you're moving goods out of the EU
    • the MRN and the Local Reference Number (LRN) - if you're moving goods under the Common Transit convention (CTC)
    • the ATA Carnet document - if you're moving goods out of the EU temporarily
    • the TiR Carnet document - if you’re moving goods in a sealed load compartment with a seal number

    The exporter should be able to give all of these to you.

    You'll also need to have a customs seal approval certificate for the vehicle if you’re moving goods in a sealed load compartment. You'll get this when your vehicle passes the TiR test.

    You may need to use the Goods Vehicle Movement Service (GVMS) to move goods through some ports.

    1. Check how to move goods through ports that use the GVMS

  6. Step 6 Find out what vehicle documents your driver needs to carry

    1. Check what HGV and trailer documents your driver must carry
    2. Check what driving documents your driver must carry

  7. Step 7 Check you are ready for the Port of Dover, Eurotunnel or Holyhead

    You may need to attend an inland border facility if you're leaving from the Port of Dover, Eurotunnel or Holyhead.

    1. Check whether you need to attend an inland border facility

  8. Step 8 Check local road rules

    1. Check the road rules for European countries on the AA website
    2. Check travel advice for countries outside Europe

    When you have your documents, insurance and any extra equipment you need, you can transport goods abroad.