Entering a NI designated travellers’ point of entry (TPE) with dog

eebygum

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Having sailed many times to both Ireland and NI in the past with my dog from Wales, I understand the rules have changed following Brexit and gave read all the relevant websites for detail.

What none of them describe is what your actually meant to do in reality (if anything) if I turn up with all the proper paperwork/vaccinations etc at let’s say the Larne Port TPE

- Where should you moor up or anchor ?
- Who do you report to and how ? (No phone numbers or websites are listed for any of the TPE’s)
- How can I actually demonstrate that I’ve entered through a TPE if challenged later ?
- What happens if I leave Anglesey with the best intentions of landing at Larne or Belfast TPE but weather conditions dictate I need to divert to Ardglass for safety ? Can I report from there or need to make my passage up to report at Belfast or Larne (refer to second question)

All the above questions equally relate to Dublin Port TPE ( and exactly where is that... DunL, Howth, or do they want me to go up the river and moor up with the ferries (I stayed at the sailing club once up the river which was very friendly but a bit bouncy opposite the ferries).

Practical advice/comments only pleased, no need to pull my Brexit chain on the politics of the situation.

I’m thinking of emailing the relevant authorities for any explanation, so any other scenarios I’ve missed would be helpful.

Cheers, Andrew
 

Quandary

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If I was going to N.I.from Scotland in my boat with a dog I would just comply with the rules regarding the dog's identification and protection but ignore the rules regarding restrictions on Port of Entry. Nobody in NI thinks this restriction makes any sense and you will find very few will want to enforce it, you may be unlucky to get a jobsworth in one of the big marinas but NI is stil Ireland where most folk think that laws should be sensible and even when they are think twice before complying. Rules which emphasise the beginnings of separation of N.I. particularly ones that they have not been involved in formulating will be ignored as far as possible by at least one half of the population. Can you imagine the furore if you were fined for landing a British dog in Ardglass or Carrickfergus. Our dog (recently departed) was born in Randalstown so a law which would have prevented him freely returning to the place of his birth and early life is crazy.
NI was the last part of the UK to have dog licensing, some folk had licenses others didn't, as long as the dog behaved nobody cared.
 

eebygum

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If I was going to N.I.from Scotland in my boat with a dog I would just comply with the rules regarding the dog's identification and protection but ignore the rules regarding restrictions on Port of Entry. Nobody in NI thinks this restriction makes any sense and you will find very few will want to enforce it, you may be unlucky to get a jobsworth in one of the big marinas but NI is stil Ireland where most folk think that laws should be sensible and even when they are think twice before complying. Rules which emphasise the beginnings of separation of N.I. particularly ones that they have not been involved in formulating will be ignored as far as possible by at least one half of the population. Can you imagine the furore if you were fined for landing a British dog in Ardglass or Carrickfergus. Our dog (recently departed) was born in Randalstown so a law which would have prevented him freely returning to the place of his birth and early life is crazy.
NI was the last part of the UK to have dog licensing, some folk had licenses others didn't, as long as the dog behaved nobody cared.
I totally agree with your sentiment and yes I’ve never had to show any ID on my arrival in any part of Ireland in the last 15 years (under the Common Travel Agreement) but you only need one jobsworth to ruin your cruise as I experienced two years ago.....

I sailed from Anglesey to Lerwick Scotland with my dog onboard and was waiting for my wife to join me the next day to sail across to Norway. My dog had its pet passport, rabies etc. The only customs officer I have ever seen in a marina (anywhere in the UK in 20 years) was walking down the Lerwick pontoon and saw my dog on deck. “where are you going she asked” Norway I said, “where are you coming back to she asked” I’m not sure I said, maybe Peterhead or Whitehills or possible back to Lerwick depending on the weather. “Not with that dog your not” she said, and she then went on to explain that I could only return through a TPE which meant either flying my dog back into Scotland or a ‘slight’ detour via the South Coast TPE ports; or risk having the dog put into quarantine on return which I would need to pay for.

Suffice to say it was a complete pain in the arse to get one of my departing crew to return my dog by train back to Manchester.

If I knew that I would subsequently arrive and spend a month in Norway and return to a Scottish port (I won’t mention their name) without anybody asking for any ID from myself, my wife and the dog at any port anywhere, I would probably have ignored her.

So I guess I’m trying to weigh up the risk of bumping into another jobsworth. Knowing what their written policy is (or not) is forarmed.
 

awol

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I totally agree with your sentiment and yes I’ve never had to show any ID on my arrival in any part of Ireland in the last 15 years (under the Common Travel Agreement) but you only need one jobsworth to ruin your cruise as I experienced two years ago.....

I sailed from Anglesey to Lerwick Scotland with my dog onboard and was waiting for my wife to join me the next day to sail across to Norway. My dog had its pet passport, rabies etc. The only customs officer I have ever seen in a marina (anywhere in the UK in 20 years) was walking down the Lerwick pontoon and saw my dog on deck. “where are you going she asked” Norway I said, “where are you coming back to she asked” I’m not sure I said, maybe Peterhead or Whitehills or possible back to Lerwick depending on the weather. “Not with that dog your not” she said, and she then went on to explain that I could only return through a TPE which meant either flying my dog back into Scotland or a ‘slight’ detour via the South Coast TPE ports; or risk having the dog put into quarantine on return which I would need to pay for.

Suffice to say it was a complete pain in the arse to get one of my departing crew to return my dog by train back to Manchester.

If I knew that I would subsequently arrive and spend a month in Norway and return to a Scottish port (I won’t mention their name) without anybody asking for any ID from myself, my wife and the dog at any port anywhere, I would probably have ignored her.

So I guess I’m trying to weigh up the risk of bumping into another jobsworth. Knowing what their written policy is (or not) is forarmed.
I don't think the lady in question was a "jobsworth" - she was just giving you advice on the legal situation. Rather than moan, you should be grateful you were made aware and were able to avoid causing your pet distress.
 

eebygum

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To finally answer my own question.... if you want to take your pet to either the Repulic of Ireland or NI then forget it.

Copy of a post from the Ocean Cruising Club:

Cruising between GB and Ireland post Brexit

Excerpted from an article by Norman Keane

• There are no Customs or immigration formalities when crossing between the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland in either direction, nor between GB and Northern Ireland (except in respect of pets – see below).

• When arriving in Great Britain direct from the Republic of Ireland, a call must be made to the National Yachtline on 0300 123 2012 and a copy of Customs Form C1331 Part 2 completed and posted to the UK Border Force office in Dover. Refer to Customs Notice No.8 on gov.uk. Flag Q must be flown until the National Yachtline has been contacted.

• Arriving in the Republic of Ireland from GB, a call must be made to the nearest Customs office (details in the Irish Cruising Club Sailing Directions and at Customs offices in Ireland (1/3) - Higher authority and Main office). Flag Q must be flown until this is done.

• Carrying pets (officially includes dogs, cats and ferrets) on boats is now problematical. Dogs must have a specific tapeworm treatment one to five days before arrival, and pets may only be brought into Ireland at Larne, Belfast, Dublin, Rosslare and Cork (Ringaskiddy). The commercial port areas of these places are de facto prohibited to yachts. Note that RoI and NI have adopted exactly the same protocol. The two Departments of Agriculture have confirmed that it is now impracticable to bring a dog or a cat to the island of Ireland on a yacht. There are no such restrictions in GB, so although you can take your pet to Britain, it’s very difficult to bring him or her back.
 

stephen_h

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Was hoping to visit Ireland this summer with our dog, so that won't be happening.
No need to get the pet passport :confused:
 

Quandary

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So someone from Norn Irn can bring his dog to Scotland, stay as long as he likes, take it ashore anywhere but when he goes home he has to leave the dog here.
How daft is that?
What happened to British dogs on Jan 1st to make them such a hazard?
 

AngusMcDoon

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So someone from Norn Irn can bring his dog to Scotland, stay as long as he likes, take it ashore anywhere but when he goes home he has to leave the dog here.

The solution is quite simple. Call in to Stranraer on your way down the North Channel, drop Mutley off on the pontoon with a tenner in his mouth to buy a paw passenger ticket and a bag of Bonio if he gets peckish on the trip. Give him directions to trot up the A77 to Cainryan and jump on the ferry, then you sail across and pick him up in Belfast. Make sure he knows not to get on the ferry to Larne though.
 

eebygum

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Was hoping to visit Ireland this summer with our dog, so that won't be happening.
No need to get the pet passport :confused:
My dog has accompanied me many times across the Irish Sea to The Republic and NI many times over the last 10 years.

This stupid restriction only applies to private yachts not the commercial ferries; so you can bring a dog into Dublin, Belfast, or Larne.

So the only work around I have is ..... I was planning to sail over to Ireland singlehanded, my wife will now probably come over on the ferry from Liverpool/Holyhead and bring the dog over with her (with pet passport, rabies jabs etc.) and join me on the boat.... we are then heading up to the Western Isles, and now she will have to bring the dog back with her on the train (normally it stays with me for the return voyage).

If we just stay cruising around Ireland; then we would all come back together on the boat to Anglesey; or my wife returns and the dog stays with me for the return trip.
 

Gibeltarik

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There is no border in the Irish Sea - what are you all worrying about (sorry! Wrong Forum - should be posting on Brexiteers and Unicorns)
 

awol

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The choice to avoid shattering the Good Friday agreement was a land border or one in the North Channel. For sailors the latter is going to be a pain in the bahookey, and even worse for any businesses. Punishment for the celts who voted "remain"?
 

dgadee

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The choice to avoid shattering the Good Friday agreement was a land border or one in the North Channel. For sailors the latter is going to be a pain in the bahookey, and even worse for any businesses. Punishment for the celts who voted "remain"?

Not really the case. This was Johnson's option. May would have kept the UK as a whole within the EU customs regime.
 

Rgurney744

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Back to the thread. If one turned up in, for example, Kinsale with a cat that lives on the boat and said cat was kept below for the stay would that be classed as not landing the animal and therefore not needing to meet all the ROI requirements? Same question for arriving in France.
 

Slowtack

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My dog has accompanied me many times across the Irish Sea to The Republic and NI many times over the last 10 years.

This stupid restriction only applies to private yachts not the commercial ferries; so you can bring a dog into Dublin, Belfast, or Larne.

So the only work around I have is ..... I was planning to sail over to Ireland singlehanded, my wife will now probably come over on the ferry from Liverpool/Holyhead and bring the dog over with her (with pet passport, rabies jabs etc.) and join me on the boat.... we are then heading up to the Western Isles, and now she will have to bring the dog back with her on the train (normally it stays with me for the return voyage).

If we just stay cruising around Ireland; then we would all come back together on the boat to Anglesey; or my wife returns and the dog stays with me for the return trip.
I think you also need the tapeworm treatment for ferry transit(the dog I mean...:oops:..).....or so Ive been informed by a dog owner I know.
 

ashtead

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This might all impact the puppy farmers of Ireland if they cannot bring their puppies into Wales to sell to unsuspecting British aspirant dog owners. Or do I understand i`t’s all right for Irish dogs to travel to Northern Ireland and once there they can jump on the Belfast ferry to the UK and enter without restriction?
 

black mercury

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Pet Checks
Routine checks on the non-commercial movement of pets from GB to NI will be delayed until at least 1 October 2021.

This is from Daera. So no problems this summer.
 
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