Sheepmeat and goatmeat quotas (EU and UK)

As a result of the UK leaving the EU (aka Brexit), the previously available access volume of 19,186 tonnes of sheepmeat and goatmeat has been split between the EU and the UK. The current split of access volumes is:

• 5,851 tonnes for consignments to the EU
• 13,335 tonnes for consignments to the UK.

Demand for access to this quota traditionally exceeds the amount of quota available and therefore the department implements an annual allocation process.

Key dates to remember

• 1 January—New quota year begins.
• 31 October—Last day for exporters to advise whether they will retain or return quota entitlement, and/or whether they wish to apply for additional entitlement.
• Early November—Reallocation of returned quota; any uncommitted quota available on a first come, first served basis.
• Mid-November—Exporters invited to apply for quota entitlements for following quota year.
• Early December—Exporters notified of their quota entitlement for the following year.
• 31 December—Quota year ends.

The 200-tonne erga omnes sheepmeat and goatmeat quota can be accessed by Australia, Argentina, New Zealand, Uruguay, Chile, Norway, Greenland, Faeroes, Turkey, and other unlisted WTO members, at a zero-tariff rate. This quota is managed by the EU and access to it cannot be guaranteed even with an Australian Government tariff rate quota certificate.

Details on the amount of EU and UK sheepmeat and goatmeat quota shipped and the balance remaining can be found at the below link under the heading “EU, UK and US red meat quota position”. The report is updated regularly.

Check the current quota usage for EU and UK sheepmeat and goatmeat.

Allocations of TRQ entitlements are available to exporters based on a prior history of shipping. The calculation takes into account the quantity of sheepmeat and goatmeat shipped using TRQ arrangements, as well as consideration of global shipments. The consideration of global shipments creates a pathway for new entrants to the EU and UK quota markets.

Eligible exporters will be invited to apply for allocation of EU and UK sheepmeat and goatmeat TRQ prior to the start of the quota year. These invitations will be sent to exporters that, based on shipping history, are potentially eligible to receive an allocation of TRQ.

The amount of EU sheepmeat and goatmeat quota to be allocated to each applicant is calculated using a formula as defined in the Rules (found below in the ‘Legislation’ section). Once entitlements have been determined, each applicant is notified of the outcome of the allocation process and their starting quota entitlement for the next quota year.

Quota entitlements for the EU and the UK are calculated separately.

To apply for an Australian Government Certificate of Origin (COO) certificate (quota certificate) for a consignment of sheepmeat/goatmeat, you must lodge a request for permit (RFP) through the department’s electronic documentation system, EXDOC.

Once your RFP has gone to ‘complete’ status in EXDOC, the data will go through to the Quota Unit on the next business day and a quota certificate will be generated. The original certificate and 2 copies are mailed to the exporter and a copy is kept by the Quota Unit.

If a quota certificate needs to be altered in any way, the exporter must notify the Quota Unit and a replacement certificate can be issued. Before the replacement certificate can be sent out, all copies of the original issued certificate must first be returned to the Quota Unit.

Note: Quota administration is cost recovered on a per certificate basis in accordance with the Export Charges (Imposition-General) Regulation 2021 and the Export Control (Fees and Payments) Rules 2021. Exporters are invoiced monthly for any quota certificates issued. The current cost recovered amount is $35 per certificate issued.

Airfreight consignments may require urgent documentation and the Quota Unit will endeavour to process these manually if requested.

If an airfreight certificate is required urgently, email the Quota Unit with the RFP number of the consignment that requires a manual certificate. The email must be received by the Quota Unit no later than 1:00pm (Canberra time) for same-day processing. Processing of same day certificates cannot be guaranteed as processing and dispatch is dependent on staff availability and couriers.

When generated, the certificate can be sent to an exporter by Express Post or couriered (if the Quota Unit has been provided with an exporter’s courier details).

This listing of current quota entitlement holders can be used by exporters to check which exporters hold quota entitlements, should they wish to approach another exporter for a transfer.

The department keeps records of each exporter’s in-quota and global shipments of sheepmeat and goatmeat. Three accounts are created for each exporter, one each to keep a track of their in-quota shipments to the EU and the UK, and another account (Account I) to keep track of global shipments where the product has been sourced from an EU accredited establishment/works. These are called performance accounts.

The performance calculated on Account I shipments can be transferred to another exporter (known as a performance transfer), effectively increasing the shipping history of the transferee. This can result in a larger quota allocation the following year.

Exporters are able to transfer both their allocation and account I performance between companies.

Entitlement holders who wish to transfer their existing quota can use Notice to transfer annual quota entitlements form.

Administration of the sheepmeat and goatmeat quotas are governed by the Export Control (Tariff Rate Quotas-Sheepmeat and Goatmeat Export to the European Union and United Kingdom) Rules 2021. Exporters should be familiar with these Rules.

The Quota Unit collects and manages the data presented on this website for commercial and government use. The data comes from the RFPs received through EXDOC.