PHILIS DES update creates clearer import notifications for port health authorities

Several improvements are being made to the PHILIS Document Entry System (DES) to help importers submit clear, accurate and timely notifications to port health authorities across the UK when bringing food and animal products into the country.

The following changes will be implemented on 19 January 2023 following a brief downtime of PHILIS DES between 13:00 and 14:00. Any questions or queries about the latest update can be emailed to ICT.Helpdesk@scpha.gov.uk 

Supporting documents for PDD notifications

An ‘Upload supporting documentation’ tab has been added to Plastic Declaration Document (PDD) notifications. This mirrors the functionality of Certificate of Inspection (COI) notifications and enables end users to send digital files to port health authorities, including laboratory reports and commercial documents.

Supporting documents cannot be deleted after submission unless ‘Not set’ is selected within the notification reference. However, SCPHA is aware of an issue where users are unable to delete documents when additional ones have been uploaded after a reference number has been generated. This will be resolved in a future PHILIS DES update, and users are encouraged to contact ICT.Helpdesk@scpha.gov.uk if they require documents to be removed in the meantime.

Acceptance of liability

End users will now see a mandatory field and checkbox when submitting PDD notifications that asks them to accept liability and confirm the validity of their submissions. Once confirmed, this field cannot be unchecked.

Documents automatically copied to PHILIS

Documents uploaded through PHILIS DES will now automatically appear within the core PHILIS system. These can be found by navigating to a job number, selecting ‘Document Check’ then opening ‘View Attached Certificates’.

Text prompt discourages resubmissions

Upon the submission of a PDD notification, a text prompt will appear advising end users to avoid resubmitting the notification when they make an amendment. This change follows feedback from several port health authorities that received multiple resubmission emails for one notification.

Points of entry correction

Points of entry should now display correctly for COI, IUU and PDD notifications. However, if the issue persists, please contact ICT.Helpdesk@scpha.gov.uk