ACVM Act Implementation

Apply Now or Pay More Later

It was noted by council members at the last AVMAC meeting that it could be extremely advantageous for applicants to get applications in to the ACVM Group prior to the start date of the ACVM and HSNO Acts.

Any application accepted prior to the start date of the ACVM Act will be considered under the Animal Remedies or Pesticides Acts, even if they are hazardous substances as defined by the HSNO Act. In the transition period (of up to three years) it is still possible to make changes to products registered as pesticides or licensed as animal remedies under those Acts.

Where applicants have sufficient information to support an application for registration or licence, it could be a cost saving to make the application earlier rather than later. For instance, a company may have most of the data for registration, but is waiting for shelf life trials to be completed to a reasonable time period to enable effective marketing of the product. It is possible to make an application with data to support only a two month shelf life (insufficient for marketing the product) prior to the ACVM Act implementation date, and then apply for a change to registration in the transition period to support a longer shelf life at a later date when the data are available. Draft labels will be required with the application (showing the two month shelf life), but would not be presented with an application for approval until a marketable shelf life could be supported by data and the change was approved.

Any queries on the acceptability of applications should be made in writing to:
Maree Zinzley
Customer Services Manager ACVM Group
PO Box 2526
WELLINGTON
Email: zinzleym@maf.govt.nz

Refunds of Annual Fees For Exempt Products

A letter (which is available on the website under Publications/Information Papers/ACVM processes) has gone out to all animal remedy licensees and pesticides registrants advising how the ACVM Group will handle requests for refunds of annual fees for the balance of the year where products are exempt from the need to be registered under the ACVM Act.

From day one of the ACVM Act, some products will be exempt from the need to be registered. However, some will still require ‘notification’ (and be subject to a lower annual fee). All products in this category that are currently licensed or registered will remain as licensed animal remedies or registered pesticides until some action is taken to change their status. The ACVM Group (supported by AVMAC and the Animal Remedies and Pesticides Boards) will require that a class determination be done to confirm the status of a product before the registration or licence is cancelled and a refund given.