The Charges for Residues Surveillance (Amendment) (England) Regulations 2026 were made on 5 May 2026, laid before Parliament on 6 May 2026, and will come into force on 1 June 2026. The instrument amends the Charges for Residues Surveillance Regulations 2006, updating the fees linked to the Secretary of State’s surveillance of animals and animal products for residues of veterinary medicinal products and other substances. In practical terms, this is a charging amendment rather than a redesign of the surveillance system. The legal basis for residues monitoring remains in place, but the amounts payable under the existing framework are being changed through amendments to regulation 3 and the substitution of Schedule 1.
The Regulations extend to England and Wales but apply in relation to England only. That distinction matters for organisations operating in more than one jurisdiction, because the instrument sits on the shared statute book while its charging effect is confined to England. The text also changes the timing references in regulation 3(1). In paragraph (1)(a), the date '1st October 2024' is replaced with '1st June 2026', and references to '2025' are replaced with '2027' in both paragraph (1)(a) and paragraph (1)(b). Schedule 1 to the 2006 Regulations is substituted in full, so businesses covered by the charging rules will need to work from the new fee table once the instrument takes effect.
The Secretary of State made the instrument under sections 45 and 48(1)(b) and (c) of the Food Safety Act 1990, using powers now vested in that office. The preamble states that, as required by section 48(4A) of the 1990 Act, the Secretary of State had regard to advice from the Food Standards Agency before making the Regulations. The instrument also records that consultation took place as required by Article 9 of Regulation (EC) No 178/2002. For policy readers, that confirms the standard route for this type of secondary legislation: ministerial powers under primary legislation, advice from the Food Standards Agency, and consultation before a targeted amendment to an existing charging regime.
The explanatory note states that the amendment varies the fees payable for residues surveillance. Those charges relate to the Secretary of State’s surveillance of animals and animal products for residues of veterinary medicinal products and other substances. The note does not present the policy as a new enforcement scheme or a new food safety standard; the operative change is to the charging structure. For affected operators, the immediate task is administrative. Organisations already within the regime should review the replacement Schedule 1, check how the revised charges fit with compliance budgets and invoicing arrangements, and make sure relevant teams are working to the 1 June 2026 commencement date.
No full Impact Assessment has been prepared for the instrument. According to the explanatory note, that is because the estimated total cost impact is less than £10 million per annum. That threshold does not mean the amendment is immaterial for individual businesses, but it does indicate that ministers do not expect a large aggregate cost across the sector. The Regulations were signed by Hayman of Ullock, Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, on 5 May 2026. They also sit within an established amendment history: the 2006 Regulations were previously amended in 2008 and 2024, and this latest instrument continues that pattern of periodic revision.
For legal, compliance and finance teams, the main point is what has changed and what has not. The residues surveillance framework remains in force, liability for charges continues under the amended 2006 Regulations, and the change made here is to the fee schedule and the dates written into the charging provisions. For the wider public, the instrument does not alter consumer obligations or restate the substantive rules on food safety. Its significance is narrower but still operationally important: it updates the funding arrangements attached to official surveillance activity. The key dates are 5 May 2026 for making, 6 May 2026 for laying before Parliament, and 1 June 2026 for commencement.