Permits for expeditions

If you are a British national and plan to visit Antarctica or wish to organise any activities in Antarctica the Antarctic Act 1994 and associated Regulations, which implements the Protocol on Environmental Protection to the Antarctic Treaty in UK law, requires you to apply for a permit from our Polar Regions Unit. Contact details are on the right. The following page will set out who has to apply for a permit, how to do so and the other rules managing travel south.

Applying for a Permit

All applicants are advised to discuss their plans informally with the Polar Regions Unit before they begin their permit application. You should submit applications for permits as far in advance as possible, and not less than 6 months before you intend to travel to Antarctica. Organisers need to demonstrate that they are sufficiently prepared for a visit to Antarctica – see contingency plans and insurance for more information.

All permit applications must be accompanied by a completed Environmental Impact Assessment.

Applicants should be aware that within 10 days from the confirmation of receipt of any permit application the FCO will openly publish information pertaining to the application on this website, this will include application type, applicant name, duration of visit, proposed itinerary and the contact details of the applicant.

The FCO can confirm it has received the following applications for the 2011/12 season [PDF, 188KB].

Who needs a Permit

Any person on a British expedition to Antarctica or taking a British vessel and/or aircraft into the Antarctic Treaty area requires a permit.

A 'British expedition' encompasses all expeditions, which are organised in, or where the last place of departure for Antarctica is the United Kingdom or other British Overseas territory. A British expedition need not necessarily be composed of British nationals, and a single person can constitute an expedition. 'Antarctica' includes all sea, land and ice shelves south of 60˚ South latitude.

For a land based expedition you can download the relevant section 3 permit application form and guidance to completing the form:

• Expedition permit application form (Section 3) [Word Doc, opens in new window]
• Expedition permit application guidance (Section 3) [Word Doc, opens in new window]

Provisions governing waste disposal and removal of waste from Antarctica will be contained in conditions attached to permits.

For a section 5 vessel permit, see the form and guidance below:

• Ship permit application form (Section 5) [Word Doc, opens in new window]
• Ship permit application guidance (Section 5) [Word Doc, opens in new window]

Prohibitions on marine pollution in Antarctic waters are already contained in existing UK Merchant Shipping legislation and are not dealt with by the Antarctic Act or Regulations.

For those planning to take a private yacht to Antarctica, the FCO, in conjunction with industry experts, has produced these Antarctic Yachting Guidelines [PDF 561KB, opens in new window]. They give advice on what considerations they should make and help with the permitting process. The FCO strongly recommends that first time Antarctic yachters and even more experienced travellers consult this useful and informative guide as part of their planning and before submitting a permit application

Further advice is available from the International Association of Antarctic Tour Operators (IAATO).

Other more specific activities in Antarctica require different permits:

• mineral resource activities by UK nationals – all minerals related activities in Antarctica are prohibited, except for scientific research
• the taking of, or harmful interference with, fauna or flora (Section 7 permit)
• the introduction of non-native animals or plants (Section 8 permit)
• entry into areas protected under the Protocol (Antarctic Specially Protected Areas) or under the Convention on the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (Section 9 and 11 permits)
  

Applicants who intend to apply for permits for any of the above should contact the Polar Regions Unit in the first instance.

You don’t need a permit for:

• ships or aircraft travelling to an immediate destination outside Antarctica
• fishing vessels, unless they are carrying out functions related to an expedition
• expeditions organised in and authorised in writing by another contracting party (country) to the Environmental Protocol to the Antarctic Treaty.

If you are joining a cruise ship as a passenger, it’s unlikely you’ll need individual permits as the tour operator should have secured their own permit or authorisation for the whole trip.  However, if you are travelling with a non-IAATO affiliated company, you should check the position with the company you are travelling with.

Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA)

You must complete this Preliminary Environmental Impact Questionnaire [Word doc, opens in a new window] as part of your permit application. This is a preliminary assessment to determine the severity of environmental impact of an activity on the Antarctic environment.

Following the preliminary EIA you may also find that you need to complete an Initial Environmental Evaluation (IEE), or a Comprehensive Environmental Evaluation (CEE) - more comprehensive and detailed Environmental Impact Assessments. We’ll provide more information if you do need to complete one of these.

Activities that would probably require a full EIA include:

• British expeditions to Antarctica which involve an activity that may have a greater than minor or transitory impact.
• construction of, or modifications to, British research stations in Antarctica.

Please note we will not normally authorise activities for non-scientific purposes which are likely to have more than a minor or transitory impact on the Antarctic environment.

Contingency plans and insurance

If you are applying for a permit to visit Antarctica you must be able to demonstrate the following:

• appropriate contingency plans and sufficient arrangements for health and safety - a risk assessment to determine risk levels and to assess the adequacy of controls should be prepared
• appropriate contingency plans and sufficient arrangements for search and rescue (SAR). Full details of the SAR plan must be included as part of the permit application. This must include plans for evacuation out of Antarctica
• appropriate contingency plans and sufficient arrangements for medical care and evacuation. Based on a risk assessment of possible scenarios, contingency plans should be drawn up for responding to such risks. For example, this may include planning for all adverse weather conditions; arrangements for loss of radio and other communications; up to full evacuation plans from Antarctica
• adequate insurance or other arrangements to cover any costs associated with SAR and medical care and evacuation. Insurance must explicitly cover all of the proposed activities to be undertaken in Antarctica and be sufficient to fund any potential medical evacuation from Antarctica.

Each contingency plan should each specify a nominated individual in the expedition who is responsible for it.

You must attach original copies of any contracts and/or insurance policies, together with any other appropriate supporting documentation, as part of the permit application(s).

No health and safety, search and rescue or medical evacuation plans and arrangements should be reliant on support from other operators or national programmes without their express written agreement.

In respect of vessel or yacht-based activities, applicants should be aware that reliance on other passing traffic, without a prior clear written arrangement, will not be deemed to be sufficient arrangements for search and rescue.

Experience of personnel and equipment

You should also be able to demonstrate the following, especially if you are organising or conducting activities without the continual supervision or support in the field of another operator or a national programme:

• participants have sufficient and demonstrable experience appropriate for the proposed activity operating in polar, or equivalent, environments. Such experience may include survival training in cold or remote areas, flying, sailing or operating other vehicles in conditions and over distances similar to those being proposed in the application
  
• all equipment, including clothing, communication, navigational, emergency and logistic equipment is in sound working order, with sufficient backup spares and suitable for effective operation under Antarctic conditions
  
• all participants are proficient in the use of such equipment
  
• all participants are medically, physically and psychologically fit to undertake the activity in Antarctica
• adequate first-aid equipment is available during the activity and that at least one participant is proficient in advanced first aid

Post visit site report

All permits will have an expiry date specified on them, and you must submit a report using the Post Visit Site Report form [Excel doc, opens in new window] to us no later than 45 days after expiry. This form is also used by IAATO for post visit reporting so their members will also need to submit the form to that organisation.