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Frequently
asked questions
Q.
What has the Government announced about horse passorts?
Q. Why are passports required?
Q . What would happen if I was found not to have
a passport?
Q. Will I need a passport if my horse is never intended
for human consumption?
Q. How do I get a passport?
Q. How much will a passport cost?
Q. How long are passports valid for?
Q. I have already got a passport – do I need
to do anything else?
Q. I have a British Horse Database (BHD) passport
– is it still valid?
Q. I have an F.E.I passport – what
shall I do?
Q. Will passports be required for foals?
Q. What is the Unique Equine Life Number (UELN) that is included
on the passports.
Q. I am permanently importing a horse into the UK
from a country outside of the EU – will I need to obtain a
passport?
Q. I am permanently importing a horse into the
UK from another EU Member State?
Q. I am temporarily importing a horse into the UK from a country
outside the EU – will I need to obtain a passport?
Q. How are horses identified in the passport –
does a Veterinary Surgeon need to complete the silhouette?
Q. What shall I do if the passport requires updating
with change of address or new ownership details?
Q. I am the permanent keeper of a horse – am
I responsible for obtaining the passport?
Q. What is the purpose of the new section on the passport?
Q. What medications must be recorded within the section
IX pages?
Q. If I sell
my horse, can its new owner change the declaration?
Q. Will semi-feral horses require a passport?
Q. When does the horse need to be accompanied by its
horse passport?
Q. Can a veterinary surgeon treat a horse that
is not accompanied by its passport?
Q. Who will enforce the requirements?
Q. What is the Central Horse Database?
Q. What has the Government
announced about horse passorts?
A. The Government has announced that with effect from 30th June
2004, all horses and ponies (and other forms of equidae) will need
to have a passport identifying the animal. The term ‘horse’means
any domestic animal of the equine or asinine species or crossbreeds
of those species. Back to questions
Q.
Why are passports required?
A. The key objective of the legislation was to prevent horses entering
the human food chain if they have been administered with any medicines
that are not intended for use on food producing animals. The implementation
of the horse passports measure will satisfy the European Commission
that the UK has a viable method of identifying horses that have
been treated with medicines that must not be administered to food
producing animals. Failure to provide such an assurance could result
in the European Commission removing its approval of these veterinary
medicines here would be potential horse welfare issues if they were
no longer available.
However, the equine industry believe that other benefits will be
realised if all horses have a passport; for example, discouraging
the indiscriminate breeding of horses and ponies, a potential buyer
will be able to check that the age, ownership details and identifying
particulars of a horse for sale are correct; which may lead to a
reduction in the sale of stolen horses.
A longer term benefit to the equine industry will be the proposed
National Equine Database (NED) that will record details of every
horse in the UK. It is envisaged that the NED will benefit the equine
industry in providing information for enhanced breeding programmes
and research. Back to questions
Q
. What would happen if I was found not to have a passport?
As with all Government legislation, there are penalties that can
applied by the courts for non-compliance. These are: - a fine to
a maximum of £5000 for cases involving one to ten animals
and a maximum fine of £1000 per animal for cases involving
more than ten animals. Second offences can lead to a maximum of
one month’s imprisonment. Back to questions
Q.
Will I need a passport if my horse is never intended for human consumption?
A. Yes, all horses will need a passport irrespective of whether
or not the horse is ultimately intended for human consumption. However,
if the horse owner declares in the passport that the horse is not
intended for human consumption, there will be no requirement to
record the date of administration of certain veterinary medicines
to the horse. Back to questions
Q.
How do I get a passport?
A. Apply to one of the organisations that have been authorised by
Defra to issue horse passports. Some of these organisations deal
with only one particular breed of horse; others will issue passports
for all types of horses. The Pleasure Horse Society will issue passports
to any non registered horse or horse of unknown breeding. A list
of recognised societies that have been authorised to issue passports
can be found on the Defra website. Back to
questions
Q.
How much will a passport cost?
A. The cost of a passport is the individual decision of the equine
organisations that have been authorised to issue them. The Pleasure
Horse Society will issue a free passport for all new members, subsequent
passports for additional horses will be charged at £22.50 + VAT.
Back to questions
Q.
How long are passports valid for?
A. Passports are valid for the entire lifetime of the horse. Back
to questions
Q.
I have already got a passport – do I need to do anything else?
A. If you have a horse passport that has been issued by an authorised
PIO, it will most probably need to be updated, so you should contact
your breed society. If your horse has been issued with a passport
or identification papers (with completed silhouette) by an organisation
that is not authorised, you may be still able to send these papers
to an authorised PIO for insertion into a passport. Back
to questions
Q.
I have a British Horse Database (BHD) passport – is it still
valid?
A. Yes, although the BHD are not issuing new passports, Weatherbys
will be updating existing passports with the required veterinary
medication pages and changes of ownership for a small fee. Back
to questions
Q.
I have an F.E.I passport – what shall I do?
A. Owners of horses with F.E.I passports should contact the British
Equestrian Federation directly.
Back to questions
Q.
Will passports be required for foals?
A. Yes. A horse must be issued with a passport by the time it reaches
six months old or earlier if it permanently leaves the premises
at which it was born, before it is six months old. Back
to questions
Q.
What is the Unique Equine Life Number (UELN) that is included on
the passports.
A. This is the number that must appear on the passport and which
identifies the horse. Back to questions
Q.
I am permanently importing a horse into the UK from a country outside
of the EU – will I need to obtain a passport?
A. Yes. You will need to obtain a passport from one of the authorised
PIOs in the UK within 30 days of the horse arriving in the UK. Back
to questions
Q.
I am permanently importing a horse into the UK from another EU Member
State?
A. Horses imported from other European Union Member States must
be accompanied by a passport, which complies with the EU legislation.
Back to questions
Q.
I am temporarily importing a horse into the UK from a country outside
the EU – will I need to obtain a passport?
A. If your horse remains in the UK for less than 30 days, you will
not be required to obtain a passport.
Back to questions
Q.
How are horses identified in the passport – does a Veterinary
Surgeon need to complete the silhouette?
A. It is compulsory for a Veterinery Surgeon or PHS Representative to complete the silhouette. Alternatively if you have a vacination or freeze mark certificate with the silhouette completed this will be acceptable.
Back to questions
Q.
What shall I do if the passport requires updating with change of
address or new ownership details?
A. Changes of ownership or change of permanent address of owner
should be notified to the organisation that has issued the passport.
The PIO may require that the passport be returned for updating.
Similarly, the death of a horse should also be notified to the PIO.
Back to questions
Q.
I am the permanent keeper of a horse – am I responsible for
obtaining the passport?
A. No. It is the responsibility of the horse owner to obtain a passport.
If a horse is on permanent loan, the keeper should hold the passport.
The ‘keeper’ means a person who is not the owner of a
horse but is appointed by the owner to have day to day charge of
that horse. Back to questions
Q.
What is the purpose of the new section on the passport?
A. Section IX is for the owner to declare whether or not the horse
is ultimately intended for human consumption. If the declaration
is signed that the horse is ultimately intended for human consumption,
the date that certain veterinary medicines are administered to the
horse should be recorded on the relevant pages.
Back to questions
Q.
What medications must be recorded within the section IX pages?
A. Details of the medicines concerned are contained in the consolidated
Version of the Annexes I to IV of Council Regulation 2377/90. If
the declaration is signed that the horse is ultimately intended
for human consumption, the date when any medicines are administered
that have substances not included in annexes I-IV of 2377/90 must
be recorded on the section IX pages of the passport. N.B. Annex
IV drugs must never be administered to a food producing animal.
Back to questions
Q.
If I sell my horse, can its new owner change the declaration?
A. No. Once a horse has been declared, as not for human consumption
a subsequent owner cannot change this. This is in order to prevent
animals entering the human food chain if they have been administered
with medicines that have not been approved for food producing animals.
However, a declaration that a horse is ultimately intended for human
consumption can be reversed by one subsequent owner, as there are
no human health implications. Back to questions
Q.
Will semi-feral horses require a passport?
A. Yes. However, the draft legislation includes a concession to
ponies in the New Forest, Dartmoor and Exmoor that have been given
permission to graze there (by the New Forest Verderers, the Dartmoor
Commoners Council and the Exmoor Pony Society) These organisations
will be obliged to maintain a register of all such horses and ponies,
including individual identification and all other details as required
for the issue of a horse passport. A full horse passport will however
be required if a horse leaves any of the above areas. Back
to questions
Q.
When does the horse need to be accompanied by its horse passport?
- A. Your horse should be accompanied
by its passport in the following circumstances: -
- When it is moved into or out
of Great Britain;
- When it is moved to other
premises for competition purposes;
- When it is moved to other
premises for the purposes veterinary treatment;
- When it is moved to the premises
of a new keeper;
- When it is moved to a slaughterhouse
for slaughter;
- When it is moved on any other
occasion specified by the recognised organisation.
Back to questions
Q. Can a veterinary surgeon treat a horse that
is not accompanied by its passport?
A. Yes. There is no suggestion that a vet should not treat a horse
due to the absence of a passport. However, there are likely to be
restrictions on administering some medications that are not authorised
for food producing animals unless there is a passport with a signed
declaration saying whether or not the horse is ultimately intended
for human consumption. Back to questions
Q. Who will enforce the requirements?
A. The Food Standards Agency will be responsible for enforcing the
checks carried out at slaughterhouses, and the Local Authorities
(e.g. Trading Standards Departments) will be responsible for enforcing
the remainder of the legislation. Back to
questions
Q. What is the Central Horse Database?
A.. It will be a database which contains data on every horse, probably
its breed, age, UELN and location. This basic information is currently
not available in any form. If we do not know how many horses there
are or where they are, we cannot plan effective monitoring of diseases
or develop effective control strategies in the event of an outbreak
of a notifiable or exotic disease of horses such as African Horse
Sickness or West Nile Fever.
The Government is also working with the industry to ensure that
the database contains other voluntary information e.g. on breeding
and competition performance, which will be of use to the industry
and to individual horse owners. Back
to questions
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