The Animal Welfare (Licensing of Activities Involving Animals) (Scotland) Regulations 2021: guidance for animal rehoming activities

Section 2: Summary of criteria and thresholds for licensing

Note, that under the Regulations the activity of animal rehoming is separateto the activity of operating an animal welfare establishment defined in Part 3 of schedule 1 of the Regulations. An animal rehoming centre is likely to qualify as an animal welfare establishment. A licence for engaging in animal rehoming activities is not required in relation to the rehoming of animals from an animal welfare establishment.

Under the Regulations this means any person supplying an animal as a pet to a person in Scotland is required, subject to some exceptions, to be licenced if the following conditions are met:

• the person being supplied physically receives the animal in Scotland, and
• the supply takes place during a 12 month period in which at least 4 other animals are supplied by the operator as pets to persons in Scotland.

Rehoming will require a licence where 5 animals are supplied as pets in a single movement or where 5 animals are cumulatively supplied as pets over the course of any 12 month period. The supply of an animal as a pet to a person residing in Scotland only counts towards the 5 animal threshold if the handover of the animal occurs in Scotland. For example, if the individual being supplied with an animal travels to England to collect it from the person supplying it then it does not count towards the threshold as the supply did not occur in Scotland.

The activity of animal rehoming relates to both the rehoming of animals originating within and outwith Scotland. An example would be a person, charity or other organisation that sources street or rescue dogs from eastern Europe for the purposes of rehoming them as pets with persons in Scotland, if the threshold number of animals is supplied within a 12 month period.

This activity does not relate to the supply of fish or animals bred by the operator and any such animals do not count towards the total number of animals supplied within a 12 month period. Additionally, horses and other equines are not normally considered to be pets as they are generally kept for riding or other sporting or recreational purposes.

In circumstances where a person licensed to rehome animals makes use of foster homes the foster carer may require to be licensed. A foster carer would require a licence where they assume responsibility for the supply (the handover) of 5 or more animals in any 12-month period as pets to persons in Scotland on behalf of the primary licence holder.