Apply for a pet shop licence | Canterbury City Council

Under the Animal Welfare (Licensing of Activities Involving Animals) (England) Regulations 2018, If you run a business that sells animals as pets, you must have a licence. This includes selling animals from your home, business premises or online.

Animals that come under the licence are:

Dogs
Cats
Rabbits
Guinea pigs
Ferrets
Domestic small rodents (for example, a rat)
Other non-domestic animals (this means any animal not in this list that is not considered domesticated)
Birds
Reptiles and amphibians
Fish
Dangerous wild animals

How much a licence costs

Licence type	Fees to pay
First application	£213.87 to apply which is non-refundable, and a further £311.08 if the licence is granted.
Renewals	£181.46 to apply which is non-refundable, and a further £213.87 if the licence is granted.

You'll also need to pay any vet fees for the licence.

A plan of the premises - this doesn't need to be to scale, but should show how it's laid out.
A copy of relevant insurance policies.
A copy of the training policy and training certificates held by any staff.
A copy of the cleaning procedures.
A copy of the immature animals policy.
A copy of the separating or grouping of animals policy.
A copy of the feeding policy.
A copy of the biosecurity/disease control and prevention policy.
A copy of the transport policy.
A copy of the monitoring and ensuring health policy.
A copy of the isolation policy.
A copy of the death and escape policy.
A copy of the emergency policy.
A copy of the repair and maintenance programme.
The live vertebrate feeding procedure where live food might need to be fed to reptiles in extreme circumstances (this only applies if reptiles are on site).
The dangerous wild animals procedure (this only applies if dangerous wild animals are on site).
A copy of the management of poisonous species and envenomation policy (this only applies if venomous species are on site).
Appropriate care sheets for each species sold.
A list of the species kept, including their quantity and size when being stocked (not including fish).
A copy of the pest control programme (if this applies).
A copy of the documented health checklist for each species.

A daily exercise and enrichment regime.
A socialisation and habituation programme.
A managing difficult dogs procedure.
An overnight care procedure outside of premises closure.
A transitional feeding schedule.
A puppy contract and information pack.
A travel plan outlining how animals are managed for journeys longer than four hours.

An enrichment programme offering varied enrichment opportunities that are appropriate for the species.

A feeding plan showing that they either have daily access to growing grass or fresh vegetables high in vitamin C (this is optional).
An extended feeding plan showing that they have daily access to forage food or commercially available dried forage like willow and the use of dietary enrichment.
A socialisation and enrichment regime for singly housed guinea pigs.

A daily exercise and enrichment scheme for exercise outside of usual housing.
A feeding plan showing that they either have daily access to growing grass or two different types of hay (this is optional).
An extended feeding plan showing that they have daily access to forage food or commercially available dried forage like willow and the use of dietary enrichment.

A socialisation and enrichment regime for singly housed birds.
A document showing how often cage furniture is changed to provide a new environment (this is optional).
A document and associated records showing how often UVB output is monitored with a UV meter.

A temperature management procedure for each species detailing ambient daytime temperatures, nighttime temperatures, basking zone temperatures (if this applies) and UV requirements (if this applies).
A wastewater management and treatment plan to make sure that no microorganisms are released accidentally.
A policy outlining temperature and other husbandry requirements for species that need brumation - this means the dormancy time during winter (this is optional).
A protocol covering the quarantine or prevention of chytridimycosis and other biological agents.

A euthanasia procedure.
A document outlining the procedures that control and manage the buying and selling of fish.

To see what needs to be in the documents, you should check the pet shop supporting documents guidance.

You must check the documents list to make sure you submit the right evidence.

You'll need to email your form and the documents to envhealth@canterbury.gov.uk.

Once you've submitted your application we'll send you an invoice to pay. However, you can choose to pay by: