Licences
A wildlife licence gives a person permission to carry out an activity affecting an animal or plant that would otherwise be illegal. Licences are only issued for certain purposes, which are set down in the law, and only where there is a valid justification.
- Licences
- Application forms
- Which application form do I need?
- General licences
- Class licences
- Helpful hints on obtaining licences
- Licensing statistics
- Licensing in the marine environment
Related
- European protected species licensing
- Who needs a licence
- How much does it cost?
- What do I need to do to get one?
- How long does it take to get a licence?
- Renewing licences
Who needs a licence?
A licence is required by anyone who wishes to carry out an activity prohibited under wildlife legislation. Example include: licences to kill or take certain protected species to prevent problems; licences to carry out surveys or conservation work; licences to disturb or damage the habitat of certain strictly protected species; licences to possess or keep certain wildlife.
* In some cases, a general licence may be available for your activity. These licences reduce bureaucracy by allowing people to carry out activities that affect protected species without the need to apply for a personal licence. General Licences are only used for activities that carry a low risk for the conservation or welfare of the protected species and where a personal licence would be routinely issued.
If there is no General Licence relevant to your situation, you will need to apply for a personal licence.
How much does it cost?
Licences and advice are provided free of charge.
What do I need to do to get one?
This will vary depending on what you want to do. Follow this link to our application forms webpage. The guidance there will help you find the appropriate form and this will explain what you need to do to get a licence.
Some applications can be completed online. Microsoft Word format forms may be completed onscreen, saved to your computer and sent to us using the specific e-mail address provided on the form. Alternatively, you can ask us to send you a paper copy of the form and return it to us by post.
The level of information required in the application depends on the nature of the activity you wish to undertake. For some licensed activities (e.g. surveys, certain research activities or implementing mitigation works in relation to developments), you may be required to provide information or references demonstrating your technical expertise. The application form will explain what you need to provide.
For some cases, a site visit or telephone assessment may be required. We will contact you if that is the case.
How long does it take to get a licence?
We will provide you with a licence or a refusal (including an explanation) as quickly as we can and within 30 working days of receiving your application. In certain cases, we aim to provide a response within 15 working days. The relevant application form will give full guidance.
Important notes:
1. You may not assume that consent has been granted if you do not receive a response within 30 working days.
2. If any information required to assess your application is missing or incorrect then the ‘clock’ will be stopped while we will contact you to obtain the information.
3. Where it is not appropriate, on environmental or humaneness grounds, to issue a licence for the time of year you have requested, we will write to you to explain this.
Renewing licences
All licences are time-limited (this is a legal stipulation).
If you are unable to complete an activity before a licence expires you should contact the Licensing Unit as soon as this becomes apparent to request an extension. Please note that extensions cannot be issued once a licence expires and a new licence will need to be issued. To avoid any delays that reissuing may cause please ensure that you request any extension or licence modification before the licence expires.
If you need renew a licence for an ongoing activity (e.g. to manage a problem species) then you can request a renewal when you submit your report of action taken under licence. Repeat licences are issued at the time of year they will be required so you may not receive your renewed licence within the 30-day timeframe set out above.
