Horse Passports

Horse Passports (England) Regulations 2004 require that all equines are issued with an identification passport once they reach 6 months of age and it is illegal to sell, export, slaughter for human consumption, compete or breed from a horse that does not have a passport.

The purpose of horse passports is to provide an identification document for the horse and to ensure that horses that have been treated with certain veterinary medicines cannot be slaughtered for human consumption. Horse owners should complete Section IX to declare whether or not the horse is ultimately intended for human consumption.

Horse passports are not proof of ownership, but are an indentification document for the horse and are needed in certain cases of veterinary treatment, and so should be kept by the person responsible for the day-to-day care of the horse. This may be the owner, someone who keeps the horse on loan, a livery yard or stud where the horse is on full livery, etc. Passports should also travel with the horse when being transported.