Registering and transporting animals

Horses

All horses, including ponies, donkeys, exotic equines such as zebras and crossbreeds, must have their own horse passport.

A horse (including weaned foals) must be accompanied by a valid horse passport when it is moved:

  • for competition purposes
  • for breeding purposes
  • out of Scotland
  • to the premises of a new keeper
  • for veterinary treatment

Get a horse passport

It is an offence for any person to sell a horse without a passport. For all new horse passport applications, the horse must be micro-chipped.

Horse passports are a means of identifying individual animals and making sure horses treated with certain medicines do not end up as food for human consumption.

Page last modified: 13 January 2026

Animal welfare standards

Full list of guidance on the care and welfare of animals, including disease control, hygiene, transport and sale.

Read the guidance