General licences
On this page:
- 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
- What are General Licences and how do you use them?
- What activities can you carry out under General Licence and for which species?
- Full list of General Licences 2012
- Public Consultation
- General Licences Outside England
What are General Licences and how do you use them?
General 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. Please note that in 2011 many of the licence reference numbers were changed and a series of Class Licences were launched: (21kb)
. Some of these class licences replace previous General Licences, but others are entirely new and will reduce administrative burden on both our customers and Natural England. Please see our Class licences page for more details. Also note that long running licences WML-GL02, WML-GL03 and WML-GL04 were revoked at the end of 2010, and were replaced by new General Licences or Class Licences. Substantive changes to the conditions of these licences were not made.
If there is no General Licence or Class Licence relevant to your situation, you will need to apply for a personal licence; full details are available on our licences webpage.
If you plan to act under the authority of a General Licence, you must:
be satisfied that you are eligible to do so (eligibility is licence-specific and in most cases there is a condition preventing use of the licences by persons who are convicted of wildlife crimes after 01 January 2010)
act within the provisions of the relevant General Licence and therefore the law. This means that it is your responsibility to read the conditions of the licence to ensure that your situation is covered, and to comply with these conditions. However, you do not need to carry a paper copy of the relevant General Licence.
Some General Licences require annual reporting of actions carried out, the required forms can be downloaded below.
What activities can you carry out under General Licence and for which species?
General Licences are issued for a range of activities, including the sale, exhibition and possession of protected species, the investigation of crimes, the rehabilitation of injured animals and the control of certain species that are, at times, in conflict with people's interests (e.g. damage to crops and the conservation of other species). All licences and examples of when they may be used are listed below.
Many General Licences include a full list of the species for which the activities can be carried out. Some licences permit activities only in relation to certain groups of birds listed on Schedules associated with the legislation. For up to date information on the law including contents of these schedules, please go to www.legislation.gov.uk
and search for ‘Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981’. For General Licences under The Conservation of Habitats and Species Regulations 2010 - (WML-GL02, WML-GL03, WML-GL04) a list of Annex IV species: (125kb) Habitats Directive is available.
General licences valid from January 1st 2012
Please note that most General Licences are valid from 1 January until 31 December each year. When licences are renewed on 1 January changes may be made to the terms and conditions or to the accompanying advice. You are therefore advised to read the latest version of any licence you intend to use before you use it for the first time each calendar year. Only minor changes have been made to the 2012 licences: (143kb). Copies of 2011 General Licences are available from the Wildlife Licensing Unit on request.
Management of species causing conflict with conservation or human interests
Keep, trap and release licences for rehabilitation or research
Management of species causing conflict with conservation or human interests
These licences allow species to be managed in certain specific circumstances where there is clear evidence that they are causing problems and non lethal methods have failed.
| Prevention of damage or disease | |
|---|---|
| General Licences | Who can use this? |
| To kill or take certain birds to prevent serious damage or disease WML-GL04: (167kb) (Species list and methods that can be used are included in the licence, example situation – serious crop damage by woodpigeon, non lethal methods have failed) | Authorised persons (e.g. landowners/occupiers) |
| To kill or take certain birds to preserve public health or public safety WML-GL05: (167kb) (Species list and methods that can be used are included in the licence, example situation – feral pigeon fouling causing public health risk, non lethal methods have failed) | Authorised persons (e.g. landowners/ occupiers) |
| Conserving flora & fauna | |
| General Licences | Who can use this? |
| To kill or take certain birds to conserve flora & fauna WML-GL06: (166kb) (Species list and methods that can be used are included in the licence, example situation – to prevent significant adverse impacts on native species e.g. Lapwing by non-native species e.g. Canada Geese) | Authorised persons (e.g. landowners/ occupiers) |
| To take birds' eggs WML-GL12: (159kb) (Removal of unsuccessful eggs from nest boxes at the end of the season to conserve birds) | Authorised persons (e.g. landowners/ occupiers) |
| To kill, or take Ruddy Ducks (Oxyura jamaicensis), their nests or eggs WML-GL21: (195kb) | Authorised persons (e.g. landowners/ occupiers) |
Keep, trap and release licences for rehabilitation or research
These licences allow a range of activities in relation to rehabilitation or research. Including keeping without registration of Schedule 4 birds that are injured so they can be tended prior to release.
| General Licences | Who can use this? |
|---|---|
| To keep certain wild birds for the purposes of rehabilitation WML-GL07: (131kb) (Schedule 4 birds) | Authorised persons (e.g. RSPCA, RSPB) |
| To keep certain birds for the purposes of providing veterinary treatment WML-GL08: (125kb) (Schedule 4 birds) | Veterinary surgeons and veterinary practitioners |
| To take eggs of Anas Platyrhynchos (Mallard Duck) WML-GL13: (116kb) (For incubation of eggs and release of birds that would not survive adverse weather) | Authorised persons (e.g. landowners/ occupiers) |
| To release native bird species listed on Schedule 9 WML-GL22: (139kb) (Capercaillie, Barn Owl). Note this licence permits release both of rehabilitated birds and those trapped under Natural England licence e.g. for scientific purposes | Anyone (see licence conditions) |
| For the trapping and marking of shrews WML-GL01: (130kb) (Trapping for scientific or educational purposes) | Persons with appropriate trapping experience |
| For the release non-native bees in glass houses WML-GL24: (134kb) | Commercial growers (see licence conditions) |
Investigation of offences
These licenses allow authorised people to hold material that would otherwise be illegal while offences are investigated.
| General Licences | Who can use this? |
|---|---|
| To keep certain birds, pending legal proceedings WML-GL09 (Schedule 4 birds): (125kb) | Authorised organisations (e.g. Police) & those acting on their behalf |
| To retain blood and other tissue sample WML-GL10 (wild birds & wild animals): (117kb) | Laboratories and scientific institutions |
Sale and exhibition
These licences allow the legal holding of protected animals, birds and eggs for a variety of reasons.
| General Licences | Who can use this? |
|---|---|
| To permit the incubation of eggs and rearing of chicks of Schedule 4 birds WML-GL11: (119kb) (As birds cannot be ringed when very young this licence permits the keeping of unringed Schedule 4 bird chicks for 15 days after hatching.) | Anyone (see licence conditions) |
| To permit the competitive showing of certain captive bred live wild birds WML-GL14: (221kb) (For ringed and unringed birds) | Anyone (see licence conditions) |
| To permit the sale and exhibition of captive bred Mealy Redpoll WML-GL15: (155kb) (Note: these birds do not take standard rings) | Anyone (see licence conditions) |
| To allow the keeping of certain birds in show cages for training purposes WML-GL16: (109kb) (Allows cages of dimensions smaller than detailed in the legislation to be used in specific circumstances for short periods) | Anyone (see licence conditions) |
| To sell dead birds - WML-GL17: (173kb) | Anyone (see licence conditions) |
| To sell captive bred live wild birds - WML-GL18: (181kb) | Anyone (see licence conditions) |
| To sell certain species of amphibian WML-GL19: (120kb) (Common frog, common toad, smooth newt, palmate newt) | Anyone (see licence conditions) |
| To sell certain dead animals WML-GL20: (122kb) (red squirrel & pine marten) | Anyone (see licence conditions) |
| To sell black-headed gull eggs for human consumption (where legally taken under a Natural England licence) WML-GL23: (156kb) | Retailers and restaurants |
Possession of European Protected Species
These licenses allow legal possession of dead specimens for educational, scientific or disease purposes.
| General Licences | Who can use this? |
|---|---|
| For possession of dead specimens by members of the Guild of Taxidermists WML-GL02: (125kb) This licence replaces 2010 WML-GL03 which has been revoked, there are no substantive changes to the conditions.
Annex IV species list: (125kb) | Members of the Guild of Taxidermists |
| For people submitting bats to the VLA for Rabies testing WML-GL03: (123kb) This licence replaced 2010 WML-GL04 which has been revoked, there are no substantive changes to the conditions. | Anyone (see conditions) |
Public Consultation
Natural England last conducted a public consultation on its General Licences in 2009.
General Licences Outside England
Natural England does not have control over the licences issued by the devolved administrations elsewhere in the UK. However please see the following web links for information:
The Scottish Government - General Licences
Welsh Assembly Government - General Licences
Countryside Council for Wales - General Licences
Northern Ireland Environment Agency - General Licences
Please note that General Licences issued elsewhere may differ in the conditions applied, as with Natural England’s licences it is essential that you read any licence before you carry out any action under it.
