Form

How to complete the licence application form: gatherings of poultry or other captive birds (passeriformes, columbiformes and ratites)

Updated 8 December 2025

Applies to England

The form allows you to apply for a licence to hold a gathering of poultry or other captive birds not covered by general licence.

If you are planning to hold more than one gathering, you have to apply separately for each event.

You must complete all sections in parts 1 and 2 of the form.  

If possible, you should email your application to APHA at least 20 days before the event.

Part 1 

Name of person requesting licence  

The licence must be requested and signed by the person responsible for organising the gathering. The applicant will remain responsible for compliance with the licence conditions as detailed in the licence annex.  

You should include your contact details. We will use them to contact you if we have any questions about your application.

Address where the gathering will occur  

We need to be able to check if there are specific restrictions in place on the premises. We will determine what can and cannot happen based on this information.  

If you can provide the CPH number for the premises (if applicable) this may reduce the time it takes for us to process your application.

You must tell us the date you plan to hold the event as it allows us to prioritise the processing of applications.

Type of birds present at the gathering

We need to know the type of gathering that you are applying for to make sure that we issue the appropriate licence for your event. Tick all boxes that apply for the types of birds that will attend.

• “anseriformes” refers to an order of birds including ducks, geese and swans
• “ratites” refers to a group of birds including ostriches, emus and rheas
• “galliformes” refers to an order of birds including turkeys, chickens, quail, partridges and pheasants 
• “columbiformes” refers to an order birds including fancy pigeons and doves but excluding racing pigeons
• “passeriformes” refers to an order of birds including canaries and finches

Description of birds present at the gathering

You must include a list of which species will be attending for each type (order) of birds that you are applying to be at the gathering.

Maximum number of birds to attend

You should be as detailed as possible in this section, including the: 

• maximum number of birds gathering  
• anticipated number of each type of bird to be gathered

Maximum number of origin premises

We need to know the maximum number of premises that the birds attending the gathering will originate from.

Anticipated locations of above origin premises

For the above maximum number of origin premises, we will need to know the anticipated locations for the bird origin premises.

The purposes of the gathering

We need to know what type of gathering will be held. Tick all boxes that are applicable for the proposed gathering.

Name of veterinary surgeon and named of designated bird expert

You must tell us the name and contact details of the veterinary surgeon that you will consult if any birds at the gathering show any signs of ill-health or welfare problems.    

For bird gatherings of any ratites, columbiformes or passeriformes, you must also provide the name and contact details of the designated bird expert that will be responsible for individually inspecting birds at the gathering.  

At bird gatherings of any galliformes, you must provide the name and contact details of the designated veterinary surgeon that will be responsible for individually inspecting birds at the gathering.

These individuals must be appointed by the applicant (the organiser of the gathering) and should be an experienced bird keeper, specifically with knowledge of the species attending the event. They must be sufficiently skilled to recognise signs of ill-health in the birds.

Disinfectants

Provide information on the type of government-approved disinfectant that you plan to use at the gathering. 

You can read a list of Defra-approved disinfectants for use against poultry diseases.

Part 2 

If any part of the declaration is incomplete, we will be unable to process your application.

Contingency plan 

When you send your licence application form to APHA, you need to include a written contingency plan that makes arrangements for what will happen if there is suspicion or confirmation of a notifiable avian disease at the gathering. The plan must cover:  

• how birds suspected of notifiable avian disease will be separated from other birds 
• where notifiable avian disease is suspected at the gathering, how birds will be kept at the premises until an APHA Veterinary Inspector has given instructions for birds to leave the premises 
• arrangements to ensure that birds remain at the gathering premises if movements off the premises are restricted because the gathering subsequently becomes located in an avian notifiable disease-controlled zone 
• a written attestation and signature confirming the plan has been discussed with and approved by a veterinarian

Get help

If you need help completing the form, contact the APHA Licensing team.  

Email outbreak.licensing@apha.gov.uk