Quarantine & Pesticides

According to the Rabies Regulation, Cap. 421A, dog keepers must apply for a dog licence for keeping any dog over the age of 5 months.

The dog licensing procedures include microchipping the dog for identification, vaccinating the dog against rabies to protect the dog and to help create an immune population barrier to rabies and issue of an A4 size paper dog licence and a collar tag. (Different colour for different years of vaccination.)

In practice, dogs aged over 3 months can be microchipped, vaccinated against rabies and licensed.

The licence and the antirabies vaccination must be renewed every 3 years. This is also required by law. [The microchip normally lasts for life.]

The procedure can be carried out by a registered veterinary surgeon in a private veterinary clinic, an SPCA veterinary clinic, or at one of the four AFCD Animal Management Centres and Inoculation Centres.

To read more on dog licensing, click here.

The microchips are safe to use and have been used safely and successfully in hundreds of thousands of animals of many sizes from very small animals to very big animals.

The microchip is about the size of a grain of rice and is implanted under the skin in a way similar to giving an injection.

The microchip identifies the dog, and helps us to reunite your dog with you if you lose your dog and it is found.

It is important for you to notify us if your address or contact details change so that our records are up-to-date.

Microchipping for dogs is required by law.

To read more, click here.

You should notify AFCD in writing within 5 days of any change of address and telephone. You may do so by completing relevant part of the reverse side of the Dog Licence and return to AFCD, and you should receive at no fee a new licence with the new details on it valid until the expiry date of the original dog licence which it updates. If the paper licence is lost, contact the hotline 1823 or write to AFCD Animal Management regarding how to do it. [There may be a small fee for issuing replacements for lost licences.]

To read more, click here.

You should notify AFCD in writing within 5 days of any change of address and telephone or cessation of ownership. You may do so by completing relevant part of the reverse page of the Dog Licence and return it to AFCD. The new owner can also complete his/her part on the back of the dog licence at the time you pass the dog to him/her, to update our records and to enable us to issue the amendment licence in the new owner's name.

To read more, click here.

Anyone who wishes to adopt animals from AFCD must adopt through an approved animal welfare organization as listed in the AFCD website.

This is to provide better animal welfare arrangements in the adoption process, with veterinary treatment to vaccinate, de-worm, and other checks and treatments as needed, as well as sterilisation to prevent future surplus offspring; and also the opportunity for the adopter to follow up with the animal welfare organisation for the continuing welfare and care of the animal.

To read more, click here.

You should promptly report the case (with ID number of the keeper, micro-chip number, full contact details, etc. and as much information as possible) to the AFCD Animal Management Centre[s] (hotline Tel 1823), SPCA and Police. Also inform other local animal welfare organisations, and veterinary surgeons in your area, as well as friends and neighbours, so that they can all help in case they see the dog.

You can also check with the Animal Management Centres in your area to look for your lost pet at the Centres. Stray animals are normally kept for four days after being found or caught by AFCD. After that, they may be euthanased, or be rehomed through an animal welfare organisation. Regrettably, as adopters are limited in number, the majority of the animals are euthanased if not claimed within 4 days.

However, if the animal is microchipped, we keep the animal while we attempt to contact the registered owner as per the details in our database; therefore it is valuable for you to ensure that your dog is properly microchipped, and currently licensed [renewed every three years], and that we have your up-to-date contact details and address, so that we can make the contact.

To read more, click here.

Yes, you need to take your pet to a registered veterinarian for vaccinations against diseases that are specific to the species and for health checks and de-worming, sterilisation to prevent unwanted offspring, etc.

According to Public Health (Animals and Birds) Ordinance Cap. 139, and/or the Rabies Ordinance Cap. 421, a permit is to be obtained from this Department prior to the import of animals and birds into Hong Kong and the permit terms must be fully complied with to prevent the introduction of communicable animal diseases into Hong Kong. To read more on import of animals and birds, click here.

If the animals and birds to be imported are endangered species, then you must also apply for the relevant endangered species permits, for details please click here.

If the animals and birds to be exported are endangered species, an endangered species export licence must be obtained from this Department, for details please click here.

All export of animals and birds must comply with the import requirements of the destination country/region. To facilitate members of the public to comply with these requirements, this Department provides health certificate endorsement service. If information can be provided to show that the government of the destination requires an official health certificate, this Department can also provide assistance, for details please click here.

Under the Pesticides Ordinance, Cap. 133 of the Laws of Hong Kong, this department regulates the import, supply, manufacture, repackaging, storage and retail of all pesticides in Hong Kong. For those dealing with registered pesticides, they should apply a Pesticides Licence from this department; while those dealing with unregistered pesticides, they should apply a Pesticides Permit.

Furthermore, each consignment of pesticide to be imported or exported should comply with the Import and Export Ordinance, Cap. 60 and must be covered by an Import or Export Licence issued by this department under the delegated authorities from the Director-General of Trade and Industry.

To read more, click here.

Under the Plant (Importation and Pest Control) Ordinance, Cap. 207, it is illegal to import plants, plant pests or soil into Hong Kong without a valid Plant Import Licence / Authorization issued in advance by the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department. However, cut flowers, vegetables / fruits / seeds for consumption, soil and plants produced in and imported from any place in China outside Hong Kong are exempted from requirement of import documents.

To read more, click here.