The holding register is the plain, on-farm record that sits behind every movement report, tag and passport. It is also the first thing an inspector asks to see, so it is worth knowing exactly what it must hold and how long it must be kept.
Every keeper of cattle, sheep, goats or pigs in England must keep a holding register for each holding, and record movements within 36 hours. Cattle births go in within 30 days (7 for dairy) and deaths within 7 days. Keep a cattle register for 10 years from 31 December of the year of the last entry, a sheep and goat register for 3 years after the last animal dies or leaves, and a pig register for 3 years after you stop keeping pigs. Medicine records are separate and need 5 years. See also our sheep movement reporting guide.
In England, anyone with day-to-day care of cattle, sheep, goats or pigs must keep a holding register, and a separate one for each holding. It is also called a herd register, flock record or farm records. The point is traceability: an officer must be able to see where animals came from and went to.
What goes in depends on the species, and so does how long you keep it. This is the England picture:
| Species (England) | What you record, and when | How long you keep it |
|---|---|---|
| Cattle | Movements and tag changes within 36 hours, births within 7 days (dairy) or 30 days (other), deaths within 7 days | 10 years from 31 December of the year of the last entry |
| Sheep and goats | Tagging, replacement tags, movements and deaths within 36 hours, plus the year-end total | 3 years after the last animal dies or leaves |
| Pigs | Movements within 36 hours, plus a yearly inventory | 3 years after you stop keeping pigs |
The register is not the same as the report to the national database. The register is your own record, made within hours. The report, for example to BCMS or LIS, has its own clock, covered in the cattle 3-day reporting rule.
Cattle keepers must record movements, births, deaths and changes to official ear tag numbers. For each animal GOV.UK says the register must hold the ear tag number, date of birth, sex, breed code, the genetic dam's tag number for animals born on the holding, any surrogate dam, the dates of movements on and off with the CPH number or keeper's name and address, and the date of death if it dies on your holding.
Update it within 36 hours of a movement or of a tag change that alters the number, within 7 days of a dairy birth, within 30 days of any other birth and within 7 days of a death. Movements also go in the animal's passport, on top of the register entry.
Keep the register for 10 years from 31 December of the year you last made an entry if you have a farm, and 3 years for a showground, market, abattoir or collection centre. You can use a template, paper, a spreadsheet or farm software. The trap is the 10 years: a tidy register is no use if the older books have been thrown out.
Keepers of sheep and goats must record the first tagging of each lamb or kid, replacement tags, movements on and off, and deaths, plus the total on the holding at the end of each year for the annual inventory. Tagging, replacements, movements and deaths all go in within 36 hours.
For first tags record the date, the official ID number (or flock mark for slaughter tags), year of birth, and breed and genotype if you know them. For off movements record the date, ID numbers, number moved, the CPH it went to, and the haulier's name and vehicle registration.
Keep the register for 3 years after the last animal dies or leaves the holding. You can use LIS, farm software, a spreadsheet, a notebook or the Defra template. Tag rules and the inventory are in our sheep EID tags and flock register guide.
Pig keepers must record every movement to or from the holding within 36 hours, pet pigs included. Each entry carries the herd mark (or marks, if the pigs come from more than one herd), the number of pigs with each mark, and the holding the pigs came from or went to.
Individual ID numbers only matter for pigs going to shows or exhibitions, artificial insemination centres or other breeding locations, and other countries outside Great Britain.
Once a year, on a date you choose, record the number of pigs on the holding that day and the total normally kept. Keep the records for 3 years after you stop keeping pigs and show them to a field officer if asked. You can use paper, a spreadsheet, farm software or the eAML2 movements archive as your register.
That is the England rule. If you keep pigs in Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland, check your own government's guidance, as I have not covered the devolved pig rules here.
For cattle the biggest figure is the same everywhere. Wales says keep the herd register 10 years after the last entry, and make it available to the Welsh Government, the local authority or APHA on request. Scotland says holding registers must be kept 10 years from the end of the calendar year of the last entry, with 3 years for markets and similar. Northern Ireland's DAERA gives the same 10 years from the end of the calendar year for herd registers.
Sheep rules differ more. Wales requires full records for each sheep to be kept at least 3 years from the date they move off or die. Scotland's sheep guidance sets its own timescales for entries, so read the Scottish Government pages rather than assuming the English 36 hours.
If you hold land in two nations, check each nation's rules rather than assuming one set covers both.
More people than you might expect. GOV.UK says the local authority can inspect any livestock farm, covering animal identification, livestock records and movement controls. RPA field officers visit sheep and goat holdings and check your holding register against what you reported to LIS, along with the movement documents you hold.
A site visit usually takes about 5 hours and you may get up to 48 hours' notice, or none. The officer checks head counts, tags, and 60 random animals or all of them if you have fewer.
The penalty is not trivial. If you have no farm records or holding register at all, you get a whole flock or herd movement restriction notice. Other consequences listed by GOV.UK include reduced subsidy payments, fines and prosecution.
My advice is to keep the register where you can lay hands on it in minutes, and to know which book or login holds the current year.
Three records overlap and they must agree. The holding register says which animals were where. The movement report, to BCMS, LIS or your nation's system, tells the government. The medicine record says what was given, to which animals, and when. A withdrawal period is only safe to rely on if the animal ID in the medicine book matches the ID in the register.
Medicine records for food-producing animals must be kept for at least 5 years under the Veterinary Medicines Regulations, must be durable and permanent, and must be available for inspection on request. That is a different clock from the register. See our 5-year medicine record rule and what goes in the Red Tractor medicine book.
FarmHQ is a mobile-first farm office app for UK livestock farms, in pre-launch beta. It aims to hold movements, tags and treatments against the same animal record, with Ask Farmer Joe drafting entries for you to confirm. The wider picture of deadlines is in the UK livestock deadlines calendar.
In England, 10 years from 31 December of the year you last made an entry, if you have a farm. Showgrounds, markets, abattoirs and collection centres keep theirs for 3 years. Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland also set 10 years for cattle herd registers in their official guidance.
In England, for 3 years after the last animal dies or leaves the holding. Wales asks for full records for each sheep for at least 3 years from the date it moves off or dies. Check Scottish and Northern Irish guidance for the exact wording on your nation.
No. The holding register is your own on-farm record, updated within 36 hours of a movement. The movement report goes to the national system, such as BCMS or LIS, and has its own deadline, commonly 3 days. You need to do both for every movement.
Yes. For cattle, sheep and goats, GOV.UK accepts paper, a spreadsheet, farm software or a template, and LIS for sheep and goats. The format does not matter as long as every required item is there and you can produce it when an officer or inspector asks.
No, medicine records are a separate requirement under the Veterinary Medicines Regulations and must be kept for at least 5 years. Cattle keepers can use a section in the template holding register for them, but they follow their own retention rule.