There are now strict rules to ensure that only those able to provide zoo-level welfare standards will be able to keep primates.
From 6 April 2026, anyone other than licensed zoos and certain medical research facilities keeping primates must have a primate keeper licence. Primates include:
- marmosets
- tamarins
- squirrel monkeys
- spider monkeys
- capuchin monkeys
- lemurs
- lorisids (also known as bush babies)
Licences will be valid for a maximum of three years, with further assessment to ensure continued compliance on renewal.
From April 2026, keeping a primate without a primate keeper licence will be a criminal offence. A conviction for unlicensed keeping of a primate carries a penalty of imprisonment for a term of up to six months, an unlimited fine, or both.
View a summary of regulations relating to this licence [legislation.gov.uk].
Apply for a licence
After you apply for a licence, an inspection by a vet or other suitably qualified and professional person will be arranged to check whether the licence conditions are likely to be met if the application were to be granted.
Following the inspection, if we are satisfied that the licence conditions are likely to be met, the application will be granted. If we are not satisfied, then the application must be refused.
Please return your completed form along with your fee receipt (see below Fees information) to either:
- Email: commercial@cambridge.gov.uk or
- Post: Commercial & Licensing Team, Cambridge City Council, PO BOX 700, Cambridge CB1 0JH
Fees
- Fee on application: £94
- Initial rating or re-rating fee: £53 plus vet’s fee
- Maintenance fee: £466
- Variation of a licence requiring a re-inspection: £266 plus vet's fee
Before you submit your application, please contact our Cashiers team on 01223 457000 and make the secure payment over the phone. Please then attach the receipt to your application.
How long do licences last?
Primate licences last for a maximum of three years but you can request a shorter period if necessary.
You must apply to renew your licence ten weeks before your current one ends.
What paperwork will I need to submit with my application?
The regulations require the following paperwork to be kept as part of the licence. In order to ensure we deal with your application as quickly as possible, you should submit them as part of your application.
Your policies and procedures should provide a snapshot of your business and detail how you meet all of the licence conditions.
Paperwork required:
- premises plan
- register of all animals kept on the premises, including:
- name
- sex
- microchip number
- date of birth or, if not known, approximate date of birth
- species
- colour and markings
- name and contact details of its previous keeper (where applicable)
- date and cause of its death (where applicable)
- where the primate is permanently transferred to other premises, the name and contact details of the new keeper (where applicable) and the address of the place to which it has been relocated
- written emergency plan covering:
- measures to be taken for the removal of the primates should the licensed premises become unsafe or uninhabitable
- arrangements for the care of the primates during and following an emergency
- up-to-date list of emergency contact details that includes the fire service and police
- written procedure for special circumstances, including contingencies in the event of the:
- temporary isolation of any primate including arrangements for ensuring that the welfare needs of any primate that is being temporarily isolated are met during the period of its isolation
- death or escape of a primate
- care of the primates following the revocation of the licence or the death of the licence holder
- individual diet plans for each primate - this must be created based on guidance from a vet or primate dietary expert
- written hygiene protocol, covering:
- cleaning and disinfecting
- prevention and control of the spread of disease
- written transportation procedure covering the welfare of the primate while being transported
Conditions of licence
All licences will be issued subject to the conditions set out in Schedule 1 of the Animal Welfare (Primate Licences) (England) Regulations 2024.
Inspections of licensed premises
A local authority that has granted a primate licence may, at any reasonable hour during the licence period, arrange for a suitable person to inspect the premises specified in the licence to determine whether the licence conditions are being met.
Offences
From 6 April 2026 it will be an offence under section 13 of the Animal Welfare Act 2006 to keep a primate without a licence. This offences carries a maximum penalty of imprisonment for a term not exceeding 51 weeks or an unlimited fine, or both.
From 6 April 2026 it will be an offence to breach any condition of a licence issued to someone authorising them to keep primates. This offences carries a maximum penalty an unlimited fine.
Revocation or variation of a licence
We may revoke or vary a licence issued if they are satisfied the licence holder has failed to:
- comply with a licence condition
- allow access for an inspection
- pay any fees required in connection with a licence application (including veterinary fees)
A council can vary the licence by reducing the number of any primates of any species that is authorised to be kept under the licence or removing any species of primate specified in the licence
