GovWire

When you started keeping livestock, you will have:

• applied to the Rural Payment Agency (RPA) to get a county parish holding (CPH) number
• registered with the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) to get a flock or herd mark (or register as a keeper of poultry)

You will also have registered with the British Cattle Movement Service (BCMS) if you keep cattle, bison or buffalo. This is so that you can register cattle births and report movements and deaths.

You must keep your details up to date with the organisations you registered with. This helps to ensure livestock can be traced to help prevent and control disease.

When you must update your details

If your details or circumstances change, you must contact RPA and APHA as soon as possible (and within 30 days).

This includes a change to:

• your address
• your telephone number
• the name of your business
• where you plan to keep livestock (for example, taking on, or giving up, land)
• the species of livestock you keep

You must also contact them if you plan to stop keeping livestock (including if someone else takes on your farm).

If you keep poultry

You must also contact APHA if the size of your flock changes by 20%.

If you keep cattle, bison or buffalo

You must also contact the British Cattle Movement Service (BCMS) to update them about any change.

If your telephone number has changed, you will not be able to use the CTS self-service helpline until you update it.

Who to contact

Contact the Defra rural services helpline to update RPA and APHA.

You can also email:

• RPA: ruralpayments@defra.gov.uk - use CPH number update as the subject in your email
• APHA: customer.registration@apha.gov.uk

If you keep cattle, bison or buffalo

Contact BCMS by email or telephone.