Register your pet
All dogs and cats must be registered before they're 6 months old.
Project Status: When you need to do this
- You must register your animal within 28 days of these due dates, or a late fee will be payable with your registration fee.
- If your pet goes astray, the pound or vet can use the microchip and registration details to contact you.
- Registration is cheaper if cats are desexed by 4 months and dogs are desexed by 6 months of age.
- You must also apply for an annual permit for cats over 4 months of age that aren't desexed, and dangerous and restricted dogs.
Fees and charges
We're currently updating the information on this page and some fees and charges from 1 July 2020 may not be accurate.
Please visit the Office of Local Government website for more information.
What you need to do
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Register with NSW pet registry
If you’re an owner or breeder
- Pet owners and breeders can create an online profile with the NSW pet registry. You can update your details, notify if your dog or cat is missing, register ownership changes and pay registration fees online.
- Breeders are issued with a breeder identification number to record owner and animal information to help track litters over time.
If you’re a vet
Vets are required to update the register when they desex cats and dogs. Vets are also able to update the register if they believe a pet should not be desexed for medical reasons.
If you’re a pensioner
You need to register with us in person and bring the relevant documents.
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Register with us
- Check that you live within the City of Sydney's boundaries. If not, you must contact your local council.
- If you don't have a certificate of identification, you must complete a permanent identification form, found below.
- Complete the lifetime registration form, found below.
- If you already have a certificate of identification, you must include a photocopy of the identification certificate with the lifetime registration form. We need you to do this so we can contact you to complete your registration.
- Lodge both forms with us. See details on each form as well as the payment and submitting your documents section below.
Your completed registration
Depending on whether you have certificate of identification or not, your registration takes one of two forms:
- lifetime registration form and permanent identification form
- lifetime registration form and certificate of identification.
Payment and lodging documents
Residents can lodge the required documents in 1 of 3 ways:
- Email your lifetime registration form with the permanent identification form or the certificate of identification along with your desexing certificate to [email protected]. When your paperwork is processed, we will email you a secure link to make your payment online.
- Bring your lifetime registration form with the permanent identification form or the certificate of identification along with your desexing certificate to a customer service centre with your payment.
- Post your lifetime registration form with the permanent identification form or the certificate of identification along with your desexing certificate and a cheque/money order made payable to the City of Sydney Council.
Before you start
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Check if you qualify for a discount
If applicable, there are other forms you can also submit to gain discounts:
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a desexing certificate (if your pet has been desexed) will make your registration cheaper
From 1 July 2020 owners of cats not desexed by 4 months of age will be required to pay an annual permit of $80 in addition to their one-off lifetime pet registration fee. If you need to do this, the annual permit form can be found below.
- pensioner concession card
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a receipt showing that your desexed animal was adopted from an eligible pound/shelter after the 29 October 2015 – the receipt must show the adopted animal's microchip number
Adoptions from a pound/shelter in NSW are eligible for discounted registration if the animal was adopted after 29 October 2015 from:
- RSPCA
- Animal Welfare League NSW
- Cat Protection Society
- Council pound
- proof of assistance animal status
- proof of breeder status.
Adoptions from a rehoming organisation in NSW are eligible for a discounted registration if the animal was adopted after 1 September 2018. Please see list of approved rehoming organisations.The following documents must be supplied:- Either a receipt of sale or a letter on the organisations letterhead, and must include the microchip number, and rehoming organisation number.
For documentation requirements, see proof of eligibility below.
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a desexing certificate (if your pet has been desexed) will make your registration cheaper
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Make sure your pet is already microchipped and that you have received your certificate of identification
Get your pet microchipped at your local vet or animal welfare organisation - they are accredited to do this procedure.
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Check your pet isn’t a restricted breed
Some breeds are restricted under NSW law and these breeds can no longer be sold or given away in NSW. It is illegal to accept ownership of such a dog. If you own a restricted breed you must register the dog with the City.
From 1 July 2020 owners of dogs of a restricted breed or formally declared to be dangerous will be required to pay a $195 annual permit in addition to their one-off lifetime pet registration fee.
If you need to do this, the annual permit form can be found below. Owners of cats not desexed by 4 months of age are also required to do this.
After you finish
You will receive your certificate of registration once your cat or dog is registered, and where applicable the identification certificate.
Please note: The permanent identification form or a copy of your identification certificate must be included in your submission. Without it, we will not be able to contact you or complete your registration.
The registration fee is a once-only payment and covers lifetime registration in NSW, even if pet ownership changes.
Your registration details will be recorded on the NSW Companion Animals Register.
Other information
Proof of eligibility
To qualify for a discount as a pensioner concession card holder, recognised breeder or if the animal you're registering has assistance animal status, you must provide the following documentation:
Fees and documentation requirements
Please note that cats and dogs must be registered before they are 6 months old.
In addition to the below, a late fee of $17 is also payable with the registration fee if you don't register your animal within 28 days after this due date.
Fines for unregistered pets
If you do not register a dog or cat by 6 months of age or older you can be fined $330 on-the-spot. If you own a dangerous, menacing or restricted breed of dog and don't register it before it is 6 months old you face a $1,760 fine. The maximum penalty for not registering animals is $6,600 (for subsequent offences). For not registering dangerous, restricted and menacing dogs, it is $7,700 (for subsequent offences).
Pocket pets
Pets come in all shapes and sizes and many of our residents keep rats, ferrets, rabbits, guinea pigs and other pocket-sized pets.
See the NSW RSPCA website for information on caring for pocket pets.
Wildlife
We do not endorse keeping snakes or other native Australian wildlife as pets.
The RSPCA notes that these animals rarely enjoy human company and require specialised housing and feeding.
In NSW, you must have a licence to keep a reptile.
Other requirements
- You must be over 18 years old to register a pet. A parent or guardian cannot register cats and dogs on behalf of children and teenagers under 18.
- If your address or ownership changes, you need to change your pet registration.
- If you are moving to NSW with your pet, you need to change your pet registration.
- When dogs or cats are in a public place they must wear an identification disc on their collar that is engraved with their name and their owner's contact number.
- We recommend all cats that are allowed to roam should wear a collar and tag. All cats must, by law, be microchipped.