General Licences - Scotland

General licences in Scotland are currently issued by NatureScot (formerly Scottish Natural Heritage). You don’t need to apply to use a general licence, but you are required by law to abide by their terms and conditions.

What you need to know

If you control pest species under general licences in Scotland, you need to be aware that the current licences issued by NatureScot will expire on 31 March 2020. This covers the following licences:

• GL 01/2020: To kill or take certain birds for the conservation of wild birds.
• GL 02/2020: To kill or take certain birds for the prevention of serious damage to livestock, foodstuffs for livestock, crops, vegetables and fruit.
• GL 03/2020: To kill or take certain birds for the preservation of public health, public safety and preventing the spread of disease
• GL 14/2020: To use certain traps to kill stoats for the conservation of wild birds or for the prevention of serious damage to livestock.

There is also a requirement to comply with standing conditions when using general licences over certain special protected areas and special areas of conservation.

In addition, individuals using traps must ensure they register with NatureScot. The online registration portal can be found here.

There will no longer be a requirement to register landholdings or farms using traps with Police Scotland from 1 April 2020 onwards.

What is BASC doing?

BASC work closely with NatureScot to ensure current and future licences are fit for purpose. We regularly meet with representatives from NatureScot and the Scottish Government to make the views of the BASC membership known.

For further information on Scottish general licences, please call: 01350 723 226.