Contents
England only, and what our kit covers
This guide covers England. Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland have their own rules. The Plainfiles dog boarding licence kit is for home boarding and day care licences only, not dog walking, because the Regulations do not licence walking. This guide is not legal advice.
The short version
- Walking dogs, or looking after a dog in its own home, does not need a licence under the Animal Welfare (Licensing of Activities Involving Animals) (England) Regulations 2018, according to DEFRA’s guidance.
- Having other people’s dogs stay in your home, overnight or by day, as a business, does need one. This is home boarding, and includes day care from your own home.
- Councils can set their own limits for walkers. Some use a Public Spaces Protection Order (PSPO) to cap dogs per person, and some run walker licences.
- It only counts if it is a business. Income below the HMRC trading allowance does not need a licence, says DEFRA.
- No law we read requires insurance, though some councils ask for proof of it.
What the Regulations licence
One of the Regulations’ five licensable activities is “providing or arranging for the provision of accommodation for other people’s cats or dogs in the course of a business on any premises where the provision of that accommodation is a purpose of the business”. For dogs that is kennels, home boarding or day care (Schedule 1, paragraph 4). Dog walking is not listed. Your council is the licensing authority. Operating without a licence is an offence under section 13(6) of the Animal Welfare Act 2006, with a penalty of imprisonment, a fine up to level 5, or both (section 32(2)). Breaching a licence condition is a separate offence (regulation 20).
Walking, sitting, boarding and day care
| What you do | Licence under the 2018 Regulations? | Basis |
|---|---|---|
| Walk dogs as a dog walker | No | DEFRA’s day care guidance lists dog walkers among those who do not need a licence |
| Look after a dog in its own home, such as a visiting dog sitter | No | DEFRA’s home boarding guidance lists this |
| Have dogs stay at your home overnight, for a fee | Yes, home boarding | Schedule 1, paragraph 4(c) |
| Look after dogs at your own home by day, for a fee | Yes, home boarding | DEFRA’s day care guidance says this is licensed as home boarding |
| Run day care from premises that are not a home | Yes, day care | Schedule 1, paragraph 4(d) |
| Run a service that arranges boarding with other people’s homes | Yes, in scope | DEFRA’s guidance names franchises and matching services |
Home boarding means housing other people’s dogs, by day or overnight, inside a home that is not the dog’s usual home, not in outdoor kennels. Our home boarding guide lists the conditions and our cost guide shows council fees.
If you mainly walk dogs but also keep them at your home between walks, we found no guidance that settles it. Ask your council before you rely on “I only walk”. Councils also word things differently. Salford’s page says its requirement “also applies to dog and cat sitting services operating in Salford that are organised in a business manner”. Swindon’s says no licence is needed if “the dog remains in its own home, for example, dog sitting”. Salford’s sentence follows its test for providing accommodation, so it may only mean sitting where dogs stay with the sitter, but it does not say so. Swindon’s page also says no dogs beyond the number on a home boarding licence may be allowed onto the premises, including dogs “being walked only”.
Local rules for dog walkers
The Regulations contain no dog walker licence, and we found no national limit on how many dogs one person can walk. Limits come from councils. A council can make a PSPO if it is satisfied that activities in a public place harm local quality of life (section 59 of the Anti-social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014). Breaking one without reasonable excuse is an offence with a fine up to level 3 (section 67), or a fixed penalty of up to £100 (section 68).
| Council | What its pages say |
|---|---|
| Tower Hamlets | Its PSPO (made 30 April 2025) says no one may oversee more than four dogs unless they hold the council’s professional dog walker licence, have a reasonable excuse, or have the landowner’s consent. The licence allows up to six, costs £240 from 1 April 2026 and lasts one year. Applicants must show evidence of adequate insurance. |
| Hammersmith and Fulham | Professional walkers in its parks and open spaces need an annual licence for up to four dogs per walk: £240 for a business registered in the borough, £480 for others, running 1 April to 31 March. A new PSPO in force from 8 October 2026 also stops anyone taking more than 4 dogs onto public land across the borough, unless they have a reasonable excuse or the landowner’s consent. |
| Richmond upon Thames | Its page describes a licence to walk up to six dogs on one of six named sites, with 18 licences in all, running 2 years from 1 October 2025 at £141.67 excluding VAT. The application asks for public liability insurance of at least £2 million. |
Richmond’s page says the council is “re-opening the application process for all 18 licences”, yet it also shows a closing date of 24 September 2025 and a licence period that began on 1 October 2025. We could not tell whether applications are open or the licences are taken, so ask the council. Check the council that owns the park you use.
One number needs care. DEFRA’s guidance for licensed boarders and day care says “a dog walker may walk no more than 6 dogs at the same time”, with the owner’s consent and the dogs familiarised first. That is guidance on exercising the dogs of a licensed home boarding or day care business. It is not a general limit on walkers.
Is it a business?
The Regulations tell councils to take account of whether the operator “makes any sale by, or otherwise carries on, the activity with a view to making a profit”, or “earns any commission or fee from the activity” (Schedule 1, paragraph 1). DEFRA’s guidance adds HMRC’s badges of trade. It says trading income below the HMRC trading income allowance needs no licence, and being above it does not automatically make you a business.
The trading allowance is £1,000 a year for individuals (HMRC’s guidance, and section 783AD of the Income Tax (Trading and Other Income) Act 2005), covering income from self-employment and casual services. It covers all your trading income, not only dogs. Some councils are stricter. Swindon’s page says a boarding licence is needed if you earn “a commission or any fee (even if small)”. If you are close to the line, ask your council.
Do you need insurance?
We found no insurance requirement for a dog boarding or day care operator in the 2018 Regulations or DEFRA’s home boarding, day care or licensing process guidance. (Its riding and animal exhibition licences do require public liability cover.) The only mention is that the dog register must include “details of any insurance relating to the dog”, which is the dog’s cover, not yours. But councils can ask. Bristol lists a public liability insurance certificate for a boarding application, Canterbury asks for “a copy of relevant insurance policies”, and the Tower Hamlets and Richmond walker schemes ask for proof too.
If you take dogs into your home
If you do board or run day care from home, start with your council’s page, because checklists differ. The Plainfiles dog boarding licence kit is for this case only: a conditions matrix, daily care log and paperwork guide for England, £9.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need a licence to be a dog walker in England?
Not under the 2018 Regulations. A council may require a permit or licence in its parks, so check each one.
What we could not confirm
- Hybrid businesses. We found no official wording on walkers who keep dogs at home between walks.
- How to count the trading allowance. DEFRA says “below” where HMRC says “£1,000 or less”, and does not cover other trading income.
- Whether Richmond’s scheme is open. The page shows a 2025 closing date.
- Other councils. We read three councils’ walker rules, not the rest.
- Length of prison term. Section 32(2) says 51 weeks, but section 32(5) reads that as 6 months for offences before section 281(5) of the Criminal Justice Act 2003 is in force, and legislation.gov.uk records no commencement of it. We state no figure.
Sources
Last checked 27 October 2026. Dates are when a page says it was last updated, where it gives one.
- The Animal Welfare (Licensing of Activities Involving Animals) (England) Regulations 2018, legislation.gov.uk (current version): regulation 2, regulation 3, regulation 20, Schedule 1, Schedule 4
- Animal Welfare Act 2006, section 13 and section 32, legislation.gov.uk
- Anti-social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014, section 59, section 67 and section 68, legislation.gov.uk
- Home boarding for dogs licensing: statutory guidance, DEFRA (1 June 2026)
- Dog day care licensing: statutory guidance, DEFRA (1 June 2026)
- Tax-free allowances on property and trading income, HMRC on GOV.UK (page dated 8 May 2019), and Income Tax (Trading and Other Income) Act 2005, section 783AD, legislation.gov.uk (current): the £1,000 amount
- PSPO (dog control) and Professional Dog Walkers Licence FAQs, Tower Hamlets
- Licence for professional dog walkers and Responsible dog ownership protection order, Hammersmith and Fulham
- Apply for a professional dog walking licence, Richmond upon Thames (10 June 2026)
- Boarding for cats or dogs, Salford (4 August 2026)
- Apply for a licence to provide home boarding for dogs, Swindon
- Animal boarding establishments licence, Bristol
- Apply for a licence to board dogs or cats, Canterbury
Changes to this guide
- 27 October 2026: Draft written and checked. Independent fact-check against the primary sources the same day: added the statutory source for the trading allowance, updated two council links, softened the Richmond, Salford and Swindon wording and explained why no prison term is given.
This guide is general information written from the official sources listed above and checked on 27 October 2026. It is not legal, tax or financial advice, and Plainfiles is not endorsed by any government body. Rules change, so check the linked official pages for your own situation. Written and designed by Plainfiles with the help of artificial intelligence (AI) tools, then checked against the official legislation and guidance listed in the sources. How we write and check our guides.