Registration & Microchipping

Companion Animal Lifetime Registration fees increase annually in line with the Consumer Price Index (CPI). These fees are set by the NSW Office of Local Government and are applicable to all Councils in NSW.

To view the current fees, refer to the Companion Animal Fees and Charges for 2025–2026 (see page 56).

How to Register Your Pet

Registration of a Companion Animal can be paid to any Council in NSW, or online at the NSW Pet Registry.

If you need to register your cat or dog and require the appropriate paperwork:
  1. Download the registration form from the NSW Office of Local Government:
    Microchipping and Registration Form – NSW Pet Registry

  2. Email the completed form to: council@gisc.nsw.gov.au

  3. Council will contact you to arrange payment via telephone and EFTPOS.

  4.  For assistance, please contact Council on: (02) 6730 2300 or Council Ranger on: 0417 890 889. Alternatively, you can visit Council's Town Hall Administration Office at 265 Grey Street, Glen Innes. 

Annual Permits

Annual Permits are required for Non-desexed Cats, as well as Dangerous and Restricted Dogs.

For further information about these permits, please refer to our Annual Permit page.

Animals Exempt from Registration:

Some animals are exempt from registration and attract no registration fee ($Nil). These include working dogs, assistance animals (such as Guide Dogs and Service Dogs), and registered racing Greyhounds.

To register a working dog, Council requires either a copy of your Primary Producers Declaration or a Statutory Declaration Form stating that the animal is a working dog or a working dog in training.

Please note that all fees are set by the NSW Office of Local Government and apply to all Councils in NSW.

Legal Requirements for Pet Owners

Under the Companion Animals Act 1998, it is a legal requirement that all cats and dogs be microchipped and registered. Animals cannot be identified or registered in the name of a person under the age of 18.

Legislative Excerpts: Companion Animals Act 1998

Note: One penalty unit = $110

Microchipping

Section 8 - Identification required from 12 weeks of age and before sale

(1) A companion animal must be identified as required by the regulations from the time the animal is 12 weeks old.

(2) A companion animal must not be sold unless it has been identified as required by the regulations (even if it is less than 12 weeks old when it is sold).

(3) The owner of an animal is guilty of an offence if it is not identified in accordance with subsection (1).

Maximum penalty:

(a) 8 penalty units except in the case of a dangerous, menacing or restricted dog, or

(b) 50 penalty units in the case of a dangerous, menacing or restricted dog.

(4) A person who sells an animal in contravention of subsection (2) is guilty of an offence.

Maximum penalty:

(a) 8 penalty units except in the case of a dangerous, menacing or restricted dog, or

(b) 50 penalty units in the case of a dangerous, menacing or restricted dog.

(5) The regulations may change the age from which a companion animal is required to be identified under subsection (1) from 12 weeks to any other age (either generally for all companion animals or for a particular kind or class of companion animal).

Note: The term “sell” extends to the transfer of ownership by any means, including by gift. This section requires an animal to be identified before it is sold no matter what the age of the animal when it is sold.

Registration

Section 9 - Registration required from age 6 months

(1) A companion animal must be registered under this Act from the time the animal is 6 months old. The owner of the animal is guilty of an offence if it is not registered.

Maximum penalty:

(a) 50 penalty units except in the case of a dangerous, menacing or restricted dog, or

(b) 60 penalty units in the case of a dangerous, menacing or restricted dog.

Note: The regulations may provide for exceptions to this section. An owner does not have to wait until an animal is 6 months old to register it. An animal can be registered at any age.

(2) The regulations may change the age from which a companion animal is required to be registered under this section from 6 months to any other age, either generally for all companion animals or for a particular kind or class of companion animal.

(3) A person is taken to commit a separate offence under this section on every day the companion animal remains unregistered. However, a person:

(a)may not be convicted for the commission of more than one offence in relation to the failure to register a companion animal during any single calendar month, and

(b) may be convicted only once in relation to any failure to register a companion animal that occurred before that failure came to the notice of the council of the area in which the animal is ordinarily kept.

Note: This subsection does not limit the number of times a person may be prosecuted under section 10B (Notice requiring companion animal to be registered).

Back to top