Over 111,000 pet cats licensed since start of new ownership rules; transition period ends on Aug 31
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox
It will be an offence to keep unlicensed pet cats from Sept 1.
ST PHOTO: KUA CHEE SIONG
- Over 111,000 pet cats have been licensed since Singapore's Cat Management Framework began on Sept 1, 2022, with a transition period ending on Aug 31, 2024.
- Free microchipping drives and support programmes have helped over 19,300 cats, including 6,300 from lower-income households, to comply with new rules.
- From Sept 1, keeping unlicensed cats will be an offence, and ownership limits will apply: two cats in HDB flats, three cats and dogs in private homes.
AI generated
SINGAPORE – More than 111,000 pet cats have been licensed in the two years since new rules for cat ownership were rolled out in Singapore.
Giving this update in a Facebook post on Aug 31, Minister of State for National Development and Foreign Affairs Alvin Tan urged those who have yet to microchip and license their pet cats to do so soon.
“Microchipping and licensing our pet cats enhance traceability and owner accountability, and make it easier to identify and reunite lost cats with their owners,” he said.
The pet cat licensing scheme was rolled out under the Cat Management Framework on Sept 1, 2024, making it mandatory for all pet cats to be microchipped and licensed to enhance traceability.
Tan said the two-year transition period allowing owners to ease into the new requirements will end on Aug 31.
A one-time cat licence with lifetime validity is free for all cat owners during this period, following which a one-year licence will cost $15 for a sterilised cat and $90 for an unsterilised cat.
From Sept 1, it will be an offence under the Animals and Birds Act to keep unlicensed pet cats. Those found to be doing so may be fined up to $5,000.
During the transition period, the Animal & Veterinary Service (AVS) also supported close to 170 free microchipping drives islandwide, with over 13,000 pet cats microchipped, Tan said.
In addition, more than 6,300 pet cats from over 2,900 lower-income households have benefited from free sterilisation and microchipping under the Pet Cat Sterilisation Support programme.
Cat owners are encouraged to sterilise their cats to prevent unintended breeding, which may lead to overpopulation.
Sterilisation can also reduce the risks of certain cancers and prevent womb infections, AVS said.
In his Facebook post, Tan said the standard cat ownership limits will also apply for new licence applications from Sept 1. Those living in HDB flats can have a maximum of two cats, while those in private residences can keep up to three cats or dogs.
Pet owners who have gone over the permitted limits are allowed to keep their existing pet cats if the animals were licensed during the transition period. These existing pet cats must have been owned before Sept 1, 2024.
Tan said that over 4,700 community cats have been part of the Trap-Neuter-Rehome/Release-Manage programme.
As part of this initiative, AVS provides enhanced funding support for the sterilisation and microchipping of community cats while funding additional components, such as trapping and boarding.
In August, AVS rolled out a pilot scheme allowing approved cat fosterers to keep up to six cats in HDB flats and up to 10 cats on private premises. All cats in foster care must be sterilised.
The pilot scheme was rolled out in recognition of the role played by cat fosterers in providing a safe home for cats in need, as well as in reducing the number of free-roaming cats in the community.