Irish Horse Register passports are acceptable throughout Europe and the world and must accompany a horse for life. Passports are checked automatically when returned to the office for ownership changes.

If your are in doubt please contact the NIHB office or return your passport to be checked free of charge.

To meet with new legislation your horse needs a passport which includes:-

1. Section 9 Medicinal Treatment record to be found in IHR passports following page 30 and before Breeding History. (NOT the Medication Control pages)
2. Your name recorded as owner (on page 8 of IHR passports) within 30 days of purchase.
3. An adult passport requires the horse to be officially named (normally at the top of page 15 on IHR passports).

If your horse has an IHR passport which is already in your name and the horse has been named but does not include Section 9 please return it to the NIHB office and we will update it free of charge .

To register a prefix please complete a Prefix registration form and return to NIHB office with a one off fee of £40 stg sterling to register with the Central Prefix Register of GB & Ireland.

N.B. Prefix registration is only available to NIHB members

Apart from the old saying “It's bad luck to change a horses name.” You cannot change a horse's name if:-

• your horse is a stallion or mare with registered progeny.
• your horse is registered using a prefix.

Other than this it is possible to change a horses name by returning the passport to the NIHB office along with 4 choices of names and a fee of £50 NIHB members £80 for non members.

The foal kit to register a foal with pedigree should arrive with you automatically if the sire and dam are both registered on the Irish Horse Register.

Following the covering, the stallion owner should send in a covering certificate to the horse board in November of the year the mare is covered. Then the following June a foal kit will be sent to the registered owner of the mare to register the foal with pedigree.

When breeding please ensure the following:-

1. The mare's passport shows you as the current owner, usually on page 8
2. The mare has an adult passport i.e. she has been named on her passport.
3. The stallion owner has sent in a covering certificate to the horse board.

If these are in order and you still have not received your foal registration kit, please contact the NIHB office.

The closing date to register foals with pedigree is 31st October.

With effect from 1st July 2009 EU laws requires all animals applying for a passport to be microchipped. Therefore all passports issued since 1st July 2009 should have micro chip details included.

Passports issued for animals before 1st July 2009 may not be micro chipped. If you have had a micro chip inserted since the passport was issued please remember to record the details on the marking chart section of the passport and send a copy of the marking chart including the micro chip details to the issuing authority who issued the passport so they can update their records with your new chip details.

If your horse was already micro chipped when original passport was issued please complete an Application Form for a Duplicate passport where the animal has been mirco chipped. These forms are available to download from our document bank on this website.

If you horse has not been micro chipped or we have not been advised that the animal is micro chipped please contact the NIHB offce and ask for an Application for a Duplicate passport where the animal has not been micro chipped. In these cases you will need the animal micro chipped, new markings taken and submitted with the Duplicate Application form.

N.B. IN BOTH CASES PLEASE NOTE THE DUPLICATE APPLICATION FORM NEEDS TO BE SIGNED BY THE LAST RECORDED OWNER OF THE ANIMAL SHOWN ON THE PASSPORT. The previous owner will be included on the form before we post it out in the case of animals needing new markings taken.