How to Keep Wildlife at Home in Victoria – Obtaining a Licence

Victoria is such a great place for animal enthusiasts to live. That’s because it’s so easy and fun to look after wildlife animals. There is a wide range of wildlife animals that you can keep without needing a licence. Keeping some other animals, however, requires you to apply for a wildlife licence.

There are four types of licences that you might have to apply for before you can keep wildlife at home. Each one requires completing the appropriate application form through the Department of Environmental and Primary Industries, otherwise known as DEPI.

Wildlife Licences

It is important to know which type of licence you need before you take the time to fill one out, so that you are approved to care for the right type of wildlife in your home.  You can find out which licence a specific animal requires on the DEPI website.  The four types of licenses are:

• Wildlife basic licence – This type of licence allows animal enthusiasts who are ten years or older to possess, keep, breed, buy, sell and dispose of wildlife for non-commercial purposes, as long as the wildlife is listed in schedules 2 and 7 of the Wildlife Regulations 2013. The duration of this licence is one or three years.
• Wildlife advanced licence – This type of licence allows holders ages 10 years and older to possess, keep, breed, buy, sell and dispose of wild animals that are listed in schedules 2, 3 and 7 of the Wildlife Regulations 2013. There are two other conditions for this licence as well. First, applicants who are younger than 18 years need signed consent from a parent or legal guardian. Secondly if the wildlife involves venomous snakes, then the holder must provide documentation showing their competency with the application. The duration of this licence is one or three years.
• Wildlife specimen licence – Unlike the above licences that authorise holders to keep live animals, this type of licence allows the keeping, purchase, or disposal of prepared or mounted specimens of deceased wildlife. This licence is only available for a three-year term.
• Dingo licence – The Wildlife Regulations of 2013 state that any private holder of a dingo is required to obtain a Dingo Licence. Demonstrating or displaying dingoes, whether by an individual or a business, requires a commercial wildlife licence.           This licence does not apply to hybrid dingoes, as they are to be registered as dogs and managed as such. This licence is only available for one year.

You can learn more about the types of licences available for keeping, handling, or breeding wildlife at the DEPI website. Some forms of wildlife are exempt from the licences, as explained on the site. There are also some forms of mounted specimens, such as those prepared by a taxidermist, that do not require a licence.

What Else You Need When Submitting Your Application

Along with your completed licence application, you will need to include payment and be witnessed by someone approved to verify your proof of identity. After the licence is processed, which could take anywhere from three weeks to 60 days, you can legally proceed to acquire wildlife.