What do you do with a horse passport when the horse dies?
The passport must be returned to the organisation that issued it within 30 days of the horse's death.
The passport must be returned to the organisation that issued it within 30 days of the horse’s death. GOV.UK puts it plainly: “Within 30 days of the horse’s death, return its passport to the PIO that issued it.” A PIO is a Passport Issuing Organisation — the body whose name is printed inside the front of the document.
They will then, in GOV.UK’s words, “update their records and invalidate or destroy the passport”. Some organisations will return an invalidated passport to you if you ask, which matters to owners who want to keep it; that’s worth requesting when you send it rather than afterwards.
It’s an easy thing to miss in the week after a loss, which is the only reason this page exists. The disposal side is covered separately in what happens to a horse after death.
When the admin is done and you want something of the horse kept rather than filed, we make memorial prints and keepsakes to order.
Written by Craig Fearn, Stable & Hoof.
Also in the partnership
Try it
Type a horse's name and watch the print set itself. Free, no photo needed, about ten seconds.
From the tack room
Questions, answered
How long do you have to return a horse passport after death?
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Thirty days. GOV.UK states: "Within 30 days of the horse's death, return its passport to the PIO that issued it."
Can you keep the passport as a keepsake?
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Not without asking. GOV.UK says the issuing organisation will "update their records and invalidate or destroy the passport". Some will return it invalidated if you request that when you send it in.
From the journal