Bat licensing
Find details of the proposed charges on our consultation hub on the Citizen Space website.
This consultation has now closed. NRW will use the feedback from the public consultation to inform our new charging schemes, which we intend to implement from 1 April 2023, subject to Ministerial approval.
All bat species are protected by law, including their breeding sites and resting places.
Bats and the law
It is against the law to:
- deliberately capture, injure, or kill bats
- damage or destroy a breeding or resting place
- obstruct access to their resting or sheltering places
- possess, transport, sell or exchange live or dead bats, or parts of them
- intentionally or recklessly disturb a bat while it’s in a structure, or place of shelter, or protection
You may be able to get a licence from us for certain specific purposes if the work you want to do is likely to commit an offence.
When you don’t need a bat licence
You don’t need a licence to:
- tend a disabled bat
- kill a seriously injured bat
- remove a trapped bat from the living area of a house
Find out if you need to apply for a protected species licence
Bats in my home
Find out what to do if you are concerned about bats at your property
Apply for a bat licence
If you cannot avoid disturbing bats or damaging their roosts, you can apply for a species licence.
You can apply for a licence for a range of different activities, the most common of which include:
- development, infrastructure or maintenance work
- survey or conservation work
- woodland management work
- possess, transport, sell or exchange live or dead species
Contact us
You can contact us for help at any time before or during your licence application.