Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986

ASPA 1986 · UK Home Office

The UK law controlling the use of dogs and other animals in scientific research, among the strictest regimes in the world.

01 What It Is

The Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 controls the use of protected animals, including dogs, in scientific research and testing in the UK. Administered by the Home Office, it rests on a principle that animal research is permitted only where its likely benefit is judged to outweigh the harm, and only under licence. It is widely regarded as among the most stringent laboratory-animal regimes anywhere.

02 What It Covers

The Act operates a triple-licensing system: a personal licence for the individual carrying out procedures, a project licence for the programme of work, and an establishment licence for the place it is done. Each project requires a harm-benefit assessment before it can proceed, and the Act embeds the principle of replacement, reduction and refinement, the “three Rs”, in how research is designed.

03 How It Is Checked

Compliance is overseen by the Home Office through its inspectorate, which assesses licence applications and inspects establishments, and licences can be suspended or revoked. Dogs are a specially protected species under the Act, so their use attracts additional scrutiny and must be specifically justified, beyond the general licensing every procedure requires.

04 Why It Matters

The use of dogs in research is among the most ethically charged things done to them, and one the public cannot see. A strict licensing regime with a harm-benefit test and an inspectorate is what stands between that use and an unregulated one, and the reason a dog cannot lawfully be used in UK research without the case for it having been examined and licensed first.

Primary sources

Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986legislation.gov.uk
Research and testing using animals, GOV.UKgov.uk