Farmers and agri-businesses in the Omagh area are being reminded by the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA) that UK-prefixed livestock identification tags must no longer be used after 30 June 2025.
Under post-Brexit trading arrangements, Northern Ireland must now follow EU animal identification standards, which require all new livestock to be tagged with identifiers starting with the ‘XI’ prefix. A grace period was granted to allow the use of existing UK-prefixed tags, but that will end this month.
From midnight on Monday, 30 June 2025, it will be illegal to place UK-prefixed tags in any animals. Any livestock tagged after this date with UK-prefixed identifiers will be deemed non-compliant, which could affect movement, trade, and farm compliance records.
DAERA is advising farmers across Northern Ireland, including in the Fermanagh and Omagh district, to check their remaining tag stock and plan to transition fully to XI-prefixed tags ahead of the deadline. Tag suppliers are also being asked to inform and support their customers during this final phase.
Don’t get caught out – take action now to stay compliant.
📢 Read the full announcement from DAERA here:
👉 Introduction to Identification, Registration and Movement of Animals
