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FAQ’s

  • What is the Livestock Information Service (LIS)?

    The Livestock Information Service (LIS) is a UK-government funded service which provides a free online platform for reporting sheep, goat and deer movements digitally instead of posting paper movement forms. Not only does this improve the quality and timeliness of the traceability information, but it also lays the foundations for transitioning from paper to digital reporting in the future.

  • Can I still record movements via the paper forms?

    Yes, LIS does continue to support paper movements. When forms are posted and received by our team, they are manually processed onto LIS. However, the ambition is to increase the adoption of the online service to streamline the process and make the data more accurate and quickly available.

  • Why is the Livestock Information Service (LIS) only for sheep, goat and deer movements?

    The first service to move onto LIS was sheep, goats and deer, replacing ARAMS in March 2022. The next stage involves onboarding cattle and pig movement data onto LIS as well, replacing the current CTS and eAML2 services respectively and creating a single multispecies traceability service.

  • How is the Livestock Information Service (LIS) free to use?

    The Livestock Information Service (LIS) is a free service for recording sheep, goat and deer movements because it is fully funded by the UK government department, Defra.

  • Have the rules for reporting sheep movements changed?

    No. The law around sheep ID, record keeping and movement reporting has not changed, with further Defra guidance available on the GOV.UK website

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  • How do I start using the Livestock Information Service (LIS)?

    You will first need to create an account on LIS using your County Parish Holding (CPH) number and associated email address. Visit our 'Getting Started' page for more step-by-step guidance or head to the GOV.UK website

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  • Why should I use the Livestock Information Service (LIS)?

    Online reporting with the Livestock Information Service (LIS) will make a significant difference to the accuracy and speed of receiving the movement data, enabling government to respond better to livestock disease outbreaks as well as supporting trade opportunities. You can also manage your holding register online using LIS.

  • Has the Livestock Information Service (LIS) been tested in the same way that other farming schemes have?

    Yes, the Livestock Information Service (LIS) has been comprehensively tested for all known scenarios with livestock farmers, markets, abattoirs and third party software providers to ensure that it works in those situations.

For farmers

  • What is my CPH / County Parish Holding number?

    The CPH (County Parish Number) is a unique geographical reference for a farm or group of land parcels registered with the Animal Plant and Health Agency (APHA).  It is made up of a nine-digit number (for example 12/345/0001). More information on registering as a farmer can be found on the GOV.UK website

    When you create an account with LIS using your CPH number, a registered email address will automatically appear. If this email address is incorrect, please contact the LIS Support team on 03300 416 577 or email support@livestockinformation.org.uk.

  • What do I do if my email address is not recognised or linked to my CPH?

    When you create an account with LIS using your CPH number, a registered email address will automatically appear (this is partially masked for data protection purposes). If this email address is incorrect, please contact the LIS Support team on 03300 416 577 or email on support@livestockinformation.org.uk.

  • How do I get my animals to appear on my LIS account?

    You can upload the tag numbers of the animals on your holding by either manually typing them in, uploading a CSV file or by connecting to an EID reader. CSV files are most commonly seen as a spreadsheet form, with new lines to separate each record. For uploading to LIS, CSV files simply need to be uploaded as a single column list of tag numbers.

  • Can I submit my movement document by email?

    Yes. You will need to complete a movement form which you can find and fill in on our website and then save it to your computer. Attach the completed form to an email and send to our Support Team support@livestockinformation.org.uk. Remember it is easier and quicker to use the Livestock Information Service to report movements online.

  • Can I use my current farm management software?

    Yes, you can use your existing farm management software if it’s integrated with LIS. However, you’ll still need to create a LIS account. The following software providers are currently integrated with LIS: AgriWebb, Border Software Ltd, Farm Matters Ltd, Food IT-Solutions (IC), Hellenic Systems Ltd, Newline ASP, Shearwell Data Ltd, Systems Integration Ltd and TGL Software Ltd.

  • I use an electronic tag reader for sheep, can I send that information to LIS?

    Yes, you can now send your electronically recorded data to LIS, either:
    1) Scan or photograph (on your smartphone) your completed paper LIS-1 movement form, or: 2) Scan or photograph (on your smartphone) the tag reader print out sheets. Then attach the above files to an email, sending to support@livestockinformation.org.uk. If your tag reader links to your computer via USB cable or Bluetooth – you can simply upload the information for the movement and attach to an email, along with the ‘fillable’ online LIS-1 form from our website LIS-1 form.

For markets, abattoirs, vets, showgrounds and collection centres

  • How will cross border moves work?

    You just need to enter your County Parish Holding (CPH) information.

  • As a Welsh or Scottish market, do I have to report on LIS?

    No. Welsh markets report on EIDCymru and Scottish markets report on ScotEID regardless of where those sheep or goats come from or are sold to.

  • If a farmer has sheep coming off two holdings, how does this need to be reported?

    That would need to be notified as two movements from each location.

  • Do markets have the ability to alter or change movements online after a sale has been completed?

    Yes, records can still be amended even once a sale has been completed.

  • What do abattoir workers need to do to start using LIS?

    Abattoirs are still required to report digitally, using either abattoir software or the Livestock Information Service. The first thing you will need to do is create a LIS account.

  • Can abattoir workers use third party software to report movements?

    Yes, you can continue to report livestock movements using your abattoir software, however, you will still have to create an account with LIS. We work closely with third party software providers who have made changes to their software to make sure it integrates with LIS. You’ll need to check that your software provider has done this.

  • What if my software provider doesn’t integrate with the Livestock Information Service (LIS)?

    If you are an abattoir worker that uses software which doesn’t integrate with the Livestock Information Service (LIS), then you should use your LIS account to report your livestock movements.

  • How do Showground administrators use the Livestock Information Service (LIS)?

    Showground administrators will need to create an account on the Livestock Information Service (LIS) using the CPH number for the showground.

  • How do Collection Centre staff use the Livestock Information Service (LIS)?

    For Collection Centre LIS users, each OFF move will need to be reported as a single movement, uploading the relevant tags individually.