In this article I will give an explanation of microchips in the UK with the aim of creating a guide to pet microchips.
We are aiming for this to be a useful resource for anyone wanting to know more or for people who are trying to track down a pet owner.
To find out how a microchip works check out our article HERE and to find out how microchip databases work in the UK click HERE.
Guide to Pet microchips - Microchips explained
There are 2 main types of microchips:
FDX-A microchips
FDX-A are not compliant in the UK. The UK legislation states this. You can see it HERE.
The legislation states that the microchip must be ISO compliant and an FDX-b microchip which reads at 134.2 kilohertz.
FDX-A microchips read at a frequency of 125 kilohertz.
An FDX-A microchip number is generally at 9 or 10 digit number and can contains numbers or numbers and letters.
Note – Our Search tool still allows these microchips to be searched just in case we find a result on another database.
FDX-B microchips (ISO compliant)
FDX-B microchips are the global standard. Here are a few facts about them:
All ISO-compliant FBX-B microchips contain 15 numbers only, no letters
If the first digit is a 9 this means the first 3 digits identifies the manufacturer. (Unless the first 3 digits are 900 then the first 6 digits identifies the manufacturer.)
If the first digit is anything other than a 9 this means it’s showing the country code. This usually means the pet has been microchipped in that particular country. You can find a list of these at the end of the article.
Most databases in the UK also supply a different manufacturers code. Check below for more information on which databases to contact about which brand of microchip.
Who to contact about which microchip brand
If you have a microchip number and need to find out more about it, the first thing you should do it search it HERE.
Our look up tool will check every other database in the UK to check if they have a record of the microchip. Finding a pet owner should take 1 look up and 1 phone call if the microchip is registered.
If our search doesn’t return a result we reccomend searching on Euro Pet Net. This searches many of the European database some of which even display ownership details publicly. Our support team will always search this during an enquiry if the microchip is not registered on a UK databases.
If this doesn’t return a result you can check out the list below to find out who deals with which microchip brand. The first digits of a microchip is either a manufacturer code or a country code. Manufacturer codes are much more common in the UK as the UK does not use a country code. A manufacturer code is issued by ICAR.
Country codes are assigned by the Internal Standards Organization (ISO). They set the global standards for microchips as laid out in ISO11784 and ISO11785.
It should be noted that not every country uses their country code. The best way to remember it is:
If it doesn’t start with a 9, it’s more than likely a country code. If it starts with a 9 it’s a manufacturer code.
If you have any questions please just drop us an email – support@mypethq.io
Manufacturer codes
| First 3 digits of microchips | Which database to contact |
|---|---|
956 (Trovan microchip) | |
981 (Datamars microchip) | |
985 (Destron) | |
977 (AVID) | |
982 (Allflex) | |
945 (Business Inception Identification B.V.) | |
972 (Datamars) | |
990 (Soartech Electronics Inc.) | |
993 (Plastifran BV) | |
953 (Virbac) | |
989 (Biomark Inc.) | |
941 (Felixcan) | |
978 (Virbac) | |
992 (Smartrac Specialty GmbH) | |
933 (Ornthana Intertrade Co.,ltd.) | |
952 (Jecta) | |
968 (AEG) | |
991 (WUXI FOFIA Technology Co., Ltd) | |
992 (Smartrac Specialty GmbH) | |
993 (Plastifran BV) | |
988 (Datamars Inc) | |
932 (BARTMED) | |
958 (Pet ID) | |
944 (Net & Telligent SA) | |
987 (A1 ID SYSTEMS Ltd.) | |
965 (SwissPlus ID Group Pty Ltd) | |
963 (AnimallTAG) | |
939 (RealTrace) | |
967 (RF Holding (Beheer) BV) | |
937 (Os ID as) | |
941 (Datamars Iberica, S.L.U.) |
Country codes
| First 2- 3 digits of microchips | Assigned Country |
|---|---|
32 | Argentina |
36 | Australia |
40 | Austria |
44 | Bahamas |
52 | Barbados |
56 | Belgium |
60 | Bermuda |
76 | Brazil |
124 | Canada |
152 | Chile |
156 | China |
158 | Taiwan |
203 | Czech Republic |
208 | Denmark |
214 | Dominican Republic |
246 | Finland |
250 | France |
276 | Germany |
300 | Greece |
348 | Hungary |
356 | India |
360 | Indonesia |
372 | Ireland |
376 | Israel |
380 | Italy |
392 | Japan |
442 | Luxembourg |
458 | Malaysia |
484 | Mexico |
492 | Monaco |
528 | Netherlands |
554 | New Zealand |
578 | Norway |
604 | Peru |
608 | Philippines |
618 | Poland |
620 | Portugal |
630 | Puerto Rico |
642 | Romania |
643 | Russian Federation |
710 | South Africa |
724 | Spain |
752 | Sweden |
756 | Switzerland |
764 | Thailand |
792 | Turkey |
804 | Ukraine |
818 | Egypt |
826 | United Kingdom |
840 | United States |
858 | Uruguay |
862 | Venezuela |
891 | Yogoslavia |
That’s everything in our guide to pet microchips. If there is anything else you’d like us to add please just let us know. 🙂
