Can you get a free ESA letter from the NHS or your GP?
Where a free emotional support animal letter can come from, why your GP may charge or say no, and what the GOV.UK searches actually find.
The short answer. Sometimes. The only route that can be free is your own GP, if they agree to write a letter without charging. A letter like this is non-NHS work, so GPs can charge for it and do not have to write it. There is no free government ESA letter: GOV.UK has none, and there is no official register to join, free or paid.
Can my GP write an emotional support animal letter?
Yes. Your GP can write a letter about your health, and they know your history better than anyone. The questions are whether they will, and what it costs.
A letter supporting an emotional support animal is not part of your NHS treatment, so it counts as non-NHS work. The BMA explains that, with certain exceptions written into their contract, doctors do not have to carry out non-NHS work, and that they can charge for it. The BMA gives GPs a calculator to help set fees, but each practice decides its own. So one surgery may write the letter for nothing, another may charge, and another may decline.
How to ask
- Ask reception whether the practice writes letters of this kind, what it charges and how long it takes, before you book an appointment for it.
- Tell the GP what the animal does for your mental health and what the letter is for, for example a pet request to your landlord.
- Ask for the letter to include the doctor’s name, the date and the animal it relates to.
If your GP will not write one, or the wait is too long for your tenancy, a private doctor’s letter is the alternative.
Is there a free ESA letter from GOV.UK?
No. People search for an “emotional support animal UK gov letter” expecting a government form. There is no such letter, and GOV.UK lists no register of emotional support animals.
The one GOV.UK document about emotional support animals is a Criminal Procedure Rules form, first published on 23 July 2025. You use it to ask a criminal court in England and Wales for permission to have an emotional support animal with you during a hearing. It asks one court for permission and gives no right anywhere else.
Free registration
Some sites offer free ESA registration. Because there is no official register, a free registration has exactly the same legal effect as a paid one, which is none. What ESA registration sites sell.
Free letter templates
A template you fill in yourself can help you write your own request to a landlord, and in England a written request is what the law actually asks for. What a template cannot be is medical evidence. A letter carries weight because a registered doctor has signed it.
Free assistance dogs are a different thing
Some searches for a free “mental health dog on the NHS” are really about assistance dogs: dogs trained to help a disabled person with specific tasks. That is a different route. Assistance dogs are trained by charities, and Assistance Dogs UK is the umbrella body for accredited assistance dog charities. Its members give an ADUK booklet or card to people with dogs they have trained. An emotional support animal letter does not make a pet into an assistance dog. The difference explained.
Next steps: how to get an emotional support animal · who qualifies.
Common questions
Can my GP write an ESA letter?
Yes, if they are willing to. A letter like this is non-NHS work, which the BMA says GPs do not have to do (with certain exceptions in their contract) and may charge for. Each practice sets its own fee.
Is there a free emotional support animal letter from the government?
No. GOV.UK has no emotional support animal letter or scheme. The only GOV.UK document about emotional support animals is a form for asking a criminal court in England and Wales for permission to have one with you at a hearing.
Is free ESA registration worth it?
There is no official register, so a free registration is a private product with no legal effect, just like a paid one. Why ESA registration is not official.
Can I get a free mental health assistance dog on the NHS?
An assistance dog is a trained dog, which is a different thing from an emotional support animal. Assistance dogs are trained by charities. Assistance Dogs UK is the umbrella body for accredited assistance dog charities, and is the place to start.
Sources. The legal and clinical facts on this page were checked against these primary sources on 25 September 2026. Law and landlord, university and airline policies change, so check the source before you rely on it.
If your GP will not write one
A GMC-registered UK doctor can review your request online. £49, paid once, with a full refund if a letter cannot be issued on clinical grounds.
Start your requestReviewed by a GMC-registered doctor. Full refund if a letter cannot be issued on clinical grounds.