Cat Registries Around the World: A Guide for Breeders Outside the US and Canada

Purry is built in the US, but pedigree cats are not. Some of the best Ragdolls, Maine Coons and British Shorthairs sold to American families come from catteries in Poland, Ukraine, the UK, Russia and Australia. This guide is for breeders outside North America: which registry you are probably already in, which registries Purry accepts in your country, and what to do if you sell to buyers in the US.

If you breed in the US or Canada, read Which Cat Registry Should You Join? instead. It covers TICA, CFA, ACFA and CCA-AFC in detail.

The short version

Outside North America there is no single "right" registry. Most countries have one of three patterns:

• A strong national registry. The UK (GCCF), New Zealand (NZCF) and France (LOOF, which French law requires for a cat sold as a pedigree cat) work this way.
• A federation of national clubs. FIFe and WCF are umbrella bodies. You join a member club in your country and the club registers your cattery name and litters under the federation's rules. Most of continental Europe, Russia, Eastern Europe, Latin America and parts of Asia work this way.
• Several bodies in one country. Australia has ANCATS plus state cat councils under the CCCA, and Japan has JCC alongside large TICA and CFA presences.

TICA and CFA also operate internationally. TICA has clubs and regional directors across Europe and Asia and accepts pedigrees from FIFe, WCF, GCCF, CFA and other recognized bodies. That can make TICA a practical second registration for breeders who regularly sell abroad.

What Purry accepts, by country

Every seller on Purry verifies their ID. Breeders can also have their registry checked for the Registry Checked chip: a person matches the owner name to the registry's record of the cattery name and registration number. Any one accepted registry is enough. You do not need to be in a directory or a club for it.

Every list also has "Other registry". Choose it, type the registry's name, and a Purry admin checks it by hand. If your registry is one we should add, that is how we find out.

Breeders outside the US and Canada can subscribe, be verified and build their cattery page today. Listing cats for sale opens for your country when Purry adds your currency, which is the next thing on the roadmap after the North American launch.

Registry profiles

GCCF (United Kingdom)

The Governing Council of the Cat Fancy is the oldest cat registry still operating; it traces back to the National Cat Club of 1887 and was formed as a governing body in 1910. It is the UK's national registry.

Two things make GCCF different from the American registries:

• Prefixes, not cattery names. A GCCF prefix is registered once and goes in front of every kitten's name. Apply before your first litter is born so the kittens carry it.
• Registers and breeding status. Every kitten goes on the Full, Supplementary or Reference register depending on the mating, and is marked Active (may be bred from) or Non-Active (pet only). A pet kitten sold as Non-Active cannot have its litters registered, which is how UK breeders enforce pet-only sales without a separate contract.

GCCF will not register cross-bred kittens under a breed name unless they come from an approved outcross or breed development program.

TICA and CFA both have clubs and shows in the UK, and a number of UK catteries hold a second registration. If you sell to American buyers, TICA or CFA is the registration they will recognize.

Fees are on the GCCF site and change yearly; the prefix is a one-time fee and kitten registration is per kitten.

FIFe (Europe and beyond)

The Fédération Internationale Féline is a federation of national member organizations, not a registry you join directly. In most countries there is one member (SVERAK in Sweden, Felis Polonia in Poland, NRR in Norway, 1. DEKZV in Germany, and so on) and you register your cattery name and litters through it. The cattery name itself is unique across all of FIFe and is approved centrally, which is why FIFe pedigrees are respected everywhere.

FIFe is strongest in Scandinavia, the Benelux countries, Central and Eastern Europe, and has members in Brazil and Asia. Breed standards are strict and new breeds are accepted slowly, closer to CFA than to TICA in temperament.

On the Purry form, choose FIFe and type the name of your national member (for example "Felis Polonia"). That is the record we check.

WCF (Germany, Russia, Eastern Europe, Latin America, Asia)

The World Cat Federation was founded in 1988, is headquartered in Essen, Germany, and works through hundreds of member clubs in more than 60 countries. It has a strong presence in Russia, Ukraine and Eastern Europe, and in Latin America and parts of Asia.

Like FIFe, you register through a club, and the club issues the pedigree under WCF rules. Unlike FIFe, there are often several WCF clubs in one city, so two breeders in the same country may hold cattery names through different clubs. WCF recognizes a broad range of breeds and has registration categories for breeds that are not yet fully recognized.

For Purry, choose WCF and give your registration number. If you also hold a TICA registration, list TICA instead; it is faster for us to check.

LOOF (France)

The Livre Officiel des Origines Félines is the French national registry. Under French law, a cat born in France can be described as a pedigree cat ("chat de race") only if it has a LOOF pedigree; anything else may only be described as a cat of that breed's appearance. French breeders can also register with FIFe through the French member, and many do for showing abroad.

On the Purry form, choose LOOF, or FIFe if that is the registration you hold.

ANCATS and the CCCA state councils (Australia)

Australia has two systems side by side.

Australian National Cats (ANCATS) is a single national registry with online registration. Membership includes a five-year prefix, kitten registration is cheapest in the first 14 weeks and rises steeply after that, and it will re-register cats from overseas registries for a fee. If you want one body that covers the whole country, this is it.

The Co-ordinating Cat Council of Australia (CCCA) is the umbrella for the state control bodies: Capital Cats (ACT), Cat Control Council of Tasmania, Cats Queensland, Feline Association of South Australia, Feline Control Council of Victoria, Cat Fanciers' Association of NSW, and Cats United WA. Each state body keeps its own registry and runs its own shows under CCCA rules. Most long-established Australian catteries are in their state body.

On the Purry form, choose ANCATS, or choose "State cat council" and type the body's name. Either is accepted.

NZCF (New Zealand)

New Zealand Cat Fancy is New Zealand's national pedigree registry and a member of the World Cat Congress. Prefixes are registered once, kittens are registered through breed registrars and cost more after four months, and imported cats are registered on arrival. Membership is through affiliated clubs.

JCC, TICA and CFA (Japan)

Japan has its own domestic pedigree organizations, including the Japan Cat Club (JCC), which registers cats, cattery names and litters and issues pedigrees. International registries are also unusually well established in Japan: TICA has a dedicated Asia East region covering Japan and South Korea with many active clubs, and CFA has a large network of affiliated Japanese clubs.

For Purry, JCC, TICA and CFA are all accepted. If you hold more than one, TICA or CFA is the easiest for international buyers to recognize.

TICA and CFA outside North America

TICA registers cats from any country and runs shows in Europe, Asia and Latin America. A TICA registration number works the same in Warsaw as in Texas, which is why it is the common second registry for breeders who export. TICA will register a cat on a FIFe, WCF, GCCF or other recognized pedigree for a fee.

CFA has an international division with clubs in Europe, Asia and the Middle East, and will also register cats on foreign pedigrees. CFA is the registry most American show buyers ask for by name.

These two are accepted in every country on the Purry form, and are the options for countries without a listed national registry.

Selling to buyers in the United States

If you regularly sell kittens to American buyers, three things matter more than which registry you started in:

1. Hold a TICA or CFA registration as well as your home registry. American buyers recognize those names, and a US vet or a later registry transfer goes smoothly. TICA's foreign registration is inexpensive and can be done online.
2. Put your delivery options on every listing. Purry listings carry a Delivery field (pickup, meet partway, seller ground delivery, flight nanny arranged by seller, buyer arranges). Breeders who export usually choose flight nanny and state the typical cost.
3. Add the registry you hold on your Purry Profile. A person checks it against that registry's records, and the Registry Checked chip shows when it passes. If you hold TICA or CFA as well, either is the easiest for American buyers to recognize.

Cats entering the US must meet CDC requirements and any requirements of the destination state. USDA APHIS currently has no animal-health import requirements for ordinary pet cats, and airlines set their own transport rules. Our guide Bringing a Cat to the United States walks through all of it. Purry does not arrange transport; the transport directory on the roadmap will list flight nannies and ground carriers with buyer reviews.

Keep your registration current

Whatever registry you use: register the cattery name or prefix before the first litter is born, register every kitten before it goes home, and keep membership paid where it is required. A gap in a pedigree is the first thing an experienced buyer notices, in any country.

Sources and fee pages

Fees change every year. Check the registry's own page before quoting a price to a buyer.

• GCCF registration policies: https://www.gccfcats.org/breeding-cats/new-to-breeding/registration-policies/
• FIFe cattery names: https://fifeweb.org/cats/cattery-names/
• WCF breeding and registration rules: https://wcf.de/en/breeding-rules/
• ANCATS schedule of fees: https://ancats.com.au/membership/schedule-of-fees/
• CCCA member bodies: https://cccofa.com.au/
• NZCF 2026 schedule of fees: https://nzcf.com/file_downloads/downloads_page/NZCF_2026_Schedule_of_Fees.pdf
• World Cat Congress members: https://worldcatcongress.org/