Are Roof Rats Legal in Philippines? Keeping, Breeding & Selling

• DENR Biodiversity Management Bureau (BMB), Wildlife Resources Division, signed letter dated 30 June 2026 (ref BMB202603379), from Atty. Felix S. Alicer (OIC, Assistant Secretary for Field Operations – Mindanao, and concurrent Director, BMB): Rattus rattus is considered among the world’s worst invasive alien species; pursuant to Joint DENR-DA Administrative Order No. 2020-02 (Adopting the National Invasive Species Strategies and Action Plan Philippines 2020-2030), the DENR undertakes invasive-alien-species management measures including prevention, early detection and rapid response, control, containment, and eradication; accordingly, ‘this Bureau does not allow commercial breeding of Rattus rattus as well as its possession for pet purposes.’

Keeping / owning   Prohibited

Confidence: High · Last verified 2026-06-30

DENR-BMB confirmed in a signed letter (30 June 2026, ref BMB202603379) that it does not allow possession of Rattus rattus for pet purposes, because the roof rat is a listed invasive alien species managed under the National Invasive Species Strategies and Action Plan (Joint DENR-DA Administrative Order No. 2020-02). This is a definitive agency determination and overturns the earlier reading that a Certificate of Wildlife Registration could authorize keeping.

Sources: DENR-BMB (e-Library), Republic of the Philippines (LawPhil)

Breeding   Prohibited

Confidence: High · Last verified 2026-06-30

DENR-BMB (30 June 2026, ref BMB202603379) stated the Bureau does not allow commercial breeding of Rattus rattus. As a listed invasive alien species under Joint DENR-DA AO 2020-02, it is targeted for prevention and control, not licensed breeding; the earlier Wildlife Farm Permit pathway does not apply to a species the Bureau will not permit for pet purposes.

Sources: DENR-BMB (e-Library), Republic of the Philippines (LawPhil)

Selling or giving away   Prohibited

Confidence: High · Last verified 2026-06-30

Because R. rattus may not be kept as a pet or bred (DENR-BMB, 30 June 2026, ref BMB202603379), selling or giving pet roof rats is not permitted either. The species is managed as an invasive alien species (Joint DENR-DA AO 2020-02), not traded as an exotic pet.

Sources: DENR-BMB (e-Library), Republic of the Philippines (LawPhil)

Transport & import   Prohibited

Confidence: High · Last verified 2026-06-30

There is no pet import or transport pathway: DENR-BMB does not allow R. rattus for pet purposes, and the species is managed for prevention and control as an invasive alien species (Joint DENR-DA AO 2020-02). Any movement of the species falls under invasive-species control measures, not a hobbyist transport or import permit. Never release a roof rat.

Sources: DENR-BMB (e-Library), Republic of the Philippines (LawPhil)

Source: DENR-BMB (e-Library), Republic of the Philippines (LawPhil)

In the Philippines the pet roof rat (Rattus rattus) is not allowed as a companion animal at all, even when it is captive-bred, tame, and kept indoors. The DENR Biodiversity Management Bureau (BMB) confirmed in a signed letter (30 June 2026, ref BMB202603379) that because R. rattus is a listed invasive alien species, and under Joint DENR-DA Administrative Order No. 2020-02 (the National Invasive Species Strategies and Action Plan 2020-2030), the Bureau does not allow its commercial breeding or its possession for pet purposes. The fancy rat (Rattus norvegicus), an equally non-native commensal rodent introduced to the Philippines, is kept freely as an ordinary pet. The two domesticated pet rodents are treated oppositely because one species sits on an invasive-alien-species list, not because of the animals themselves or how they are bred and kept. Captive-bred pet roof rats are tame, raised indoors over many generations, never taken from the wild, and never released.

The ask: Treat the multi-generation, captive-bred, domesticated pet roof rat (Rattus rattus) the way the law already treats the domesticated fancy rat (Rattus norvegicus): as a domestic companion animal managed by the Bureau of Animal Industry. Short of that, create a lightweight registration tier for captive-bred companion R. rattus that does not require a full Wildlife Farm Permit to keep one or to give offspring to another keeper. The test should turn on whether the animal is domesticated and captive-bred, not solely on whether a wild population exists somewhere. The dog descends from the wolf and the domestic cat from a wild felid, yet both are recognized as domestic because domestication, not the survival of a wild ancestor, defines a domestic species. The fancy rat is itself the wild brown rat, domesticated only in the 19th century, so a captive-bred R. rattus is the same case one species over. Captive-bred pet roof rats are tame, raised indoors, never taken from the wild, and never released.

Where the lever really is: The controlling lever is the law and the national invasive-species framework, not a simple agency clarification. DENR-BMB has confirmed in writing (30 June 2026, ref BMB202603379) that it does not allow pet possession or commercial breeding of R. rattus because the species is a listed invasive alien species managed under Joint DENR-DA Administrative Order No. 2020-02, so asking BMB to exempt the species by itself cannot overturn a national policy the agency is faithfully applying. The durable fix carves out captive-bred companion rodents in one of two places. (1) The statute: House Bill 7232, the Revised Wildlife Resources Conservation and Protection Act (filed 21 January 2026, 20th Congress), expressly governs exotic species bred or cultured in captivity and is the vehicle to ask that captive-bred, domesticated companion rodents be recognized as companion animals rather than swept into invasive-species prohibition. (2) A formal DENR rulemaking or species determination distinguishing multi-generation captive-bred companion animals from the wild invasive population. Lead with the legislature on HB 7232; use BMB only for any administrative carve-out it has power to grant. On the species-not-domestication point, and why the equally non-native fancy rat is kept freely, see https://blonderoofrat.com/how-the-sewer-rat-became-the-fancy-rat/ .

Where to send it (more than one channel helps):

• House of Representatives of the Philippines, Find/Contact Your Representative (House Members directory) (legislature), official contact page
  Primary lever. The invasive-species prohibition that catches domesticated R. rattus is set by the Wildlife Act and national IAS policy, so durable change runs through Congress. Use this official directory to find your district representative (and the Committee on Natural Resources) and ask, while House Bill 7232, the Revised Wildlife Act, is pending, that captive-bred domesticated companion rodents be recognized as domestic animals or given a light registration tier rather than swept into invasive-species prohibition.
• DENR, Biodiversity Management Bureau (BMB), Wildlife Resources Division (official contact page) (executive / agency), wrd@bmb.gov.ph
  Parallel administrative track (secondary). BMB has now confirmed in writing (30 June 2026, ref BMB202603379) that it does not allow pet possession or commercial breeding of R. rattus because the species is managed as an invasive alien species under Joint DENR-DA AO 2020-02, so it will not exempt the species by a simple clarification. It does have rulemaking authority and can issue a formal species determination, so you may still ask it to reconsider a captive-bred companion carve-out, but the durable lever is the legislature (HB 7232). wrd@bmb.gov.ph (Wildlife Resources Division) and bmb@bmb.gov.ph (general inbox) are the verified official addresses; the contact form is the safest channel.

A starting-point message, please put it in your own words; a short personal note carries far more weight than an identical form letter:

Subject: Recognize captive-bred pet roof rats (Rattus rattus) as domestic companion animals

Dear [Office of Representative / DENR-BMB Wildlife Resources Division],

I am writing as a Filipino keeper of domesticated pet rats to ask for fairer treatment of the captive-bred pet roof rat (Rattus rattus).

I understand that the DENR does not currently allow keeping or breeding the roof rat as a pet, because it is listed as an invasive alien species under the National Invasive Species Strategies and Action Plan (Joint DENR-DA Administrative Order No. 2020-02). Yet the equally non-native fancy rat (Rattus norvegicus), also an introduced commensal rodent, is kept freely as an ordinary companion animal.

This is a difference in listing, not in the animals. The test asks whether a wild population exists, but that is not what makes an animal domestic. The dog descends from the wolf and the house cat from a wild felid, both with wild relatives still living, yet we treat them as domestic because domestication, not the absence of a wild ancestor, defines a domestic species. The fancy rat is itself the wild brown rat, domesticated only in the 19th century, so a captive-bred roof rat is the same case one species over. Our roof rats are domesticated in that sense: captive-bred over many generations, tame, raised indoors, never taken from the wild, and never released.

I ask that captive-bred, domesticated R. rattus be recognized as a domestic companion animal like the fancy rat, or, short of that, that a lightweight registration tier be created for keeping one and for passing offspring to another keeper without a full Wildlife Farm Permit. The test should be whether the animal is genuinely domesticated and captive-bred.

[For the legislator:] I would be grateful if you would raise this as House Bill 7232 (Revised Wildlife Resources Conservation and Protection Act) is considered.
[For DENR-BMB:] I would also welcome a written determination of how this species is currently classified.

Thank you for your consideration.

Respectfully,
[Your name]
[Your city/province]
[Your email / contact]

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