Get a Service Dog Certificate For ADHD (ESA Letter) UK
MedicalCert offers an online service for obtaining an Emotional Support Animal (ESA) letter for individuals with ADHD in the UK and EU, starting at £49.
Signed by registered UK doctors, the letter confirms your animal’s supportive role, helping with accommodations from landlords, housing associations, and workplaces. The process is appointment-free, with letters delivered directly to your inbox by 9 a.m.
Get my ESA letter 
Accepted by most UK employers, universities and insurers, subject to their own policies. All consultations are subject to clinical assessment and certificates are issued only where clinically appropriate.
Get your medical certificate delivered straight to your inbox from £37
What will you receive?
You will obtain a verifiable digital PDF Emotional Animal Support certificate and optional digital card bearing the signature of a registered medical doctor, sent directly to your mobile device. This document will include the following information:
✓ Confirmation of your emotional support animal and type.
✓ Your name and DOB
✓ Details of your mental health concern or disability and how it affects you.
✓ Signed and authorised by one of our GMC-registered UK doctors.
✓ Your certificates unique reference number and QR code for verification.
✓ Optional digital photo-card to carry on your phone (+£10).
How it Works
01
Complete a short online form
Simply complete a consultation form with the details of your animal and your disability. Upload a 30 second video explaining how your animal assists in your disability, as well as medical documentation of your condition.
02
Doctor Reviews Application
One of our GMC-registered GPs will review and validate the submitted information. Once approved they will sign an official ESA certificate and ESA card for you.
03
Receive your certificate
Receive your emotional support animal (ESA) certificate as soon as same day or next working day, straight to your inbox. If we cannot provide you with a certificate for any reason, you'll automatically receive a full refund.
LET'S GET STARTED
PRICING
Who Qualifies For An Emotional Support Animal?
Any adult or child with a disability may qualify for an emotional support animal. Disability, in this instance, refers to anything that makes your life harder on a day-to-day basis. This could include:
- Anxiety
- Depression
- Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
- Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD)
- Personality Disorders
- Schizophrenia
- Phobias
And any number of other emotional challenges you might encounter on a daily basis. Animals have a proven beneficial impact on mental health and wellbeing. As a result, there are all sorts of situations where one can benefit from having an emotional support animal.
24/7 Applications
Doctors online overnight
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Questions
How do I get an urgent emotional support animal (ESA) letter or certificate?
It’s quick and easy! Simply complete the brief online questionnaire and complete the payment. After purchasing your medical letter online, a doctor will review the medical evidence the same day and we will provide you with your unique medical certificate for you to present to your work place or institution. There is no need to have a telemedicine or online consultation to receive a medical letter. Our Doctors may call or email you directly if they have any additional questions.
Can I get an emotional support animal (ESA) letter or certificate without seeing a doctor?
All medical letters including emotional support animal (ESA) certificates are signed and certified by a doctor, but you do not always need to see a doctor in person to get one. Our revolutionary service allows you to be assessed by one of our doctors without needing an appointment, simply by uploading information about your emotional support animal (ESA) and disability through our forms. One of our doctors will then consider your application before issuing your medical certificate. You will then receive the letter directly to your inbox.
Can I name multiple pets on the same ESA letter?
Yes, you can register multiple pets on the same ESA letter. At Medical Cert we can accommodate up to two pets per letter for no additional charge. The request for multiple pets must be reasonable, and approval for multiple ESAs is determined by the medical provider and each one of the ESAs must assist in different ways. If you have 3 or more ESA's this will require an additional letter, which can be purchased as an add-on. If you have any questions about this process, please contact help@medicalcert.co.uk.
What medical evidence will you require?
We will require you to upload:
✓ A photo of your ID to confirm your identity
✓ A photo of your animal
✓ Confirmation of your mental health condition or disability (this can simply be a copy of your GP's summary care record which is available on request or any medical documentation of your illness)
✓ A completed online consultation form
Do you provide refunds?
We always provide full refunds if we are unable to provide a Medical Letter in your situation, so you can submit your requests with peace of mind. Once a medical certificate has been issued we are unable to offer refunds.
How soon will I receive my ESA letter or certificate?
Our team of GPs will review your medical evidence and questionnaire on the same day and provide you with your medical letter or certificate within 1 working day. We also offer a subject to clinical assessment by 9 a.m. service for medical letters for evidence that has been uploaded by 11 p.m. (UTC/GMT) Sunday - Thursday. With our express overnight service you will receive your medical letter or certificate in your inbox overnight by 9 a.m. the next day. For example, an application submitted at 11 p.m. on a Thursday night will be assessed and delivered by 9 a.m. on Friday morning.
Who will sign my emotional support animal (ESA) certificate?
All of the doctors at Medical Cert are fully licensed GMC-registered GPs, unlike many other services who use very junior non-specialist doctors, which may sometimes cause their letters to be rejected. You can submit any letters you receive from Medical Cert with full confidence, knowing that an experienced GP has signed your document. We are a UK based healthcare service but the certificates can be used internationally. All of our Doctors are registered GPs with the UK General Medical Council.
Can your emotional support animal (ESA) letters be verified?
Absolutely. Each letter or certificate issued will have a unique reference number and QR code that can be scanned for verification. Alternatively, letters and can be verified free of charge by emailing us at verify@medicalcert.co.uk.
Do I have to register my emotional support animal on an official database?
Contrary to popular belief, there is no official or government registry for emotional support animals or assistance animals in the UK or EU. You are not obligated to register your assistance dog or emotional support dog to establish its legitimacy. Any companies or websites selling ESA registration for a fee are likely a scam or illegitimate.
Are landlords and businesses subject to clinical assessment to accept my ESA letter?
In the UK, EU, and USA businesses and landlords are not legally obligated to accept ESA letters, although most will take an ESA letter into consideration.
Assistance dogs and ADHD in the UK
Some people with ADHD explore whether a trained assistance dog could help with the practical difficulties the condition creates. This page explains what an assistance dog does, how that differs from a therapy dog or an emotional support animal, what the law actually says about access rights in the UK, and the realistic routes available if you want to pursue one.
There is no official UK register, licence or certificate that makes a dog an assistance dog. No organisation, including this one, can issue a document that grants a dog public access rights. Be cautious of any provider selling certification, registration or an identity card that claims to do so.
ADHD and daily functioning
ADHD is a neurodevelopmental condition. The NHS describes core features as inattention, hyperactivity and impulsiveness, with symptoms usually recognised before the age of 12 and often continuing into adult life.
In practice, the difficulties people report most often are organisational rather than purely attentional: losing track of time, missing appointments, abandoning tasks partway through, misplacing essential items, and struggling to start work that offers no immediate reward. These are the functional problems a trained dog would be asked to help with, not the diagnosis itself.
This page is informational only. It is not a diagnosis, a treatment plan, or an assessment of whether you qualify for anything. If you have concerns about ADHD symptoms, speak to your GP or an appropriately qualified clinician.
When ADHD counts as a disability in law
This matters because access rights for assistance dogs flow from disability discrimination law, not from any certificate. The definition is set by statute and it is a high bar.
Under section 6 of the Equality Act 2010, a person has a disability if they have a physical or mental impairment, and that impairment has a substantial and long-term adverse effect on their ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities. Each element carries a specific meaning:
Substantial
More than minor or trivial. This is the wording used in the Act itself, and it is assessed on the effect of the impairment without treatment or coping strategies in place.
Long term
It has lasted at least 12 months, is likely to last at least 12 months, or is likely to last for the rest of the person's life.
Day-to-day activities
Ordinary activities carried out regularly by most people. The test is about the effect on those activities, not about the diagnosis or its label.
A diagnosis of ADHD does not automatically satisfy this test, and the absence of a diagnosis does not automatically defeat it. Whether any individual meets the definition is a question of fact that only a court or tribunal can settle. The full wording is at section 6 of the Equality Act 2010, and the Government's guidance on the definition is published on GOV.UK.
This is a summary of the statutory test, not legal advice. If you need to know whether your circumstances meet the definition, take advice from a solicitor or a specialist advice service.
What an assistance dog is trained to do
An assistance dog is defined by its trained behaviours. The distinction that matters is between a dog whose presence is comforting and a dog that performs specific, repeatable tasks which reduce the effect of an impairment. Only the second is an assistance dog.
Examples of trained tasks
- Interrupting a repetitive or escalating behaviour on cue, for example by nudging or pawing.
- Applying deep pressure during acute distress as a grounding behaviour.
- Delivering a prompt at a set time, such as a medication reminder.
- Retrieving a named item, reducing the disruption caused by losing keys, a wallet or a phone.
- Leading the handler to an exit when they are overwhelmed and cannot orient themselves.
Realistic expectations
- A dog supplements clinical care. It does not replace assessment, therapy or medication.
- Training a task-trained dog takes a long time and is expensive. Waiting lists at established charities can run to years.
- The dog is a living animal with welfare needs of its own, including exercise, veterinary care and rest from working.
- Evidence for assistance dogs in ADHD specifically is limited compared with established roles such as guide dogs or medical alert dogs.
Assistance dogs, therapy dogs and emotional support animals
These three terms are frequently used interchangeably and they mean different things. Choosing the right one avoids wasted money and unrealistic expectations about where the dog can go.
| Aspect | Emotional support animal | Therapy dog | Assistance dog |
|---|---|---|---|
| Training | No task training required | Temperament assessed for visiting work, not task trained for one handler | Trained to perform specific tasks that mitigate the effect of an impairment |
| Who it supports | Its owner, through companionship | Multiple people in a setting such as a school, hospital or care home | One handler, in daily life |
| UK access to shops and services | No automatic right of entry | By arrangement with the setting only | Service providers have duties under the Equality Act 2010 to make reasonable adjustments, which ordinarily means admitting the dog |
| How it is recognised | Not a recognised legal category in the UK | Through the visiting programme that placed it | In practice, through training by an established provider, such as an Assistance Dogs UK member organisation |
Access is not guaranteed by any document. It follows from the duties the Equality Act 2010 places on service providers, and disputes are ultimately decided on the facts. For UK guidance on assistance dogs and the organisations that train them, see Assistance Dogs UK.
Realistic routes to an assistance dog
There is no single application process, and no shortcut. The sequence below reflects how established providers actually assess applicants.
Establish the functional need
Work with a clinician to document your diagnosis, any co-existing conditions, and the specific day-to-day difficulties a trained dog would address. Providers assess need, not diagnosis alone.
Approach established organisations
Ask directly whether they train for ADHD-related tasks, what their waiting time is, what it costs, and what they require in writing. Not every charity supports every condition.
Plan for the working life
A working dog needs continuing training, consistent handling and proper welfare provision for its whole life. Factor in the cost and the commitment before applying.
Temperament, health and trainability matter far more than breed. Breed guidance can be a starting point for understanding general traits, but selection for assistance work is always individual and is normally made by the training organisation rather than the applicant.
Where a doctor's letter fits in
A letter from a doctor does not create assistance dog status and cannot grant access rights. What it can do is set out clinical information that a training organisation, landlord or employer has asked to see as part of their own process.
What a clinician-reviewed letter can cover
- Confirmation of a diagnosis, where that diagnosis is established and evidenced.
- A description of the functional difficulties reported and how they affect daily activities.
- A clinician's view on whether the support being sought is reasonable in the circumstances.
What it cannot do
- Certify, register or accredit a dog. No such certificate exists in the UK.
- Compel a shop, airline, landlord or employer to accept an animal.
- Establish that you meet the section 6 definition of disability. Only a court or tribunal decides that.
- Substitute for the assessment carried out by a training organisation.
Any documentation should be reviewed by a GMC-registered doctor, based on the information you provide, and never generated automatically. Requests may be declined where there is insufficient information or where issuing a letter would not be clinically appropriate. Clinical judgement applies in every case.
If symptoms are severe or worsening, or you are at risk of harm, contact your GP, NHS 111, or emergency services. Online services are not suitable where examination, testing or safeguarding input is needed.
Discuss your documentation needs
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Common questions
Possibly, but it is not routine. Assistance dogs for ADHD are far less established in the UK than guide dogs or medical alert dogs, and not every training organisation supports the condition. Providers assess the functional impact on daily life and whether trained tasks would meaningfully reduce it, rather than working from the diagnosis alone.
No. The UK has no statutory register, licence or certificate for assistance dogs. Identity cards and certificates sold online carry no legal weight. Recognition in practice comes from training by an established provider, and access rights come from the duties the Equality Act 2010 places on service providers.
No. Section 6 of the Equality Act 2010 requires an impairment with a substantial and long-term adverse effect on normal day-to-day activities. Substantial means more than minor or trivial, and long-term generally means 12 months or more. Some people with ADHD will meet that test and some will not. It depends on the effect, not the label.
A therapy dog visits settings such as schools, hospitals or care homes as part of an organised programme, supporting many people. An assistance dog is trained to perform specific tasks for one handler in daily life. The two roles have different training, different purposes and different access positions.
Most established organisations ask for clinical confirmation of the diagnosis and a description of its functional impact. Requirements vary between providers, so check what a specific organisation wants before arranging anything.
Less than people expect. Temperament, health and trainability are the deciding factors. Training organisations select individual dogs on assessed suitability rather than on breed labels.
