Members' Hub - The Hong Kong Jockey Club

There are three types of Horse Ownership in Hong Kong

Sole Owner

1 Member

Partnership

2 - 4 Members

Syndicate

5 -50 Members

List of Registered Syndicates

(List updated on 5th of each month)

Racing Club members can also experience the excitements of horse ownership through the Club's racehorses. For details, please visit Racing Club website .

Syndicate Registration

All Syndicate members must be Members of the Hong Kong Jockey Club. A Racing Club member or a nominee of a Corporate Member is eligible to be registered as an ordinary member of a Syndicate but shall not be eligible to be a manager.

Step 1

Complete the Syndicate Agreement (with a new Syndicate name in English & Chinese)

Step 2

Appoint 2 to 3 Syndicate Managers

Pre-requisite for Syndicate Manager:

Must be a Member of the Hong Kong Jockey Club.
Must be a founder member of the Syndicate or has joined the Syndicate for at least 3 years.
One of the Managers will be appointed as the Treasurer and will be responsible for keeping the Syndicate accounts and corresponding with the Club.

(A syndicate with 5 to 8 members shall nominate 2 or 3 managers and a syndicate with 9 to 50 members shall nominate 3 managers)

Step 3

Return the Syndicate Agreement to the Racing Registry for registration

Step 4

Notify Racing Registry of any changes in the Syndicate composition and renew Syndicate registration in August annually

Horse Ballot Application General Information

Full Members and Racing Members of the Hong Kong Jockey Club can become horse owners if they are successful in the annual Horse Ballot. Horse Ballot Application usually opens in March or April each year. There are two types of application forms:

PP Permit Application Form for importing a previously raced horse into Hong Kong.
PPG Permit Application Form for importing an unraced horse into Hong Kong.

The conditions for application and eligibility to enter the Horse Ballot are printed in the application form.

Horse Ballot Application Flow

Step 1

Complete the application form for PP or PPG Horse Import Permit

Step 2

Submit a Bank reference letter from a licensed bank or financial institution or other relevant documents to certify having the financial resources to meet all horse related charges

Bank reference letter sample

Step 3

Return the application form and relevant documents to the Racing Registry before the closing time for application

Step 4

Wait for Ballot Results Announcement in early June.

How to purchase a horse

Bid at the Hong Kong International Sale
Bid at Overseas Horse Sales
Purchase through Bloodstock Agent or Trainer

Countries where horses are usually imported from:

Breakdown of horse imports by exporting country in 2025/2026 season

83%

Australia / New Zealand

15%

United Kingdom / Ireland

3%

Others

Please click here to view the Veterinary Pre-import Exam protocol

All Shipments are organized by the Dual Site Stables Operations and Owners Experience Management Team. The flowchart below illustrates the activities involved in arranging the importation of a horse from overseas

Overseas Country

Trainer or bloodstock agents contact the Club's appointed shipping agents
Shipping agents organize pre-export veterinary examination and quarantine in overseas (21 days) *

Hong Kong

Shipment from overseas to Hong Kong
Post-Arrival Quarantine at Sha Tin Quarantine Stables (14 days)
Release to trainer stables

* Special quarantine protocol applies to imports from South Africa, please contact Dual Site Stables Operations Department for further details.

Upon arrival, an import administration fee of HK$1,150 will be levied.

Insurance

The Club believes that owners in Hong Kong should insure their horses at all time. Owner who has successfully purchased a horse is strongly recommended to effect the appropriate insurance cover.

Horse Registration

To register a horse which has been permanently imported into Hong Kong, the following documents must be lodged with the Club:

Passport

A travel document issued by the Recognized Racing Authority of the country where the horse was registered.

Stud Book

A certificate issued by the official Stud Book authority of the country where the horse was foaled.

Horse Name Registration

Owners must register a Chinese and an English name for their horses within 1 month from the date of horses' arrival. To submit a new Horse Name, please complete the Horse Name Registration Form (PP / PPG / ISG) and return it to the Racing Registry.

Registration Form (PP)

Registration Form (PPG)

Registration Form (ISG)

Names not available for selection

Names appearing in the current Book of Registered Names of Horses
Names registered since the last publication of the Book
Names appearing in the Stud Book of the horse's country of origin.
Names consisting of more than eighteen letters or spaces (punctuation marks to count as letters)
Chinese names consisting of a single character or more than four characters
Names of well-known living persons (unless written permission is given by person concerned)
Names similar in spelling or pronunciation to those already registered
Names made up entirely of initials or include figures, hyphens, full stops, commas, signs, exclamation marks, inverted commas, forward slash, back slash, colon or semi-colon
Names consisting entirely of or ending with numbers
Names given for obvious advertising reasons or in any way connected to any businesses, companies, brands or products.
Names whose meaning, pronunciation or spelling may be thought obscene or insulting
Names which sound vulgar
Names without a proper meaning
Names which are not pronounceable
Names which would cause confusion in the administration of racing

Notes:

A name previously held may not be re-registered until 7 years have elapsed from the death or retirement from racing of the previously named horse.
The Stewards of The Hong Kong Jockey Club reserve the right under Rule 8 (3) and Rule 35 (7) of the Rules of Racing to refuse to accept any name at their discretion.
The Stewards of The Hong Kong Jockey Club will not normally approve the change of name of a horse after it has been registered in Hong Kong.

Each owner is required to register his or her own Racing Colours and registered Racing Colours will not be taken by another owner. To avoid confusion, each Racing Colours design must be unique and considerably different from other registered Racing Colours. Selection of colours and patterns must be confined to those specified in the Club's"Racing Colour Chart". The use of patterns and colours not specified in the Racing Colour Chart will not be approved. Also, the Racing Colours design shall not contain more than 4 different colours.

Each owner is allowed to change the design of their registered Racing Colours once and they are required to pay a fee for making such a request. The fee subject to revision is currently set at HK$10,000.

To register your Racing Colours, please complete the Racing Colours Registration Form and return it to the Racing Registry.

Racing Colour Chart & Registration Form

Body Pattern Sleeves Pattern Cap Pattern Colour

Body Pattern

51 body patterns include plain, hoop, sash, lightning bolt, multi diamonds, etc.