Article 4 Licensing and inspection

1. Member States shall adopt measures for licensing and inspection of existing and new zoos in order to ensure that the requirements of Article 3 are met.

2. Every zoo shall have a licence within four years after the entry into force of this Directive or, in the case of new zoos, before they are open to the public.

3. Each licence shall contain conditions to enforce the requirements of Article 3. Compliance with the conditions shall be monitored inter alia by means of regular inspection and appropriate steps shall be taken to ensure such compliance.

4. Before granting, refusing, extending the period of, or significantly amending a licence, an inspection by Member States' competent authorities shall be carried out in order to determine whether or not the licensing conditions or proposed licensing conditions are met.

5. If the zoo is not licensed in accordance with this Directive or the licensing conditions are not met, the zoo or part thereof:

(a) shall be closed to the public by the competent authority; and/or

(b) shall comply with appropriate requirements imposed by the competent authority to ensure that the licensing conditions are met.

Should these requirements not be complied with within an appropriate period to be determined by the competent authorities but not exceeding two years, the competent authority shall withdraw or modify the licence and close the zoo or part thereof.