Farmers in England will be allowed to take livestock directly to slaughter from midnight on Saturday, chief veterinary officer Debby Reynolds said.
It is a relaxation of the strict rules imposed following the latest outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease in Surrey last week.
Debby Reynolds said: "From midnight tonight movement of animals to slaughter will be allowed in England under strict biosecurity rules and general licence."
She said the relaxation followed evaluation of the risk of movement of animals.
The lifting of the restriction applies only to animals outside the surveillance zone currently imposed around the infected premises in Surrey.
It means cattle, sheep and pigs can be moved directly from farms to listed abattoirs, or from farms to abattoirs by an approved collection centre or slaughter market.
Dr Reynolds said: "We continue to take a risk-based, staged approach to movement controls. It is essential that all animal keepers, hauliers, abattoirs and those responsible for collection centres follow stringent bio-security measures and all licence conditions."
Dr Reynolds said laboratory tests had confirmed that the virus found at Stroude Farm near Egham, Surrey is the same strain as that which infected the first herds in the current outbreak and the two herds last month.
She said: "The strain of virus is also 01 BFS 67 strain. All four inspected premises we have confirmed as infected premises are infected by the same strain."
Dr Reynolds said culling on Stroude Farm was now complete. "Very detailed examination has revealed that the contamination of foot-and-mouth in these animals is up to 10 days old," she said.
