Travelling Abroad

Taking your pet dog, cat or ferret abroad

You will need to make sure you know what you need to do before you can travel with your pet. You should check the rules of the country you’re travelling to for any additional restrictions or requirements before you travel.

1. Animal Health Certificates.
An Animal Health Certificate is required if you wish to take your pet (cat dog or ferret) on holiday (or a non-commercial movement) into the EU or Northern Ireland. To be considered a non-commercial movement, either the owner or a person who has authorisation in writing from the owner to carry out the movement must travel within five days (either side) of the pet’s movement. You will also need to sign a declaration that the animals are not subject to a movement that aims at their sale or a transfer of ownership.

2. Microchip
Your pet must be microchipped [pet microchipped] before, or at the same time as their rabies vaccination. If they are not, they will need to be vaccinated again.

3. Rabies Vaccination
Your pet must be vaccinated against rabies before it can travel and must be at least 12 weeks old before being vaccinated.
If your pet needs a rabies vaccination, you must wait a minimum of 21 days after the vaccination before your appointment for your Animal Health Certificate.
If your pet has already been vaccinated, we can check to see if they need a booster vaccination. You do not need to wait to travel after a booster vaccination if there has been no break in the vaccine cover.

4. Booking an appointment for Animal Health Certificate *Please note that a 50% deposit is taken at the time of booking*

As soon as you know when you are travelling, you will need to make an appointment for our vet to check your pet and issue your animal health certificate if you are going to an EU country or Northern Ireland. Your pet will need a new Animal Health Certificate for each trip to an EU country or Northern Ireland from Great Britain. When booking this appointment we will need to know date and place of travel, your details under which you will be travelling and your pet’s details. You will need to provide us with your pet’s vaccination card showing their rabies vaccination details which we will need to copy and certify before your appointment.
Your pet’s Animal Health Certificate will be valid for 10 days from the date of issue for entry into the EU or Northern Ireland, and we normally see you a few days before your date of travel to allow for any changes or disruption.

Your Animal Health Certificate is also valid for
• 4 months for onward travel within the EU after you enter the EU
• 4 months for re-entry to Great Britain

5. Tapeworm treatment before you travel
If you’re travelling directly to:
• Finland
• Ireland
• Malta
• Northern Ireland
• Norway
A vet must treat your dog for tapeworm and record it in your Animal Health Certificate. The treatment must be been given no less than 24 hours and no more than 5 days (120 hours) before you arrive at your destination.

6. Arrive in the country
You’ll need to go through a travellers’ point of entry when you arrive in an EU country or Northern Ireland.
You will need to show your pet’s Animal Health Certificate containing proof of their:
• microchip
• rabies vaccination
• tapeworm treatment (if required)

7. Check your return journey
The rules for returning with your pet into Great Britain (England, Wales and Scotland) depend on what country you’re coming from.
If returning from an EU country not listed in section 5, your dog must be treated for tapeworm by a vet before you re-enter Great Britain and this must be recorded in your Animal Health .
The treatment must have been given no less than 24 hours and no more than 120 hours (5 days) before you enter Great Britain. Your dog can be refused entry or put into quarantine if you do not follow this rule.
The tapeworm treatment must:
• be approved for use in the country it’s being given in
• contain praziquantel or an equivalent proven to be effective against the Echinococcus multilocularis tapeworm
• be given by a vet to your dog every time you bring it into Great Britain (England, Wales and Scotland).

8. If you’re travelling with more than 5 pets
You cannot take more than 5 pets to an EU country or Northern Ireland unless you’re:
• attending or training for an event
• exporting for commercial purposes
Attending or training for an event
You will need to provide written evidence of registration when you travel for an event, including:
• competitions
• shows
• sporting events
All of your pets must meet all the other requirements for pet travel to that country.

9. Short trips
If you’re leaving Great Britain (England, Wales and Scotland) for a short trip of more than one day and less than 5 days, to visit countries other than Finland, Ireland, Malta, Northern Ireland or Norway, you can have your dog treated for tapeworm before you go.
You pet will need an Animal Health Certificate as per the rules 1-8.
You must wait for 24 hours before re-entering Great Britain and return within 120 hours or you’ll need to get another treatment abroad so please bear this in mind when booking your ACH appointment. It is advisable in this case that dogs receive a follow up treatment 28 days later.

10. Travelling to a non-EU country
If you are travelling to a non-EU country, you should check what the requirements are for entering that country with your pet. You may need to get an export health certificate (EHC) and complete an export application form (EXA) if you’re in England, Scotland or Wales. The export health certificate and the export application form for each country and pet will tell you how to apply. An EHC confirms that your pet meets the health requirements of the country you’re travelling to.

Please note that this is a guide only and certificates will be issued on the basis of information available at the time and may not necessarily comply fully with the requirements of the importing country. It is the exporter’s responsibility to check the certificate against any relevant import permit or any advice provided by the competent authority in the importing country. If these do not match, the exporter should contact the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) in Carlisle, contact details can be found using the link below: https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/animal-and-plant-health-agency
If you have any further questions, please do not hesitate to get in touch enquiries@greenlanevet.co.uk