This guidance applies to people travelling to and from Great Britain (England, Scotland and Wales) with their pet cats, ferrets or dogs, including assistance dogs.

This guidance is only for travel of up to 5 pets and for non-commercial reasons.

You need to follow these guidelines to travel between Great Britain and Northern Ireland, as well as between Great Britain and the EU. Travel to other non-EU countries is not covered in these guidelines.

cavalier dog with eu passport in mouth Bicester vets

Travelling into an EU country or Northern Ireland from Great Britain:

You can no longer use a pet passport issued in Great Britain (England, Wales and Scotland) for travel to an EU country or Northern Ireland.

You can still use a pet passport issued in an EU country or Northern Ireland (for Northern Ireland see additional guidance below).

When travelling to an EU country or Northern Ireland, your pet needs:

• a microchip placed or read before any rabies vaccination
• a valid rabies vaccination at least 21 days before certification and when the pet was at least 12 weeks of age
• an animal health certificate unless you have a pet passport issued in an EU country or Northern Ireland to be obtained no more than 10 days before travel
• tapeworm treatment for dogs if you’re travelling directly to Finland, Ireland, Northern Ireland or Malta

You will need to go through a travellers’ point of entry when you arrive in an EU country or Northern Ireland.

A list of these can be found here: https://ec.europa.eu/food/animals/pet-movement/eu-legislation/non-commercial-non-eu/tpe_en

Always check the rules of the country you are travelling to or through for any additional restrictions or requirements before you travel – it is your responsibility to check the current rules for travel and arrange the appropriate documents.

Repeat trips 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.

Your pet will not need a repeat rabies vaccination so long as their rabies vaccinations are up to date.

Getting an Animal Health Certificate

You must book an appointment with one of our Official Veterinarian’s to get an animal health certificate. The certificate will be specific to the country you are entering the EU through but can then be used for onwards travel through other EU countries.

You need the certificate no more than 10 days before you travel. Please give us as much notice as possible when booking the appointment. We cannot guarantee a last minute appointment for an Animal Health Certificate, this is due to the time required, and only Official Veterinarians can do these appointments.

We will request you to send us information about your pet and the travel in advance of your appointment. When booking the appointment, please tell us the country of entry to the EU you will be using.

When you come to your appointment for the Animal Health Certificate, you must bring proof of your pet’s:

• microchipping date
• rabies vaccination history

Your pet’s animal health certificate will be valid after the date of issue for:

• 10 days for entry into the EU or Northern Ireland
• 4 months for onward travel within the EU
• 4 months for re-entry to Great Britain

Your pet will need a new animal health certificate for each trip to an EU country or Northern Ireland from Great Britain.
Contact us for estimates of costs for Animal Health Certificates.

Travelling into Great Britain with your pet

An EU pet passport issued in a member state is still valid to enter GB.

Before they enter GB, all pets must be:
• microchipped
• vaccinated against rabies (must be at least 12 weeks old before vaccinated)

Travellers from the EU need to wait 21 days after the first vaccination before travel into GB (not for boosters as long as done before the due date)
Travel from countries not free from tapeworm (Echinococcus multilocularis)
Unless entering GB directly from Finland, Republic of Ireland, Northern Ireland, Norway, or Malta, you’ll need to take your dog to a vet for an approved tapeworm treatment.

You must do this no less than 24 hours and no more than 120 hours (5 days) before entering GB.

Pet travel documents

Your pet must have one of the following documents when entering or returning to GB:

an EU pet passport issued in the EU (or in GB if issued before 1 January 2021), or a pet passport from another Part 1 listed third country.

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