Traveling with a pet
For US travelers
Taking a pet abroad, and bringing it home.
Most people who research this are not on vacation. They are moving, on military orders, or settling somewhere for a long stay, and they want two honest numbers: how long it takes and what it costs. That is what we lead with here. The rules are official, they change, and the part that catches people is almost never the part they worry about. Start with the two hubs below, then open the guide for your destination.
The first number: lead time
Some destinations run on a fixed clock you cannot shorten. Japan and Australia require a rabies antibody titer followed by a 180-day wait, which is why those moves take the better part of a year. Most other places, the EU, the UK, Canada, are weeks to about two months. Knowing which world you are in is the whole game.
The second number: all-in cost
A small pet flying in the cabin to Europe is a few hundred to about a thousand dollars in vet work and endorsement. A large dog that must fly as cargo to the UK or Australia can run several thousand and up. Cabin versus cargo, pet size, and breed are what move the figure, so we give ranges with the drivers named, never a single quote.
Start here
Two things are true for almost everyone: you have to get your pet into the destination, and you have to bring it back into the US. Those are two separate systems, and airline approval is a third. These hubs cover the shared parts.
Coming homeBringing your dog back into the USEvery dog flying home needs this, including your own, under the CDC rules from 2024. The free form, the microchip rule, and the returning-pet trap.Heading to EuropeThe EU pet health certificateOne process covers all twenty-seven EU countries. The microchip-then-rabies order, the 10-day clock, and why the EU Pet Passport is not for you.
Country by country
Where a destination has a timeline or cost worth walking through, we have written it up. Each one lives in that country's guide.
Bringing your dog or cat to Australia.Australia has the strictest pet import process of any English-speaking country, and it is the most expensive move we cover. Two numbers frame it: a lead time of at least 6 to 7 months, set by a rabies test and a fixed 180-day wait, and an all-in cost that often reaches five figures. Here is the order, the official route, and where the money goes.Bringing your dog or cat to Austria.Austria runs on the single EU pet-entry process for a US-origin dog or cat: microchip, rabies in the right order, and an EU health certificate on a 10-day clock. No quarantine, no rabies titer. Here is what that means for Austria, and the local parts worth knowing.Bringing your dog or cat to Canada.Canada is one of the lightest-lift destinations for a US pet owner. For an adult dog or cat there is no health certificate, no quarantine, and no waiting period. One document does almost all the work: a valid rabies vaccination certificate. Here is exactly what the border wants, and the one thing to remember for the trip home.Bringing your dog or cat to Croatia.Croatia runs on the single EU pet-entry process for a US-origin dog or cat: microchip, rabies in the right order, and an EU health certificate on a 10-day clock. No quarantine, no rabies titer. Here is what that means for Croatia, and the local parts worth knowing.Bringing your dog or cat to Czechia.Czechia runs on the single EU pet-entry process for a US-origin dog or cat: microchip, rabies in the right order, and an EU health certificate on a 10-day clock. No quarantine, no rabies titer. Here is what that means for Czechia, and the local parts worth knowing.Bringing your dog or cat to Denmark.Denmark runs on the single EU pet-entry process for a US-origin dog or cat: microchip, rabies in the right order, and an EU health certificate on a 10-day clock. No quarantine, no rabies titer. Here is what that means for Denmark, and the local parts worth knowing.Bringing your dog or cat to France.France is one of the most common EU destinations for US pet owners, and the good news is there is nothing France-specific to fear at the border. It runs on the single EU pet-entry process: microchip, rabies in the right order, and an EU health certificate on a 10-day clock. No quarantine, no rabies titer. Here is what that means for France, and the local parts worth knowing.Bringing your dog or cat to Germany.Germany is one of the most common EU destinations for US pet owners, and there is nothing Germany-specific to fear at the border. It runs on the single EU pet-entry process: microchip, rabies in the right order, and an EU health certificate on a 10-day clock. No quarantine, no rabies titer. Here is what that means for Germany, and the local parts worth knowing.Bringing your dog or cat to Greece.Greece runs on the single EU pet-entry process for a US-origin dog or cat: microchip, rabies in the right order, and an EU health certificate on a 10-day clock. No quarantine, no rabies titer. Here is what that means for Greece, and the local parts worth knowing.Bringing your dog or cat to Hong Kong.Hong Kong is stricter on paperwork than on waiting. The US sits in its middle risk tier, which means no quarantine by default, no rabies titer, and no long biology clock. The whole game is the AFCD Special Permit, which you must hold before you book a flight, and getting every document exactly right, because a single gap can turn a no-quarantine move into months of it. Here is the route.Bringing your dog or cat to Hungary.Hungary runs on the single EU pet-entry process for a US-origin dog or cat: microchip, rabies in the right order, and an EU health certificate on a 10-day clock. No quarantine, no rabies titer. Here is what that means for Hungary, and the local parts worth knowing.Bringing your dog or cat to Ireland.Ireland is a common EU destination for US pet owners, and it runs on the single EU pet-entry process: microchip, rabies in the right order, and an EU health certificate on a 10-day clock. No quarantine, no rabies titer. Ireland adds exactly one thing the big EU countries do not: a timed tapeworm treatment for dogs. Here is what that means, and the local parts worth knowing.Bringing your dog or cat to Italy.Italy is a popular EU destination for US pet owners, and there is nothing Italy-specific to fear at the border. It runs on the single EU pet-entry process: microchip, rabies in the right order, and an EU health certificate on a 10-day clock. No quarantine, no rabies titer. Here is what that means for Italy, and the local parts worth knowing.Bringing your dog or cat to Japan.Japan is one of the long-lead destinations. Two numbers decide everything: the lead time, which is 7 to 8 months because of a fixed 180-day wait you cannot shorten, and the all-in cost, which runs into the thousands. Miss the sequence and the clock resets. Here is the order, the official route, and what to budget.Bringing your dog or cat to Mexico.Mexico is one of the easiest destinations for a US pet owner. There is no health certificate to file, no quarantine, and no waiting period. The catch is not getting your pet in, it is bringing a dog back: since late 2024 Mexico is treated as screwworm-affected, so US dogs returning home need an extra certification. Here is the whole picture, both directions.Bringing your dog or cat to the Netherlands.the Netherlands runs on the single EU pet-entry process for a US-origin dog or cat: microchip, rabies in the right order, and an EU health certificate on a 10-day clock. No quarantine, no rabies titer. Here is what that means for the Netherlands, and the local parts worth knowing.Bringing your dog or cat to New Zealand.New Zealand is a long-lead destination on the level of Australia and Japan. It is rabies-free and guards that status with a strict, months-long process: an import permit, a rabies blood test, Brucella testing for dogs, specific parasite treatments, and a mandatory quarantine stay on arrival. On top of that, the rules are mid-change in 2026, so the first thing to nail down is which standard applies to you. Here is the whole route.Bringing your dog or cat to Norway.Norway is a destination some US pet owners choose, and it follows the EU pet-entry rules: microchip, rabies in the right order, and an EU health certificate on a 10-day clock. No quarantine, no rabies titer. Norway adds one thing the big EU countries do not: a timed tapeworm treatment for dogs. Here is what that means, and the local parts worth knowing.Bringing your dog or cat to Poland.Poland runs on the single EU pet-entry process for a US-origin dog or cat: microchip, rabies in the right order, and an EU health certificate on a 10-day clock. No quarantine, no rabies titer. Here is what that means for Poland, and the local parts worth knowing.Bringing your dog or cat to Portugal.Portugal runs on the single EU pet-entry process for a US-origin dog or cat: microchip, rabies in the right order, and an EU health certificate on a 10-day clock. No quarantine, no rabies titer. Here is what that means for Portugal, and the local parts worth knowing.Bringing your dog or cat to Singapore.Singapore is unusual among rabies-free destinations. Unlike Australia, New Zealand, or Japan, the US now sits in Singapore's middle tier, which means no quarantine by default. The process is more about paperwork choreography than a long wait: licences filed on time, a rabies titer with strict timing, and, since April 2026, an approved pet agent to clear your pet on arrival. Two specific situations still trigger a 10-day home quarantine, so the whole game is avoiding those. Here is the route.Bringing your dog or cat to South Korea.South Korea is the most straightforward of the strict-looking Asian destinations. There is no import permit to chase for a personal pet, and a dog or cat that meets the microchip and rabies-titer rules is typically released the same day it lands. The one thing that sets your timeline, and that you must not skip, is the rabies antibody titer. Here is the route.Bringing your dog or cat to Spain.Spain is a popular EU destination for US pet owners, and there is nothing Spain-specific to fear at the border. It runs on the single EU pet-entry process: microchip, rabies in the right order, and an EU health certificate on a 10-day clock. No quarantine, no rabies titer. Here is what that means for Spain, and the local parts worth knowing.Bringing your dog or cat to Sweden.Sweden runs on the single EU pet-entry process for a US-origin dog or cat: microchip, rabies in the right order, and an EU health certificate on a 10-day clock. No quarantine, no rabies titer. Here is what that means for Sweden, and the local parts worth knowing.Bringing your dog or cat to Switzerland.Switzerland runs on the single EU pet-entry process for a US-origin dog or cat: microchip, rabies in the right order, and an EU health certificate on a 10-day clock. No quarantine, no rabies titer. Here is what that means for Switzerland, and the local parts worth knowing.Bringing your dog or cat to Taiwan.Taiwan sits between the strict islands and the easy destinations. It requires a rabies antibody titer, which sets your timeline, but a US pet that meets the criteria can now have facility quarantine waived and go straight home with you. The catches are the titer timing, an import permit revised in 2026, and a breed ban to check. Here is the route.Bringing your dog or cat to Great Britain.Compared with Japan or Australia, the UK is quick: the lead time is weeks, not months, because there is no rabies blood test for pets coming from the US. The cost surprise is the flight, since pets almost always travel as cargo into Britain, not in the cabin. Here is the order, the official route, and what to budget.
These pages name the official route first and are checked against government sources, the CDC, USDA APHIS, and each destination's own authority. The lessons here are partly first hand: more about who writes these and how they are checked is on our about page. For the wider money picture of a trip, see tourist taxes and entry fees and each country's guide.