Travelling to the EU with your pet dog
There have been changes in recent years when it comes to travelling with your pets to and from the UK, this is due to Brexit and the UK no longer being part of the European Union.
This blog covers the current (as of May 2024) rules for travelling with your pet dog from Great Britain to the EU.
You can learn more on our blog about the rules for our rescue dogs from Spain travelling to Great Britain here.
Taking your pet dog abroad (EU)
It is important that you follow the rules for travelling with your pet dog, you can find the information about this on the UK government website here.
To travel from the UK to the EU, your dog needs the following-
a microchip
a valid rabies vaccination
tapeworm treatment if you’re travelling directly to Finland, Ireland, Northern Ireland, Norway or Malta
a health certificate or valid pet passport that’s accepted in the country you’re travelling to (that documents the rabies vaccination and tapeworm treatment)
Microchipping
It is a legal requirement for dogs in the UK to be microchipped by the time they are 8 weeks old, you can read more about this on our blog here.
Your dog must be microchipped before the rabies vaccination is given or they will need to be vaccinated again.
Rabies vaccination to travel
Your vet will need proof that your dog is at least 12 weeks old before vaccinating them. If this is the first time your dog has been vaccinated against rabies, you must wait 21 days until they can travel. You do not need to wait to travel after a booster vaccination if there has been no break in the vaccine cover.
Your dog’s vaccination must be recorded in either a valid pet passport or an animal health certificate. These records must show:
your pet’s date of birth
microchip number, date it was put in or read, and where it is on your pet’s body
vaccination date
vaccine manufacturer and product name
vaccine batch number
date the vaccination is valid until
the vet’s signature and contact details
Tapeworm treatment for dogs to travel
Your dog has to be treated for tapeworm if you are travelling directly to Finland, Ireland, Malta, Northern Ireland or Norway and the timing is important. The treatment must have been given no less than 24 hours and no more than 120 hours (5 days) before you arrive. Your vet has to ensure they use a tapeworm treatment that contains praziquantel or an equivalent proven to be effective against the Echinococcus multilocularis tapeworm.
Your vet has to put the following details in the ‘Echinococcus treatment’ section of your dog’s animal health certificate or valid pet passport:
the name and manufacturer of the product
the date and time they treated your dog
their stamp and signature
What is a health certificate?
An animal health certificate (AHC) is a document that shows your pet dog has been vaccinated against rabies and treated for tapeworm. AHCs need to be signed by an “official veterinarian” (OV) who has been authorised by the government. Please check with your vet to see if they can issue a health certificate for you, if not, ask them to help you find an OV to do this for you.
An animal health certificate is only valid for 10 days from when it is signed, you have these 10 days to enter into the EU or Northern Ireland. An AHC is valid for 4 months for onward travel within the EU and 4 months for re-entry to Great Britain. You can read more on the Royal Veterinary College website here.
What is a traveller’s point of entry?
So you have your valid pet passport or health certificate documenting everything you need, you’re good to go, right? Yes, but you need to make sure to go through a traveller’s point of entry when you arrive in an EU country (or Northern Ireland).
“Dogs, cats and ferrets moved for non-commercial purposes into an EU country from a territory or a third country other than Andorra, Switzerland, Faroe Islands, Gibraltar, Greenland, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Monaco, Norway, San Marino, and Vatican City State can enter through the following travellers’ points designated by the EU countries where they are subjected to documentary and identity checks by the competent authorities:”
You can find all the traveller’s points of entry on the European Commission website here.
Spanish Happy Tails Rescue UK helps rescue dogs from Spain find loving homes in the UK.
Adopting a dog from Spain is more straightforward than you might think, we deal with everything for you (arranging transport and paperwork included), and with full Rescue Back Up, we are there for you from adoption and every day after that.
