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Pet Travel

Bringing Your Pet Dog, Cat or Ferret into Ireland from Any Country Other Than Those Previously Listed

  • For dogs with cropped ears, please use link below for further information... ear-cropping-of-dogs-regulations-2023

  • The pet must arrive in Ireland with their owner. If the owner cannot travel with the pet directly, then someone else (an authorised person) may travel with the pet directly on the owner’s behalf, BUT only if the owner’s own journey is within 5 days of the pet/authorised person’s journey.

  • All pets must be accompanied by original paperwork, not copies.
  • Five is the maximum number of animals allowed to travel with you under the pet travel rules. These rules apply no matter which country you are travelling from.

  • It is up to each individual airline to decide whether to carry the animal in the cabin or as excess baggage – the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine does not decide on this. There is no ban on the carriage of pets in cabin into Ireland

  • Service animals must comply with the rules on EU pet travel.

  • It is important to note that it is the country the pet is currently travelling from that sets the entry requirements, not the country the pet was born in or normally resides in. This means that if an Irish pet goes with its owners on holidays to Brazil and then wants to re-enter Ireland, it must follow the rules below on entry from Brazil. Irish/EU citizens should always prepare their pet for re-entry to Ireland BEFORE they leave Ireland.

  • It is also important to note that EU pet passports must be properly and fully completed to be valid for travel. Simply having one does not allow your pet automatic entry into Ireland, they must still abide by the rules below.

  • If you are entering Ireland from a non-EU country Ireland you must give advance notice of your intention to bring your pet into Ireland and arrange in advance to have a compliance check carried out on arrival. You must not leave the airport or port before compliance checks are carried out.

If any of the following situations apply to you:

  • you are buying a dog, cat or ferret abroad and having it shipped to Ireland, that is, you are not going to collect it and travel home with it, or
  • your pet is in another country and you want to have it shipped to Ireland, that is, you are not going to collect it and travel home with it
  • you are travelling to Ireland to buy, sell or gift a dog, cat or ferret, or if any change of ownership is involved after arrival, including delivery of a purchased or rehomed animal
  • if you are travelling with more than 5 pets (the exception is if you are travelling for a show/competition, and you will need to provide written confirmation livetrade@agriculture.gov.ie

then your pet may not enter Ireland under pet travel rules. These pets must follow a different set of rules as only pets travelling directly with their owners can use the pet travel rules for entry. Please see section on Bringing an Unaccompanied Pet Cat, Dog or Ferret into Ireland.

Please read through the information below carefully. If you have any questions on pet travel after reading, please contact:

Email address: livetrade@agriculture.gov.ie

  • telephone from within Ireland: 01 607 2827
  • telephone from outside of Ireland: 00353 1 6072827

 


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Your pet cat, dog or ferret may enter Ireland from any country or territory not listed in the dropdown menu, and will not be required to enter quarantine, if it has:

1. Been Microchipped

The microchip must be inserted before the rabies vaccination is administered, and must be readable by a device compatible with ISO standard 11785. If the microchip cannot be read when you enter Ireland, your pet may be required to be quarantined under official control, or refused entry into Ireland. You may bring your own microchip scanner with you, if the microchip is not readable by a device compatible with ISO standard 11785.

2. A Valid Rabies Vaccination and Successful Rabies Serological Test (Blood Test)

Rabies vaccination

  • the vaccination must be given after the microchip is inserted
  • the pet must be at least 12 weeks old before the vaccination is given, and
  • it must be given by a vet authorised by the government authorities of your country

Rabies serological test (blood test)

  • you must wait at least 30 days after the rabies vaccination has been given before the blood test is carried out. Otherwise your pet will fail the compliance check
  • your vet must send the blood sample to an EU-approved blood testing laboratory. The laboratory may be located either in an EU Member State or another country. A list of approved laboratories can be accessed here
  • the result of the blood test must show that the vaccination was successful (a rabies antibody level of at least 0.5 IU/ml)
  • the animal must wait three months from the date of the blood draw, if a satisfactory result has been obtained, before it can travel to the EU, including Ireland
  • the original blood test certificate from the lab, or a copy received from the lab, must travel with the animal as part of its health certificate and be presented when the compliance check is being carried out

The 3-month wait period does not apply if:

  • the blood sample was taken by a vet in an EU Member State or in Andorra, Gibraltar, Greenland and the Faroe Islands, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Monaco, Northern Ireland, Norway, San Marino, Switzerland or the Vatican City State and
  • the satisfactory result is entered into the passport or EU health cert (see below) before the animal left the EU and
  • there was no break in rabies vaccinations after the blood test was carried out

This is particularly relevant to a pet in an EU country who is to travel to an unlisted country, and the owner wishes to re-enter the EU with their pet without having to wait 3 months.

A rabies vaccination with a 1 or 3-year validity period is acceptable for entry into Ireland.

A valid blood test will remain valid for the life of the animal only if there is no break in rabies vaccination cover after the blood test is performed.

If there has been a break in rabies vaccine coverage, the next vaccination will be considered a primary vaccination and the blood test must be repeated at least 30 days after the vaccination, and then the 3-month waiting period following a successful blood test will apply.

If you are unsure, please see EU rules on travelling with pets and other animals in the EU - Your Europe (europa.eu) to see if your dog, cat or ferret requires a rabies antibody test in addition to a rabies vaccine.

3. Is Accompanied by a Valid EU Pet Passport, or EU Health Certificate

Ireland accepts pet passports from all EU countries, Northern Ireland and from the following European countries/territories: Andorra; Gibraltar; Greenland and the Faroe Islands; Iceland; Liechtenstein; Monaco; Norway; San Marino; Switzerland; Vatican City State.

A valid passport is a passport issued by an EU country or territory listed above, which certifies that the rabies vaccine given is valid.

Vets in non-EU countries (apart from the European countries/territories listed above) may not complete, sign or stamp the section on rabies vaccination or the rabies serological test in the passport. If they were to do so, this would make the pet passport invalid for travel.

If your pet dog, cat or ferret does not have a pet passport, issued by one of the countries or territories listed above (point 3), it must be accompanied by an EU Health certificate, before entering an EU country, including Ireland.

An EU Health certificate must be:

  • completed by your veterinary practitioner, AND
  • signed and endorsed by an Official (State) Veterinarian of the country of departure, within 10 days of pets arrival into the EU, AND
  • immediately upon arriving into the EU, signed and endorsed by the EU country which performed the compliance checks

An Official State Veterinarian is a veterinarian directly employed by the government in the country of departure.

If the pet is travelling by sea, the validity is extended by the number of days of travel by sea.

The endorsed certificate is valid for travel between EU Member States for up to 4 months, or until the anti-rabies vaccination expires, whichever is the earliest. Please note this is between EU Member States only, and not to travel out of the EU and back in again. If the pet leaves the EU at any stage, then a new health certificate signed by an official vet within the last ten days is required to re-enter the EU, and all the other rules re vaccination and tapeworm etc will apply.

4. Tapeworm Treatment for Dogs

If your dog is entering Ireland from any country apart from Finland, Malta, Norway or Northern Ireland, a vet must treat your dog for tapeworm (specifically Echinococcus multilocularis) and record the treatment in the pet passport or EU health certificate before each time you intend to travel to Ireland.

The treatment must contain praziquantel and must be administered by a veterinarian no less than 24 hours (1 day) and no more than 120 hours (5 days) before the scheduled arrival time of the dog in Ireland. Your dog may be refused entry into Ireland or quarantined under official control if it has not been correctly treated against Echinococcus multilocularis before entry into Ireland.

5. Pets May Only Enter Ireland Through Cork Airport, Dublin Airport, Dublin Port, Shannon Airport, The Port of Cork at Ringaskiddy or Rosslare Europort and Must Undergo Compliance Checks On Arrival.

Only in the event of an airport/port emergency should you leave the baggage reclaim area or point of entry without undergoing a compliance check. If this was to happen, you must contact DAFM immediately to explain why you left and re-arrange the compliance check.

If arriving into Dublin Port or Rosslare Port from Great Britain, please note special arrangements in the port may apply. Please follow the instructions given to you at the time.

There is a fee for compliance checks on pets entering Ireland from most countries outside the EU. There is no charge for compliance checks on pets entering from Great Britain. There is no charge for compliance checks on guide dogs and assistance dogs. Guide dogs and assistance dogs are dogs trained by an organisation accepted by or affiliated to Assistance Dogs International or the International Guide Dog Federation. These dogs must travel with an identification card or a letter provided by the accredited or affiliated organisation in order to avail of a free compliance check.

There is a fee for compliance checks on pets. There is no charge for compliance checks on guide dogs or pets entering from Great Britain.

Compliance checks are usually performed at the port or airport of arrival.

If you are arriving into Dublin Airport only, and your pets are travelling cargo or outside of DAFM staff working hours in Dublin Airport (7.30am, - 9pm), the compliance check will be carried out by either:

Lissenhall Kennels lissenhallkennels@gmail.com  +353 1 8401776  

Vets Direct info@vetsdirect.ie + 353 87668 6278 (pets travelling cargo only)

A fee for checks will apply, please contact your chosen provider directly for details.

Please note: Checks carried out by Lissenhall may be carried out in Lissenhall Kennels or in the airport. Please contact Lissenhall for details on where the pet will be checked. Lissenhall Kennels is located approximately 10km from Dublin airport. If the compliance check is to be completed at Lissenhall, pets will be securely transported to Lissenhall Kennels; owners are not allowed to travel in the vehicle with the animal. Owners must make their own arrangements to travel to Lissenhall, at their own expense, in order to collect their animals.

The office hours in Shannon Airport are 08.00 – 16.00 Monday – Friday, arrivals outside of these hours are dependent on availability, you must contact DAFM Staff in Shannon Airport PetsShannon@agriculture.gov.ie in advance to confirm the arrival can be facilitated.

6. You Must Provide Advance Notice and Organise Compliance Checks for Your Pet in Advance of Your Arrival into Ireland.

Please click on the link below which will bring you to the Advance Notice Portal...

Advance Notice Portal which must be filled out at least one working day but ideally at least a week in advance of any movement.

  • Pets transiting through other EU Member States may have the compliance check carried out at the first point of entry into the EU OR in Ireland. If the compliance check was performed in another EU Member State, you should produce proof of this on arrival into Ireland.

If you originally came from outside the EU and a compliance check was not carried out in another EU Member State, then you must have a compliance check on arrival into Ireland.

 

Contact Details at Points of Entry

Dublin Airport: If you need to contact a Department of Agriculture officer on arrival in Dublin Airport, you may do so by pressing the button marked Duty Supervisor on the courtesy telephone outside the Department of Agriculture offices in the baggage reclaim hall, opposite

  • carousel No. 6 in Terminal 1, or
  • carousel No. 2 in Terminal 2

Telephone number: + 353 (0)1 6157680.

6must not leave the baggage reclaim hall without undergoing the compliance check. If the inspector is delayed please take a seat and await their arrival.

Officers will be available from 08.00 to 16.00. If you arrive earlier than 08.00, please wait in the baggage hall.

If you need to contact us or cancel the inspection please call the Portal Inspector on Duty on +35361500940 or by emailing PetsShannon@agriculture.gov.ie.

If you need to contact DAFM staff in Shannon Airport or cancel the inspection please call the Portal Inspector on Duty on +35361500940 or by emailing PetsShannon@agriculture.gov.ie.

 

Pets Failing Compliance Checks

If you do not follow these rules, or your pet fails the compliance checks, it may be refused entry into Ireland, or may be placed into quarantine under official control for the necessary tests or vaccinations. In very limited circumstances, the pet may be euthanised. These measures will be implemented at the owner’s expense. Please ask for details of our quarantine facility and make contact with the quarantine facility immediately to make arrangements for your pet and to ensure that you are fully aware of the costs and requirements associated with this process.