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Pet travel rules move with politics, disease outbreaks and airline policy. This page logs every change we have verified, with the date it took effect and a link to the official document. Each line is checked against the source, not against another travel blog.
From 1 October 2026, pets entering the EU from outside need an animal health certificate drawn up on the new model set out in Implementing Regulation (EU) 2026/705. The old model, from Regulation (EU) No 577/2013, is no longer used to issue new certificates. This is a change of document, not of the underlying conditions: the microchip, the 21-day rabies wait and the 10-day validity are unchanged, and the change comes from Implementing Regulation (EU) 2026/848.
If you are already in the process: a certificate issued before 1 October 2026 on the old model stays valid for a transitional period until 31 March 2027 (Article 6(3) of Regulation (EU) 2026/705). You do not have to redo a certificate you already hold. A certificate issued on or after 1 October 2026 must be on the new model.
Sources: EUR-Lex, Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2026/705 (Article 6(3), transitional period) · USDA APHIS, new health certificates effective 1 October 2026
Delegated Regulation (EU) 2026/131 replaced Regulation (EU) 576/2013, with Implementing Regulation (EU) 2026/636 for the lists of third countries and 2026/705 for the model documents. The practical shape stays the same: microchip, rabies vaccination at least 21 days old, certificate valid 10 days for entry. What changes is the paperwork itself and how it is checked. The new framework introduces a single non-commercial movement to stop one vehicle carrying many unrelated pets, requires a written declaration for pets arriving from third countries, tightens the technical standards for microchips, and revises the EU pet passport.
Source: EUR-Lex, Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2026/131
GOV.UK now states that a GB animal health certificate is valid for 10 days for entry into the EU, then 6 months for onward travel inside the EU and 6 months for re-entry to Great Britain. A large number of guides still say 4 months, which was the older rule: if you read 4 months on another site, that site is out of date. One certificate per trip is still required for each new entry into the EU.
Source: GOV.UK, taking your pet abroad
Every dog entering the US now needs a CDC Dog Import Form, and the requirements depend on where the dog was vaccinated and whether it has been in a country at high risk of dog rabies during the previous 6 months. A dog coming from a high-risk country without a valid rabies vaccination cannot enter. Dogs from rabies-free or low-risk countries follow a shorter route. This replaced the 2023-2024 import suspension and is the single most common reason a US-bound move is refused at the airport.
From 1 February 2024 it became an offence in England and Wales to own an XL Bully without a certificate of exemption, and the breed joined the list that cannot be brought into the country. Scotland followed on 1 August 2024. Banned breeds cannot enter or transit the UK at all, whatever the paperwork, so this decides whether a move is possible before any certificate is issued.
Source: GOV.UK, banned dogs
