The Atlas/Transport & Border Crossing/Pet Travel rules & Animal Health Certificate
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Pet Travel rules & Animal Health Certificate
Animal Health Certificate · EU and GB pet travel
The biosecurity rules for taking a dog across the Britain-EU border, built around microchip, rabies vaccination and a per-trip health certificate.
01 What It Is
Moving a dog between Great Britain and the European Union is governed by statutory biosecurity rules whose main purpose is to keep rabies out. They require identification, vaccination and official certification, checked by veterinary officials at the point of entry. They are law, not guidance, and a dog that does not meet them can be refused entry or quarantined.
02 What It Covers
A dog must be microchipped, and vaccinated against rabies after the chip is fitted, from at least twelve weeks of age, with a wait before travel. A GB resident travelling to the EU needs an Animal Health Certificate issued by an official vet for each trip, valid for entry within ten days of issue; since April 2026 a GB resident can no longer travel on an EU pet passport. The EU sets the entry requirements; GB authorities issue the certificate.
03 How It Is Checked
The documents must be issued by an authorised or official veterinarian and are inspected by border officials at designated points of entry, where the dog’s microchip is scanned against its paperwork. A dog whose documents do not match, or whose vaccination is not valid, can be refused entry or held, which puts the check firmly in the hands of the state rather than the traveller.
04 Why It Matters
Rabies is almost always fatal once symptoms appear, and the movement of dogs is the main way it crosses borders. These rules are the reason a dog can travel between Britain and Europe at all, and the reason that travel is tied to a current rabies vaccination and an official check, protecting both the travelling dog and the populations at either end.