How to Move a Pet to Australia

Moving a pet to Australia requires a regulation-size crate.

You're moving to Australia, and you can't bear to leave your beloved pet behind. Moving a pet is not just a matter of buying it a seat on the airplane next to you and enjoying the flight together. It'll have to go it alone, and there are strict and challenging Australian regulations to abide by. Not only do you have to plan far ahead to move your pet, but you have to make sure it's healthy, properly inoculated, and kept quarantined before it can move to its new home with you.

Things You'll Need

• Information package
• Microchip
• Rabies vaccine
• Rabies vaccination certificate
• RNATT blood test
• Certificates A and B
• Declaration
• Permit application
• Crate
• Water container
• Absorbent bedding

Instructions

1. Log on to the Australian Quarantine and Inspection Service (AQIS) website. Select the country your pet is being moved from, i.e. United States, and click "Go." Come to the next screen that says "Category 4: Quarantine Period Varies in Australia." Access the information package link and choose PDF or Word format. Print and read the Australian pet moving regulations with a fine-toothed comb.

2. Get a microchip implanted in your pet that can be read by an ISO compatible reader. Have the microchip periodically scanned and read to make sure it's correct before you move the pet to Australia.

3. Vaccinate your pet with an AQIS approved inactivated rabies vaccine at least 12 months before the move and get a signed certificate from your veterinarian. Your pet should be at least three months old.

4. Find an official government veterinarian, a government-approved veterinarian and a government-approved laboratory. Contact the quarantine, agriculture or food department in your home country for a list. They will administer the blood tests, make sure that your pet has no infectious diseases and provide Certificates A and B required to move your pet to Australia.

5. Have your pet tested for the Rabies Neutralising Antibody Titre Test (RNATT) at a government-approved laboratory by a government-approved veterinarian at least 60 days or up to 12 months before you move your pet. Allow at least four weeks between a rabies vaccine and the RNATT test to get a positive result. The government-approved veterinarian scans the microchip and writes the number on his blood sample.

6. Present the RNATT lab report and your pet's rabies vaccination certificate to an official government veterinarian and receive a declaration that shows your pet is free of rabies. Arrange to have your pet quarantined in Australia. Contact an Animal Quarantine Station and have a staff member pick your animal up at the airport. Provide the quarantine station with all the necessary information, including waybill number, airline, date and time of your pet's arrival.

7. Get a permit to move your pet to Australia. Download the application from the AQIS website and submit all the necessary certificates and declarations with original signatures. Book your pet's flight on any airline for travel on a Monday through Friday between 8:00 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. Avoid weekends or Australian holidays.

8. Put your pet in a crate that is approved by the Air Transport Association. Make sure the pet is traveling as "manifested cargo" and that the crate is marked "live animal." Provide your pet with a water container and adequate absorbent bedding. Check in at the freight terminal, not the passenger terminal. The AQIS permit, certificates, blood test results and vaccination records must go with your pet to Australia.

Tips & Warnings

• Contact the Australian Quarantine and Inspection Service at 011-61-2 6272-4454 if you have questions.

• Pets must be at least six months old before they can be moved to Australia.

• Pets must stay in their home country for 60 days after undergoing the RNATT test.

• Find an Animal Quarantine Station in Australia through the AQIS website. Book far in advance to ensure space for your pet.

• Pets can arrive in Australia at the Sydney, Melbourne or Perth airports.

• Hire a professional pet shipper to take care of the required paperwork by visiting the Independent Pet and Animal Transportation Association International, Inc. website.

• Horses can be moved to Australia from certain AQIS approved countries. Information can be viewed on the AQIS website under "other pets."

• Pets must not be more than three weeks pregnant or nursing young during a move to Australia.

• Certain cat and dog breeds are not permitted to be moved to Australia. They are listed on the AQIS website.

• Pets will be returned to their home country if their microchips can't be read when they arrive in Australia.

• AQIS doesn't provide a list of official or government veterinarians.

• Household pet birds and rabbits only originating from New Zealand can be moved to Australia. Information can be viewed on the AQIS website under "other pets."

References

• AQIS: Bringing Cats and Dogs (and other pets) to Australia

Resources

• PetRelocation.com: Australia Pet Import Rules and Requirements
• Independent Pet and Animal Transporation Association International, Inc.