Bringing Pets into Italy – the Pet Passport

 

 pet passport For bringing pets into Italy from the EU:

·        Each pet cat, dog or ferret must have its own EU pet passport

·        The animal must be over three months old

·        It must have been vaccinated against rabies at least 21 days before travel

·        Each pet should be microchipped

·        Generally you can only bring five pets into Italy

From the USA or Canada:

·        A valid veterinary Certificate with owner’s details, description of the animal, ID and rabies vaccination

·        Valid rabies vaccination

·        A tattoo or microchip compatible with ISO-11784 standards

 

The EU Pet Passport (European Pet Passport)

You will need a pet passport for each dog, cat or ferret. This available from your vet (and only from a vet.) It’s identical for all European countries and is valid for the life of the animal. It contains obligatory information about your pet and proof of up to date rabies vaccination (other details may also be included depending on the country) as well as the pet’s id number.

For travel within the EU (except for Finland, Ireland, Sweden, Malta and the UK) the pet needs to be

  • Microchipped 
  • Vaccinated against rabies

Special conditions for Finland, Ireland, Malta, Sweden and the United Kingdom:

As well as vaccination, an antibody titration (which tests if the vaccine has been effective) needs to be carried out by an approved lab before travelling with the pet to Ireland, Malta, Sweden and the United Kingdom.

An anti-tapeworm (echinococcosis) treatment is required to enter Finland, Ireland, Malta, Sweden and the UK and an anti-tick treatment to enter Ireland, Malta and the UK.

For going back to the UK The Pet Travel Scheme (PETS) applies, allowing qualifying domestic pets to travel to and from the UK without undergoing quarantine.

NOTE NEW LEGISLATION CAME IN ON 1 JANUARY 2012 ALLOWING  PETS TO ENTER UK 21 DAYS AFTER RABIES VACCINATION  – NO BLOOD TEST.

 (You can check the UK information on http://www.defra.gov.uk/wildlife-pets/pets/travel/quarantine/ )

Once you get one, the EU Pet Passport is valid for travel between Europe and Madeira, the Azores, the Canaries and countries with equivalent rabies status including San Marino, Vatican City and Switzerland.