PETS: Dogs, cats and ferrets
Routes and transport companies
You may use any of the routes and transport companies on the following lists to bring your dog, cat or ferret into the UK under the Scheme, subject to the transport company’s agreement. All companies have been approved by Defra to carry dogs, cats and ferrets but not all may wish to carry ferrets. There may also be a limit to the total number of animals that a company will permit to travel on each boat or aircraft. Check with the company before booking your tickets that they are prepared to carry your pet.
You may not bring a pet into the UK from a private boat or plane.
Your pet may travel to the UK via any qualifying country or countries. It must not have been to any non-qualifying country in the 6 months before entering the UK.
Please note that there are no approved routes to the UK from the following
PETS countries:
EU countries and territories: Faroe Islands, French Guiana, Greenland,
Réunion.
Non-EU countries: Andorra, Aruba, Ascension Island, British Virgin Islands,
Chile, Belarus, Bosnia Herzegovina, Fiji, French Polynesia, Grenadines,
Guam, Jamaica (which although rabies-free is excluded
from PETS by Jamaican law), Liechtenstein, Mayotte, Monaco, Montserrat,
New Caledonia, St Helena, St Pierre & Miquelon, St Vincent, San Marino,
Taiwan, Trinidad & Tobago, Vanuatu, Vatican, Wallis & Futuna.
Routes may change and new ones may be added. Check the lists below for
the latest information. Some routes may be irregular and some may only
operate during certain times of the year. You are advised to check this
and all your other proposed travel arrangements with the transport company,
including how they will transport your pet, before booking your trip to
the UK as they may have their own additional conditions of travel. These
conditions may include a health declaration for your pet. Pets travelling
to the UK by air will travel as cargo, unless they are a registered assistance
dog entering with an approved airline, on a route that permits them to
travel in the cabin. Check the costs, requirements and procedures with
your transport company well before you travel.
- EU routes (Commercial carriers)
- Non-EU routes (Commercial carriers)
- Registered assistance dog routes
- Charter airline routes (the whole plane must be booked, not just the ticket)
Once you have choosen a route, check contact details of transport companies.
Lists of qualifying European and non-EU listed countries are available.
Page last modified: February 9, 2007