🐕 Taking your dog or cat with you when you emigrate from South Africa

For many South African families, the dog or cat is not optional. Pets do move from South Africa to every major emigration destination, but the paperwork is strict, the waiting periods are long and fixed, and one mistake (a missing stamp, a test done a week too early) can mean starting again. Start early and work backwards from your destination's rules. This guide covers the steps that apply almost everywhere, then the rules for the UK, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, the UAE and the EU.

The building blocks: microchip, rabies vaccine and titre test

• Microchip first. Use an ISO-compliant microchip (usually 15 digits). It must be implanted before the rabies vaccination, or the vaccination may not count. Ask your vet to scan it at every visit and check the number on every document.
• Rabies vaccination. Keep boosters on time: if a vaccination lapses, many countries make you redo the titre test and restart the waiting period.
• Rabies titre test (RNATT or FAVN). This blood test proves the vaccine worked. Destinations generally want a result of at least 0.5 IU/ml from an approved laboratory. In South Africa, the ARC-Onderstepoort Veterinary Institute is on the EU's list of approved rabies serology laboratories at the time of writing (October 2026). Lab approvals have lapsed and been renewed in the past, so your vet should confirm the lab is accepted by your destination on the day the sample is sent.

The titre test is usually what sets your timeline, because the waiting period runs from the date the blood is taken (or, for Australia, the date the sample reaches the lab).

The South African side: your vet and the state vet

Your private vet does the vaccinations, blood samples and treatments, and fills in the destination's health certificate. That signature alone is not enough. The certificate has to be endorsed by an official (state) veterinarian of the national Department of Agriculture's Veterinary Services, who checks it against the destination's requirements and stamps it.

• The destination sets the certificate, not South Africa, and officials can't change its conditions to suit you.
• State vet export offices often work by appointment, so book well before you fly.
• Certificates have short lifespans. Great Britain and the EU both require entry within 10 days of the certificate being issued, and New Zealand wants a vet inspection in the 2 days before shipment. Plan the final vet visit, the state vet endorsement and the flight together.

Destination rules at the time of writing (October 2026)

United Kingdom. South Africa is not a "listed" country for pet travel into Great Britain, so you need a Great Britain pet health certificate plus a rabies blood test. The blood sample must be taken at least 30 days after the rabies vaccination, and you must then wait 3 months from the sample date before your pet arrives. Dogs need tapeworm treatment between 24 hours and 5 days before arrival. Pets flying into Great Britain must travel as cargo on an approved route (only assistance dogs and private charters are exceptions), and the UK bans certain dog breeds. See moving to the UK.

Australia. South Africa is an approved Group 3 country, so dogs and cats can be exported directly to Australia. It's the longest process of the main destinations:

• Your pet can't be exported until at least 180 days after the RNATT sample arrives at the laboratory. There are no exceptions.
• You need an import permit before you travel. At the time of writing the permit costs AUD 626 for the first animal (AUD 299 for each additional animal in the same consignment).
• Every cat and dog does post-entry quarantine at the government facility in Mickleham, Victoria. The minimum is 10 days if an official government vet verified your pet's identity before the RNATT blood sample was taken, and 30 days if not. That identity check is cheap insurance, so do it.
• Dogs that have ever been in mainland Africa must be treated with imidocarb dipropionate, and dogs need further tests (for example Leishmania, plus Brucella canis if not desexed) within 45 days of export.
• Quarantine fees at the time of writing include a AUD 282 reservation charge, a AUD 1,132 importation charge and AUD 56 a day, plus inspection and handling fees. For a 10-day stay that comes to a little over AUD 2,000 per animal before extras.
• Some breeds are banned, including the pit bull terrier, dogo Argentino, fila Brasileiro, Japanese tosa and Presa Canario.

The department advises allowing at least 6 months for all the steps. See moving to Australia.

New Zealand. South Africa falls under MPI's "category 3" (rabies absent or well controlled). A new Import Health Standard for cats and dogs came into force on 1 July 2026, and until 1 April 2027 you may follow either the new standard or the 2021 one, so make sure your vet is working from the one you've chosen. Under the 2026 standard:

• A primary rabies vaccination must be given at least 6 months before shipment, and the RNATT sample taken between 3 and 12 months before shipment.
• An official vet must scan and verify the microchip (an identity check) before the RNATT sample.
• Dogs that have lived in or visited mainland Africa need treatment or testing for Babesia rossi, a tick-borne parasite.
• You need an MPI import permit: apply at least 8 weeks ahead and allow 30 working days for processing.
• Pets must arrive at Auckland or Christchurch airport and spend at least 10 days in an MPI-approved quarantine facility.
• MPI suggests pets from category 3 countries will be roughly 9 months old at the earliest by the time they can ship.

See moving to New Zealand.

Canada. Canada is far simpler for a personal pet: there is no post-arrival quarantine for pet dogs. The main requirement for dogs over 8 months old coming from a country where rabies is present is a valid rabies vaccination certificate from a licensed vet, in English or French, that identifies the animal. Be aware that the CFIA lists South Africa as a country at high risk for dog rabies, and since 28 September 2022 it has banned commercial dogs from those countries, which includes dogs for adoption, fostering or resale. Your own pet travelling with you is treated differently, but check the CFIA's Automated Import Reference System (AIRS) for your exact case. If you might move on to the US later, US rules for dogs from high-risk countries are separate and strict. See moving to Canada.

United Arab Emirates. You need an import permit from the Ministry of Climate Change and Environment (MOCCAE) before travel, an ISO microchip, a valid rabies vaccination and an endorsed health certificate. Expect to need a rabies titre test from South Africa, and expect your pet to fly as manifest cargo. The UAE restricts several large and "power" breeds. Requirements and the list of countries that need a titre test are set by MOCCAE, so confirm them on its site or with your agent. See moving to the UAE.

EU countries and Ireland. South Africa is not on the EU's list of countries exempt from the titre test. The blood sample must be taken at least 30 days after vaccination and at least 90 days before the EU animal health certificate is issued. The certificate is valid for 10 days until the entry checks, and you must enter through a designated travellers' point of entry. Non-commercial moves are limited to 5 pets. See moving to Ireland.