How to Get a Pet Passport USA: What USDA APHIS Actually Requires

As of September 2026, how to get a pet passport USA starts with a hard fact: the United States does not issue a national pet passport for international travel. A pet passport USA search usually means a destination-specific international health certificate issued by a USDA-accredited veterinarian and, when required, endorsed by the United States Department of Agriculture Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (USDA APHIS). Contact an accredited veterinarian as soon as you plan to travel, meet the destination country’s microchip, vaccination, test, and treatment rules, then obtain the correct certificate—and keep airline and CDC return rules separate.

Published by Animal Passport. Last updated September 2026. This article summarizes official U.S. and EU guidance for general information only. It is not veterinary diagnosis or legal advice. Re-check destination and airline rules before you book.

What “pet passport USA” actually means

A pet passport USA process is not a U.S. booklet like a European Union pet passport. USDA APHIS states on its pet-travel FAQ (last modified January 12, 2026) that because pet entry requirements vary by country, the United States does not issue pet passports for international travel. Instead, APHIS and accredited veterinarians issue health certificates—also called international health certificates, veterinary certificates, or export certificates—that confirm the animal meets the destination country’s requirements and any transit-country rules that apply.

That distinction matters for search intent. People asking how to get a pet passport USA usually need the USDA APHIS export pathway for dogs, cats, and other companion animals leaving the United States—not an EU passport booklet, and not a private digital livestock identity product.

Step-by-step: how to get pet travel documents from the USA

USDA APHIS’s Pet Travel Process Overview (last modified June 18, 2026) and its export landing page (last modified August 14, 2026) describe the same core sequence.

1. Contact a USDA-accredited veterinarian immediately. APHIS recommends starting as soon as you decide to travel. Accreditation under the National Veterinary Accreditation Program (NVAP) is state-specific and voluntary; not every clinic veterinarian is accredited. Only a USDA-accredited veterinarian may issue live-animal export certificates that require USDA endorsement.
2. Confirm the destination country’s current requirements. The destination country—not the United States—sets entry rules. Requirements can include an ISO-compatible microchip, rabies and other vaccinations, laboratory tests, parasite treatments, and an import permit. APHIS country pages change; verify them every trip.
3. Build a timeline for waiting periods. APHIS FAQ guidance (January 2026) notes the process can take a few weeks to many months. Rabies primary courses, titers, and destination-specific windows often drive the schedule.
4. Have the accredited veterinarian issue the correct health certificate. There is no single worldwide form. APHIS FAQs for accredited veterinarians state each country sets requirements by animal type; if a country-specific certificate appears on APHIS pet-travel pages, that is typically the form that must be used and endorsed.
5. Submit for USDA APHIS endorsement when required. Use the Veterinary Export Health Certification System (VEHCS) through your veterinarian (option 1) or ship originals to a USDA Endorsement Office with payment and a prepaid return label (option 2)—not both, per APHIS process guidance.
6. Carry the original endorsed paperwork and finish airline and destination extras. APHIS states the original USDA-endorsed hard-copy certificate must accompany the pet when endorsement is required, and that electronic versions alone will not be accepted by destination officials.

USDA APHIS endorsement fees (as of 2026)

APHIS publishes endorsement fees on its Cost To Endorse Your Pet’s Health Certificate page (last modified June 18, 2026). Payment is required before endorsement. APHIS fees do not include the veterinarian’s clinic charges. Vaccines are not counted as laboratory tests when calculating the fee.

APHIS does not charge endorsement fees for service animals (dogs) belonging to individuals with disabilities as defined by the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Emotional support animals are not exempt under that APHIS fee policy.

Which animals follow the APHIS “pet travel” path

On both its export and fee pages, APHIS defines a pet as a privately owned companion animal not intended for research or resale. Animals that qualify for pet-travel pathways include dogs, cats, ferrets, rabbits, rodents, hedgehogs/tenrecs, reptiles, amphibians, and certain birds. Livestock-type birds such as chickens, ducks, turkeys, and pigeons are regulated as poultry and follow different export rules. If your animal does not qualify as a pet under APHIS definitions, use livestock or poultry export guidance instead.

Traveling from the USA to the European Union

EU residents use an EU pet passport for many intra-EU trips. U.S. residents generally do not. The European Commission’s Your Europe portal explains that a European pet passport is issued to pet owners resident in the EU, while travelers from a non-EU country typically need an EU animal health certificate issued by an official veterinarian not more than 10 days before arrival in the EU.

APHIS’s France (EU) pet-travel page (last modified September 1, 2026) illustrates the U.S. export path into the EU: microchip before rabies vaccination; ISO-compliant microchips preferred; USDA-accredited veterinarian issuance of a non-commercial or commercial EU health certificate; then USDA endorsement. For non-commercial certificates, APHIS states USDA must endorse within 10 days of the pet’s arrival in the EU; commercial certificates must be issued and endorsed within 48 hours of U.S. departure. APHIS also notes that new EU certificate models tied to EU 2026/131 and EU 2026/848 become required in October 2026 for many dog, cat, ferret, and bird movements—so as of September 2026, owners should confirm which form version applies to their departure date.

Core EU health conditions summarized by Your Europe and the European Commission Food Safety pages include microchip identification, rabies vaccination (pet at least 12 weeks old at primary vaccination, typically with at least 21 days before travel after a primary course), and—for dogs entering Finland, Ireland, Malta, Norway, or Northern Ireland—treatment against Echinococcus multilocularis between 24 and 120 hours before entry.

Returning to the United States with a dog: CDC rules

Outbound USDA paperwork does not automatically clear re-entry. USDA APHIS’s export page (August 2026) states that the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is the primary U.S. government authority for dogs imported into the United States, including returning U.S.-origin dogs. CDC’s dog importation hub explains that requirements depend on where the dog was vaccinated and which countries it visited in the six months before U.S. entry.

Since August 1, 2024, CDC has required a CDC Dog Import Form receipt for dogs entering or returning to the United States. Dogs that have been only in dog-rabies-free or low-risk countries in the past six months generally need that form plus appearance of health, age of at least six months, and a universally scannable microchip, according to CDC. Dogs with recent history in high-risk countries need additional rabies documentation. APHIS separately warns that U.S.-vaccinated dogs traveling to or returning from a high-risk country for dog rabies must have a “Certification of U.S.-Issued Rabies Vaccination” form completed by a USDA-accredited veterinarian and submitted before leaving the United States—it cannot be issued retroactively after departure.

Interstate travel inside the United States

If your question is how to get a pet passport USA for a domestic move, APHIS’s FAQ is direct: USDA APHIS does not endorse health certificates for pets moving across state or territorial lines. Destination states and territories—including Hawaii, Guam, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands—set interstate requirements. Contact the destination state veterinarian’s office.

Comparison: U.S. health certificate vs EU pet passport vs digital livestock ID

How Animal Passport differs from USDA and EU travel documents

Search engines often mix government travel schemes with private identity tools. Animal Passport is a digital animal and livestock passport that uses muzzle biometrics—the nose print is unique like a fingerprint—captured on a phone. The record can bind owner, breed, estimated age, body condition, and vaccination history. Age can be estimated from a dental photograph with a confidence score, and body condition can be scored on a 1–5 scale from a side-profile photo.

That product is not a USDA APHIS health certificate, not an EU pet passport, and not a CDC Dog Import Form. It does not replace airline carriage rules. Animal Passport was used in livestock flood rescue in Pakistan in August 2025 so farmers could reclaim animals when paper tags washed away—an ownership and recovery use case, not border clearance for holiday pets. For more product and field context, see the Animal Passport blog.

Practical timeline and planning tips

• Start with the destination page on APHIS, then call an accredited veterinarian. APHIS cannot waive another country’s rules; if a pet cannot meet requirements, only the destination ministry can consider written waivers, per APHIS FAQ.
• Budget for clinic fees plus APHIS endorsement. Endorsement alone starts at $101 with no laboratory tests (APHIS, June 2026 fee table) and rises with test count.
• Watch certificate validity windows. Some destinations accept certificates for only a short period after the exam or endorsement. EU non-commercial certificates illustrate tight timing between issuance, endorsement, and arrival.
• Plan multi-country itineraries carefully. APHIS FAQ guidance says the pet needs a health certificate for the first country where it clears customs after leaving the United States; further stops depend on transport mode and time spent in each country.
• Check the airline separately. APHIS notes airlines may impose additional forms, carrier sizes, or booking rules beyond government certificates.
• If returning with a dog, complete CDC steps before you leave when high-risk countries are involved. Do not assume the export certificate alone covers re-entry.

“Because pet entry requirements vary by country, the United States does not issue pet passports for international travel. Instead, we issue health certificates that confirm your pet meets the unique requirements of your destination country and any country your pet may transit on the way to that destination.” — USDA APHIS, Frequently Asked Questions About Traveling With Your Pet (January 2026)

As of September 2026, the authoritative path for how to get a pet passport USA remains the USDA APHIS accredited-veterinarian and health-certificate process, paired with destination rules and—when dogs return—CDC importation requirements. Confirm every requirement on primary government pages shortly before travel, because country lists, certificate models, and fee schedules change.