International Health Certificates and eCVIs
International pet travel requires careful planning, precise timing, and compliance with regulations established by your destination country, the USDA, CDC, airlines, and other governing agencies. Requirements vary significantly by country and can change at any time.
South Hyland Pet Hospital (SHPH) is happy to provide the veterinary care and USDA-accredited veterinary services needed for international travel. To ensure that health certificate requirements, documentation, and timelines are managed correctly, all international health certificate cases through SHPH are coordinated with Pawsitive Pet Health Certificates (PPHC).
PPHC specializes in the administrative requirements associated with international veterinary health certificates, allowing our team to focus on your pet’s medical care.
How the Process Works
1. Start with Pawsitive Pet Health Certificates
Before scheduling international travel services with SHPH, complete the Pawsitive Pet Health Certificates inquiry form linked at the bottom of this page.
PPHC will contact you within approximately 2 business days to gather information about your pet, destination, and travel dates.
2. PPHC Reviews the Health Certificate Requirements
PPHC will research the veterinary health certificate requirements for your destination and determine what must be completed and when.
Depending on your destination, this may include:
- ISO-compliant microchip identification
- Rabies and other vaccinations
- Rabies antibody titer or other laboratory testing
- Parasite treatments
- Required veterinary examinations
- International health certificate documentation
- USDA endorsement
Some requirements may need to be completed weeks or even months before departure, so please begin this process as early as possible.
3. Your Veterinary Timeline Is Established
Once PPHC has reviewed your travel plans and your pet’s records, they will provide you and SHPH with a timeline identifying the veterinary services your pet needs and when they must be completed.
At that point, you or our team can begin scheduling the necessary appointments with SHPH.
4. SHPH Provides the Veterinary Care
SHPH will complete the required veterinary services according to the timeline provided by PPHC. This may include vaccinations, microchipping, laboratory testing, parasite treatments, other required medical services, and the final health certificate examination.
Because international travel requirements are extremely time-sensitive, appointments must be completed within the required timeframes.
5. PPHC Prepares & Coordinates the Health Certificate
After the required veterinary services and final examination are completed, PPHC will prepare the international health certificate and associated veterinary documentation.
The certificate will be linked to SHPH’s USDA-accredited veterinarian account for completion and submission. When USDA endorsement is required, PPHC will coordinate the endorsement process and track the certificate through completion and delivery.
Who Is Responsible for What?
To help avoid confusion during the process, international pet travel responsibilities are divided as follows:
Pawsitive Pet Health Certificates (PPHC)
- Researches requirements necessary for the international veterinary health certificate
- Establishes the required veterinary timeline
- Prepares the health certificate documentation
- Coordinates the USDA endorsement process when required
- Tracks completion and delivery of the endorsed certificate
- Collects payment directly from the pet owner for PPHC’s health certificate coordination and administrative services
South Hyland Pet Hospital (SHPH)
- Provides the required veterinary examinations and medical services
- Completes vaccinations, testing, treatments, microchipping, and other veterinary requirements as directed
- Performs the final health certificate examination
- Provides the USDA-accredited veterinarian responsible for completing the veterinary certification
- Collects payment separately for all examinations, vaccinations, testing, treatments, microchipping, and other veterinary services provided by SHPH
Pet Owner
- Provides complete and accurate travel information and medical records
- Schedules required veterinary appointments within the timeline provided
- Completes and obtains any import permits, government registrations or notifications, owner declarations, airline documentation, airline approvals, transportation arrangements, or other travel requirements outside of the endorsed veterinary health certificate process
- Confirms all airline and transportation requirements directly with the carrier
- Ensures all required travel documentation is available for departure and arrival
PPHC and South Hyland Pet Hospital are separate services and bill separately. Payment to PPHC does not include veterinary services provided by SHPH, and payment to SHPH does not include PPHC’s administrative and health certificate coordination services.
Neither South Hyland Pet Hospital nor Pawsitive Pet Health Certificates can complete owner-specific import permits, government notifications, airline requirements, or other non-health-certificate travel requirements on the pet owner’s behalf.
PPHC may identify or inform you of additional requirements relevant to your travel, but it remains the pet owner’s responsibility to complete them correctly and on time.
Microchips, Vaccinations & Other Requirements
Many countries have specific requirements regarding microchip identification, rabies vaccination, laboratory testing, and the order in which these services must be completed.
Do not assume that an existing microchip, vaccination, test, or other service automatically meets your destination’s requirements. PPHC will review your pet’s records and determine what is necessary for the veterinary health certificate.
Returning to the United States
If your pet will return to the United States, return requirements must also be considered when planning your trip. Requirements vary depending on species, countries visited, rabies risk, vaccination history, and other factors.
PPHC will identify veterinary health certificate requirements that may be necessary for your pet’s return. However, any owner-completed CDC forms, import permits, government notifications, airline requirements, or other non-veterinary travel documentation remain the responsibility of the pet owner.
For current federal information regarding international pet travel:
USDA APHIS Pet Travel:
https://www.aphis.usda.gov/pet-travel
CDC Dog Importation:
https://www.cdc.gov/importation/dogs/
Important Information for Travelers
International pet travel is highly regulated, document-driven, and extremely time-sensitive. Requirements are established by foreign governments and regulatory agencies and may change at any time.
Missing a deadline, completing a service outside of the permitted timeframe, or failing to complete required documentation can result in travel delays, denied entry, quarantine, or additional expenses.
For this reason, SHPH does not independently research international health certificate requirements or manage the administrative health certificate process. All international health certificates through SHPH begin with Pawsitive Pet Health Certificates.
Ready to Get Started?
Please complete the Pawsitive Pet Health Certificates inquiry form below to begin the process.
PPHC will contact you within approximately 2 business days to review your travel plans. Once your pet’s veterinary requirements and timeline have been established, PPHC will coordinate with you and South Hyland Pet Hospital so the necessary veterinary services can be scheduled.
Pawsitive Pet Health Certificates
https://www.pawsitivepethealthcertificates.com/contact-us