There are common requirements for traveling with dogs, cats and ferrets within the EU
1. The animal must be ID-marked
Your animal must be ID-marked with a chip.
Your animal must be microchipped before, or at the same time as, their rabies vaccination. If your animal is microchipped after, they will need to be vaccinated again.
Microchipping must be done by a veterinarian or by a person who holds approval to microchip animals.
An animal that is to travel to Sweden as a pet with its owner must be marked with a chip that meets the ISO standard 11784/11785.
An animal travelling to Sweden must be marked with an approved chip if it is to change owner, travel more than 5 days before or after its owner, or travel in a group of more than 5 animals. The chip must be approved by the competent authority of the country that the animal comes from. If the animal is marked in Sweden, the chip must be approved by the Swedish Board of Agriculture.
The date for ID marking or reading of ID marking and the ID number must be in the animal’s pet passport.
If the animal has been re-microchipped and therefore has two ID numbers, both must be entered in the passport.
If the animal is checked at the border and the microchip is not legible, the animal can be sent back to the country from which it came, possibly quarantined or in the worst case euthanized. As there is always a risk that the chip is not legible, you can bring your own chip reader for safety.
If your animal has a legible tattoo that according to a certificate was made before 3 July 2011, your animal does not need to be microchipped.
2. The animal must have a valid vaccination against rabies
The animal must be vaccinated against rabies. The first vaccination that builds up the protection, also called primary vaccination, can consist of one or two doses. The vaccine must be approved in the country where the vaccination takes place.
The animal must be microchipped and at least 12 weeks old to receive the primary vaccination. The animal must be microchipped before the rabies vaccination in order for the vaccination to be valid. If the animal is already microchipped, the microchip must be read before the vaccine is given.
The details of the vaccination must be entered into the animal’s passport or veterinary certificate and it must be stated that the microchip has been implanted and/or read no later than the same day as the vaccine is given.
After the primary vaccination, you must wait 21 days before travelling with the animal.
Example 1: Vaccination with one dose given on 1 January = travel no earlier than 22January.
Example 2: Vaccination with two does on 1 January and 1 February = travel no earlier than 22 February.
Revaccination
The validity of the vaccine may vary from country to country.
When the animal is vaccinated, the veterinarian will specify the validity of the vaccine in the animal’s passport in accordance with the rules in the country where the animal is located. If you want to continue travelling with your animal, you must ensure that the animal is revaccinated no later than the expiration date written by the veterinarian.
If the animal has been revaccinated within the specified period of validity, no waiting period of 21 days is required before you can travel with it.
Delayed re-vaccination
If an animal is revaccinated after the specified period of validity, in other words the previous vaccination has expired, the revaccination is counted as the new primary vaccination. Then a new waiting time of 21 days is also required before the animal can travel again.
3. The animal must have an EU-passport for pets (animal travelling from an EU-related country which do not issue passports should travel with form E9.207 instead
An animal that is brought into Sweden from another EU country must have an EU passport for pets. The EU passport can be issued by a veterinarian.
Only certain countries outside the EU may issue passports that the animal can travel with. This applies to Andorra, Gibraltar, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Monaco, Northern Ireland, Norway, San Marino, Switzerland and the Vatican City State. These passports look like EU passports for pets but may have a different colour and the country’s national emblem on the front instead of the EU flag. However, not all of these countries issue such pet passports. In these cases, the animal needs to travel with a veterinary certificate for pets instead (form E9.207). Passports from other countries outside the EU are not valid for travel – instead the animal must have a veterinary certificate.
The passport must include:
- The animal’s ID number. It must match the microchip number. If the animal has been re-marked and therefore has two ID numbers, both must be entered in the passport.
- Rabies vaccination.
- Animal species, sex and date of birth of the animal.
- Name of pet owner. If a breeder is to sell a puppy to a foreign owner, it is the breeder who is the owner until the animal is delivered. Therefore, remember to enter your information in the passport when the animal is handed over to you. It is always the person last entered into the passport who is considered the current owner.
- Signature of the pet owner or owners. In order for the passport to be valid, the pet owner or owners must sign the last line under the telephone number before the veterinarian issues the passport.
Only designated veterinarians with EU credentials may issue EU passports or enter information in them.
4. The animal must be reported to customs when passing the border
The animal must be brought into Sweden via a customs declaration post. There you must notify customs that you are bringing an animal into the country. You do this at a specific lane.
- If you declare the animal directly to the customs office at the border, you must choose a red lane and contact a customs officer in the surveillance area.
- If you declare the animal in advance via the Swedish Customs’ website, you can choose a green lane “nothing to declare”.
Read more on the Swedish Customs’ website. If the animal is not reported to customs, it may be denied entry into Sweden.