
Planning on taking your dog to Poland? This guide runs through exactly what you need to do, and when you need to do it, to ensure a smooth journey for you and your dog.
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This guide is regularly kept up to date by one of our Official Veterinarians. But if you feel we have made as mistake, or some information is out of date, please contact us to let us know.
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At PassPets, our vets have years of experience in helping pet owners across the UK with the correct veterinary certificates and documents they need to travel, so get in touch if you have any questions or would like any further information.
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Microchip
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All dogs travelling to Poland are required to be microchipped with an ISO compliant microchip (if it's 15 digits, it's ISO compliant).
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In the UK, it is a legal requirement for all dogs to be microchipped from 8 weeks so it's likely your dog will already have one.
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It's worth ensuring the microchip is working correctly and that the registration details are in the owner's name.
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Rabies Vaccination
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All dogs entering the EU (including Poland), are required to have a valid rabies vaccination. The rabies vaccination is not a routine vaccination, so you will have to book this in at your vets if your dog has not had one, or if it has expired. Dogs must be more than 12 weeks old before they can have a rabies vaccination.
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The rabies vaccination must be administered at least 21 days (3 weeks) before an Animal Health Certificate (see step 4) can be issued, so it's worth booking this in at your vets sooner rather than later, to ensure there are no delays to your journey.
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Most rabies vaccinations administered in the UK are 3 year rabies vaccinations, but some are valid for just 1 year.
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Before your vet administers the rabies vaccination, they will need to scan your dog's microchip and check that it matches their records. The vet should also write in their notes that they scanned and verified the microchip before administering the rabies vaccination. They should provide you with a rabies vaccination certificate or vaccination card containing details of the rabies vaccination along with the dog's detials including microchip number, the owner details, the vet's name and signature and the date of the rabies vaccination. You will need to keep hold of this document, which will be required to issue the Animal Health Certificate.
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Although we advise keeping your dog up to date with their other annual, routine vaccinations, this is not an essential requirement for travelling to the EU (including Poland).
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Book your travel
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The most popular way to travel to Poland with a dog is by car via the Eurotunnel, however you can also travel to France or the Netherlands via ferry from various ports around the UK, and drive through to Poland from there.
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There are very few airlines that accept dogs on flights to Poland, however a few of our clients have used LOT airlines or KLM in the past. If you are planning on travelling via plane, check the requirements with the airline as you will most likely require a "Fit to Fly certificate" in addition to the Animal Health Certificate.
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Before you book your travel, ensure that you can book in with an Official Veterinarian, such as PassPets, for an Animal Health Certificate to be issued less than 10 days before your departure date (and at least 21 days after the rabies vaccination date). Official Veterinarians get quite booked up early around the summer and Christmas periods, so it's worth booking this in early.
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Animal Health Certificate
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All dogs travelling to Poland are required to have an EU Animal Health Certificate (AHC) issued by an Official Veterinarian less than 10 days before your travel date. The key requirement for an Animal Health Certificate is that your dog must be microchipped and have a valid rabies vaccination administered at least 21 days (3 weeks) before issue date.
The AHC will need to be in the language of the country of entry to the EU, so if you are driving to Poland and entering France from the UK, the AHC will need to be in French.
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If your vet practice does not have an Official Veterinarian (a vet that has done the extra government qualification to issue pet travel certificates), or if the price your vet practice charges is too expensive, consider using a company such as PassPets to issue your AHC. All of our Official Veterinarians are very experienced in the latest pet travel requirements and we have issued thousands of Animal Health Certificates for pet owners, and vet practices across the UK. Our Animal Health Certificates are £99 with discounts available for multiple pets and repeat customers. See here for more information.
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Travel to Poland
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Make sure you pack your Animal Health Certificate when you travel, as you will be asked to show this to the border official when you depart the UK. If you are travelling via the Eurotunnel, you will have to visit the pet reception area for them to scan your dog's microchip and check the Animal Health Certificate, or if you are travelling via ferry, then normally check this from your car.
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The Animal Health Certificate is valid for 4 months from the date it was issued, or until the rabies vaccination expires, whichever is earlier, and it is valid for travelling to all countries in the EU including Switzerland and Norway.
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The travel time to Poland can be long, so ensure your dog is cool, comfortable and stop frequently for walks and toilet stops.
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Before you Return: Tapeworm Treatment
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All dogs entering the UK are required to have a tapeworm tablet administered by a vet between 24 hours (1 days) and 120 hours (5 days) before their arrival time in the UK, so you will need to find a vet in Poland (or anywhere in this timeframe en route back through the EU) to administer this and record this in the tapeworm table on page 4 of the Animal Health Certificate.
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If the tapeworm treatment is not administered in the correct time frame, your dog may be turned away, so it's important to ensure you get the tapeworm treatment administered between 24-120 hours before arrival.
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For more details on exactly where the vet needs to record this tapeworm treatment, please see our blog post on returning to the UK.
Returning to the UK
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Once the vet has administered the tapeworm treatment and you have waited at least 24 hours, you can travel back into the UK.
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The border officials will scan your dog's microchip and check the Animal Health Certificate to ensure the tapeworm treatment has been administered in the correct time frame.
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Banned dog breeds in Poland
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There are a few banned dog breeds in Poland, so if you have one of the following breeds you will likely not be able to travel with the dog - please always check for any breed restrictions with the authorities in the countries you travel to.
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American Pitt Bull Terrier
Ca de Bou
American Bulldog
Argentine Mastiff
Perro de Presa Canario
Tosa Inu
Rottweiler
AkbashDog
Anatolian Shepherd Dog
Moscow Guard Dog
Caucasian Shepherd Dog
We hope this guide helps you plan your trip to the US with your dog. If you have any questions or would like to book an appointment with one of our specialist pet travel vets at PassPets, please get in touch by calling on of our team or emailing info@passpets.co.uk. Our team has helped thousands of pets travel safety and we can't wait to help yours too.
This guide is based on the information available at the time of writing. The exporter is responsible for verifying the requirements with the importing authorities and airline before travel.