Taking your dog or cat abroad from India: microchip, rabies test and NOC
Checked against 5 sources
Taking a pet abroad from India starts with India's own export paperwork — an AQCS health certificate, valid for only 10 days, so it has to be the last thing you get before you fly1. After that, it's the destination country's own rules that decide what else is needed: pet travel from India to the USA means meeting the CDC's high-risk-country rules, and the UK and other countries each run their own process, so always check the exact list on that country's official site before you book145.
- India's export certificate
- Issued by AQCS, usually the same day, but valid for only 10 days from issue12
- Flying to the USA
- The CDC lists India as high-risk for dog rabies, with extra microchip, titer and documentation rules4
- Flying to the UK
- Microchip before the rabies vaccine, then wait at least 21 full days before travelling; a blood test may add more time5
The printable version of this guide is a free PDF. Get it at thapki.app/pet-travel/taking-a-pet-abroad/
On this page
- The steps on India's side: your AQCS export certificate
- Documents AQCS asks you to bring
- Then it's the destination's rules — and they vary a lot
- Pet travel from India to the USA
- Pet travel from India to the UK
- Dubai, Canada, Australia and other destinations
- Work backwards from your flight date
- Get the printable timeline (PDF)
- Not fully clear yet
- Sources
The steps on India's side: your AQCS export certificate
- Get your pet microchipped and finish its vaccinations well ahead of travel — any registered vet can do both, and if your pet is too young to be vaccinated, AQCS accepts its mother's vaccination record instead1.
- Email or phone your nearest AQCS station to confirm an appointment, ideally about 7 days before you plan to go12.
- On the day, bring your pet and every document below. The health certificate is normally issued the same day, after a physical check of your pet12.
- The export certificate is valid for only 10 days from the date of issue or examination, so get it as close to your travel date as the destination's own rules allow1.
Documents AQCS asks you to bring
- A veterinary health (fit-to-fly) certificate from any local registered vet1.
- Your pet's microchip certificate1.
- Vaccination records — or, for a pet too young to be vaccinated, its mother's vaccination record1.
- A copy of your passport and your air ticket or booking1.
- An airway bill, if your pet is travelling as cargo rather than with you1.
- Two postcard-size photographs of your pet, 4 × 6 inches1.
- Any import permit or blood/titre test report the destination country asks for12.
- Originals plus photocopies of everything, and a letter of authority if someone other than you is bringing your pet to the appointment1.
Then it's the destination's rules — and they vary a lot
AQCS's certificate is what gets your pet out of India. What gets it into the other country is a separate set of rules, set by that country alone, and the two have very different ideas of what counts as enough15.
Pet travel from India to the USA
The CDC's own list names India as a high-risk country for dog rabies4. That means your dog must be vaccinated against rabies, and must also meet "additional requirements such as age, microchip, rabies serology titer, health, and documentation requirements" before it's allowed in4.
Which exact requirements apply depends on whether your dog was vaccinated in India or will be vaccinated after it lands, among other things — so use the CDC's own Dog Importation Navigator tool, or call CDC-INFO on 800-232-4636, to get the list for your situation before you plan dates34.
Pet travel from India to the UK
The UK's steps run in a fixed order: microchip your pet *before* its rabies vaccination, then wait at least 21 full days after that vaccination before travelling5. Depending on where you're travelling from, you may also need a rabies blood test, a further wait, a vet-issued pet travel document, and, for a dog, a tapeworm treatment timed 24 hours to 5 days before arrival5.
Missing a step can mean your pet is put into quarantine for up to 4 months on arrival5. Use gov.uk's own pet-travel tool to get the exact order and timings for a pet coming from India, since these depend on your pet's travel history too.
Dubai, Canada, Australia and other destinations
We didn't find one rule that covers every country. Each destination sets its own quarantine, blood-test and paperwork rules, so before anything else, check the official government page for the exact country you're going to — not a relocation agent's page — and build your timeline backwards from what it asks for.
Work backwards from your flight date
Because the AQCS certificate is only valid for 10 days, and some countries need a blood test weeks or months earlier, plan in this order: destination rules first, then any blood test, then the AQCS certificate last, closest to your flight15.
Get the printable timeline (PDF)
One A4 page: the order to do things in, from microchip to AQCS certificate, with space to write your own dates. Leave your Play Store Gmail and mobile number below and the download starts right away.
Your download should start in a moment. Open the chart if it doesn't.
Not fully clear yet
Official sources disagree or leave gaps on these. Confirm before you rely on them.
- AQCS's export pages don't state an export fee. The ₹1,000 charge mentioned on its FAQ applies only to the advance NOC for importing a pet into India, not to export12.
- The exact extra steps for a dog vaccinated in India and flown to the USA — such as a titre test and its waiting period — aren't listed on the CDC pages we could read; use the CDC's Dog Importation Navigator for your pet's exact situation34.
- gov.uk's general pet-travel page didn't confirm, in the sections we could read, whether a pet coming from India needs the extra rabies blood test and wait that apply to "unlisted" countries. Check gov.uk's own country-by-country tool before you plan a UK trip5.
- We found no AQCS or Indian government page with country-specific steps for the UAE, Canada or Australia; check that country's own import-permit page.
Sources and how we check
Facts checked against the official sources below by Thapki. Written with AI help from the sources below, then checked line by line; the Thapki team reads and approves every page before it goes live. How we check