Flying your dog overseas starts long before you get to the airport. A vet check, vaccinations, export paperwork, airline rules and a proper travel crate all need to be sorted, and some of that work has to begin weeks or months before departure day.
If you’re planning to fly abroad with your dog, most of the preparation happens in the weeks leading up to the flight. Each destination has its own import requirements, and your dog may need specific treatments, tests, permits or documents before it’s allowed into the country. Dogs travelling with us fly out of Auckland International Airport, and if you live elsewhere in New Zealand, we can generally arrange collection and get your dog there in time for the flight.
This guide focuses on dogs and the steps involved in New Zealand’s export process. For a broader look at pets in general, see our guide on how to prepare your pet for international travel.
Let’s look at how to get your dog ready for international air transport.
Give Yourself Plenty of Time
The best thing you can do when organising an overseas flight with your dog is to start preparing early.
Some requirements depend on your dog’s age as well as its destination. For destinations that need an animal welfare export certificate, New Zealand’s Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) will not issue one for a dog under 12 weeks old. Depending on where you’re heading, you may need an approved microchip, vaccinations, specific treatments, blood tests, import permits or veterinary certificates. Many of these steps take time, so it pays to get moving well before your travel date.
MPI recommends checking both the entry requirements of your destination and New Zealand’s export requirements, and making sure the two line up. MPI also notes that some countries require vaccinations to be done months before a pet leaves, and if that isn’t done in time, the pet may have to be quarantined before it can be exported. Timing matters too, as some measures must be completed within a set period before departure.
Once you’ve settled on your travel date, put together a short checklist and timeline. It’ll help you keep the whole process organised.
Check the Rules for Your Destination
Before you book anything, check the import requirements of the country your dog is going to.
Depending on where you’re going, you may need to arrange:
- An approved microchip
- Up-to-date vaccinations
- A rabies vaccination
- A rabies antibody blood test
- Parasite treatments
- Import permits
- Veterinary health certificates
- An export certificate, issued by an MPI official vet or, for Australia, a vet at an MPI-listed practice
- An Animal Welfare Export Certificate (AWEC), which most dogs need unless they’re going to Australia or the journey is under six hours
- A proper travel crate
- Airline forms and other necessary documents
MPI publishes Overseas Market Access Requirements (OMARs) for different destinations, and these set out what the export certificate for each country has to cover. The requirements can change, so always check them before you travel.
If the whole process feels overwhelming, a pet transport company can organise your dog’s journey for you. At Airport Pets, we’re listed on MPI’s register of pet exporters, and we arrange the MPI veterinary inspection, export certification and exporter declaration forms as part of our service.
Visit the Vet Well in Advance
A vet visit should be one of the first things on your list when you’re taking your dog abroad.
Your vet can check your dog’s health and explain which vaccines, treatments, microchip checks or destination-specific procedures are needed. Any New Zealand-registered vet can prepare your dog for export and give it the treatments it needs, although only certain vets can sign the export certificate itself.
Some tests and treatments must be done within a certain time frame, and they can be invalid if they’re done too early or too late. Talk to your vet about:
- Microchip
- Vaccination history
- General health and fitness to fly
- Required parasite treatments
- Destination-related tests
- Veterinary certificates
Keep all your records, and make sure your dog’s details match across every document.
Make Sure the Microchip Data Is Correct
A microchip is compulsory if your dog needs an export certificate from New Zealand. MPI also requires the microchip number to be recorded correctly on every document, from vaccination records through to the certificate itself.
Ask your vet to scan your dog’s chip to confirm it’s readable, that the number matches on all your documents and that the details are recorded correctly. MPI’s export rules require the chip to be scanned and verified before any required test or treatment is carried out. An ISO-compliant chip is the safest choice, because if your dog’s chip isn’t ISO-compliant, you may need to supply a reader that can scan it.
It’s a small step, but it can save you a lot of hassle later on.
Check Vaccinations and Treatments
Vaccination and treatment requirements differ from country to country, so there’s no single list that works for every trip.
Some countries have specific rules around rabies vaccinations, testing or treatments. Canada, for example, accepts a certificate confirming New Zealand’s rabies-free status in place of a rabies vaccination. Great Britain requires a rabies vaccination at least 21 full days before arrival and a tapeworm treatment for dogs between 24 hours and five days before they land. Talk to your vet well in advance so there’s enough time to complete everything.
Never assume your dog’s current vaccinations will be accepted by your destination country.
Arrange Export Documents in Advance
Having the right paperwork in place is a crucial part of flying your dog overseas. Depending on your destination, your dog may need an import permit, veterinary certificates, laboratory tests and an export certificate.
MPI recommends checking that your dog meets the destination country’s requirements and that all documents are filled out correctly. Most countries require an export certificate, and many dogs will also need an AWEC. The two are separate documents, and for most destinations both are signed by an MPI official vet at the time of export.
Your export paperwork may include:
- An import permit
- Veterinary certificates
- Vaccination record
- Laboratory test results
- Treatment record
- Microchip details
- Export certificate, from an MPI official vet or, for Australia, a vet at an MPI-listed practice
- Animal Welfare Export Certificate, where required
- Airline documentation
Keep all your papers together, hold on to copies and double-check the requirements again before you go. If you might bring your dog home one day, keep its New Zealand export certificate or AWEC as well, because MPI needs it to treat a returning dog as New Zealand-origin.
Choose a Suitable Travel Crate
Choosing the right crate is an essential step in getting your dog ready to fly.
Dogs travelling by air generally need a crate that meets the relevant International Air Transport Association (IATA) standards. MPI also recommends getting the crate early and letting your dog get used to being in and around it.
Make sure your dog can stand up, turn around and lie down comfortably, and that there’s enough ventilation. We use individually sized IATA-approved crates, and our guide to choosing airline-approved dog crates in NZ covers sizing in more detail. If you have a large breed, it’s also worth reading about whether large dogs can fly internationally.
Help Your Dog Feel Comfortable in the Crate
If your dog hasn’t spent time in a crate before, a long journey inside one can feel strange and stressful. It helps to introduce the crate gradually rather than just before departure.
Put the crate somewhere familiar and let your dog explore it freely. Once they’re happy going in, encourage them to stay for a short time and slowly build it up. You can also practise closing the door and going on short drives.
The aim is for your dog to see the crate as a safe, familiar place by the time it flies.
Get Your Dog Used to Travelling
Besides the paperwork and vet visits, it’s worth getting your dog used to travelling and spending time in unfamiliar surroundings.
If your dog hasn’t been transported much, start with short car rides and slowly make them longer. MPI’s Code of Welfare for dogs notes that puppies who travel regularly as they grow up tend to develop a higher tolerance for travel than dogs that weren’t introduced to it early. The same code points out that long journeys, whether by road or by air, come with extra needs such as good ventilation and access to water.
Keep the experience positive, and try not to put your dog in uncomfortable situations. Our guide on flying with your pet in New Zealand covers more of the practical side of air travel.
Talk to Your Vet About Travel Anxiety
It’s natural to worry about how your dog will feel on a long flight, especially if they get nervous when travelling. Even so, sedating your dog for the flight is off the table.
MPI’s Code of Welfare for dogs says sedation for transport is not generally recommended, and Air New Zealand states that MPI does not permit sedation for pets travelling by air, because every pet has to pass MPI certification before it leaves. If your dog has significant travel anxiety, or you’re worried about how they’ll cope, speak to your vet well before departure about other ways to help, and let your pet transport company know so they can plan around it.
Plan Your Travel to the Airport
If you live outside Auckland, you’ll also need to plan how your dog gets to the airport.
Think about where they’ll be picked up, how long the drive will take, how comfortable your dog will be during ground transport, the airline’s check-in time, the MPI inspection and any other certification steps. Keep the crate and paperwork within easy reach so you’re not hunting for documents at the last minute.
We collect dogs from homes, vet clinics and boarding facilities, and our pet transporters are available 24/7 to get your dog to Auckland Airport on time. If the timing means your dog needs somewhere to stay before the flight, pre-flight accommodation is available at a reduced rate at Brookby Lodge, our on-site boarding facility.
Learn the Requirements at the Airport
Travelling overseas with your dog involves a few extra steps before departure. Depending on your destination and circumstances, export documents, veterinary certificates and other measures will be checked before you leave.
For most destinations, an MPI official vet examines your dog and its crate and signs the export certificate and AWEC at the international airport it departs from, which for dogs travelling with us is Auckland. Australia works differently. Under an agreement between the two countries, no AWEC is needed, and the export certificate is usually issued by a vet at an MPI-listed practice, who must examine your dog within five days of export. Allow enough time for whichever process applies to your trip and arrange it in advance.
Get Ready for Travel Day
Try to make departure day as smooth as possible for both you and your dog, and have everything prepared before you leave the house.
Use this checklist to make sure nothing gets forgotten:
- Confirmed flight details
- Destination entry requirements
- Export documentation
- Vet records
- Microchip information
- Approved travel crate
- Destination contacts
- Emergency contacts
- Necessary food and supplies
- Ground transport arrangements
Avoid changing your dog’s routine at the last minute, and follow the airline’s instructions on feeding before the flight. Being well prepared makes departure day much easier to manage.
Check the Requirements for Your Particular Destination
There’s no one-size-fits-all process for flying a dog overseas. Australia, for example, has its own, simpler process. MPI’s Australia process covers microchipping, documentation and export certification, and dogs going to Australia don’t need an import permit when they meet the standard health certificate conditions. Our guide to bringing a dog from NZ to Australia explains the steps.
Other countries, such as the UK and Canada, have requirements of their own. Our guides to relocating pets from New Zealand to the UK and relocating your dog from NZ to Canada walk through each one. Never plan your trip around a general checklist.
When a Professional Pet Transport Company Can Help
Organising an overseas move with your dog involves a lot of moving parts, from vet appointments and treatments through to export documents, the crate, flights, airport procedures and ground transport.
MPI recommends using a registered pet exporter to arrange things like tests, treatments, flights, import permits and the travel crate, and notes that most airlines will only deal with a pet exporter. Air New Zealand, for example, does not accept pet bookings directly from the public. If you haven’t sent a pet overseas before, professional help can make a big difference.
We arrange the whole journey, including home collection, individually sized IATA-approved crates, MPI veterinary inspection, exporter declaration forms, flight bookings and transport to Auckland Airport. In many cases, your dog can travel on the same flight as you. We’re also IPATA members. Our guides on how pet flight bookings work for international travel and how to find a reliable international pet relocation company explain what to look for.
Start Preparing Early
Getting your dog ready for an overseas flight takes time and organisation. The microchip, vaccinations, tests, export paperwork, crate and flights all have to come together in the right order, and some steps can only be done within a set window before departure.
Preparing early gives you extra breathing room if something unexpected comes up. Before you book your flight, check the current import requirements for your destination, talk to your vet and sort out the necessary paperwork. MPI export requirements and overseas import requirements can change, so always rely on official sources.
With good preparation and the right support, your dog’s overseas journey can go a lot more smoothly. If you’d like help along the way, you can request a quote or contact the Airport Pets team.