Home › From Germany › Dog to the United Kingdom

Bringing a dog from Germany to the United Kingdom

Yes — and this is one of the simpler routes into Great Britain. Germany counts as an EU departure (Part 1 listed in Great Britain's system), so a dog travelling on an EU pet passport issued in Germany, with a microchip and an in-date rabies vaccination, needs no blood test and faces no quarantine if the paperwork is right. The two deadlines that decide this route are the 21-day wait after a first rabies vaccination and the tapeworm treatment 24–120 hours before you arrive.

21 days

Minimum wait

After a primary rabies vaccination

None

Titer test

EU departure — Part 1 listed

24–120 hrs

Tapeworm window

Dogs only, before entry to GB

None

Quarantine if compliant

Up to 4 months if rules are broken

Step-by-step checklist

Requirements — Dog · Germany → the United Kingdom
Step	What to do	When
Microchip	ISO 11784/11785 microchip, implanted before or at the same time as the rabies vaccination — a vaccination given before the chip does not count and must be repeated. If the chip is not ISO standard, travel with your own reader; an unreadable chip can mean refusal or quarantine. A clearly legible tattoo applied on or before 3 July 2011, with rabies vaccination after tattooing, is the only alternative.	Before vaccination
Rabies vaccination	At 12 weeks of age or older, with an inactivated or recombinant vaccine approved in Germany. After a first (primary) vaccination you must wait at least 21 full days before travel — day 1 is the day after vaccination, and some vaccines take longer to become valid, so check the datasheet with your vet. Boosters given in date need no new wait; a missed booster restarts the primary course.	≥21 days before travel
No titer test	Germany is an EU country, and Great Britain only requires a rabies blood test for departures from countries that are neither in the EU nor listed. No blood sample, no 0.5 IU/ml result and no 3-month wait apply on this route.	—
EU pet passport (Heimtierausweis)	Your dog's EU pet passport, issued in Germany by an authorised vet, is the normal travel document for entry to Great Britain — you do not need a new certificate for the trip. Only a vet in a country that can issue pet passports may enter rabies vaccination details in it, so a booster recorded by a vet in Great Britain would not count. If your dog has no EU pet passport, the alternative is a Great Britain pet health certificate signed, stamped and dated by an official veterinarian — your dog must then enter Great Britain within 10 days of it being issued. Bring originals, not photocopies.	Before travel
Approved route & carrier	You must enter on an approved route with an approved carrier — check the route is still approved before you book, as routes change and some are seasonal. On a plane your dog travels as cargo unless it is a recognised assistance dog or you charter a private plane. You cannot bring a pet into Great Britain by private boat from Germany.	Booking stage
Tapeworm treatment (dogs only)	A vet must give a treatment containing praziquantel (or an equivalent proven effective against Echinococcus multilocularis) no less than 24 hours and no more than 120 hours (5 days) before you enter Great Britain, and record the product name and manufacturer, the date and time, and their stamp and signature in the Echinococcus section of the passport or certificate. Germany is not on the exemption list.	24–120 hours before entry
Declaration & the 5-pet limit	This page covers non-commercial travel: you sign a declaration that your dog is not for sale or transfer of ownership, your dog travels with you or with a person you have authorised in writing, arriving within 5 days of you, and you bring no more than 5 pets unless you have written evidence of attending or training for a competition, show or sporting event. Anything else follows the extra (Balai / commercial) rules.	Travel day

Your preparation timeline

1Any time — Microchip (or check the existing chip reads and is ISO), then rabies vaccination
2≥21 days out — The 21-day wait after a primary rabies vaccination runs — no wait after an in-date booster
3Before travel — Check the EU pet passport is complete and correctly filled in; book an approved route and carrier
4Final 24–120 hours — Tapeworm treatment by a vet, recorded in the passport
5Only if using a GB pet health certificate — Certificate issued by an official veterinarian — enter Great Britain within 10 days of issue
6Arrival — Carrier checks the chip and documents, before boarding on sea and Eurotunnel routes or on arrival by air; compliant dogs go straight through

The mistake that causes trouble on this route: Missing the tapeworm window. The 24–120 hours are counted back from your arrival in Great Britain, not from departure — a treatment given 5 days before a delayed ferry or a long routing can fall out of range, and a dog that misses the window can be refused entry or quarantined at your expense.

Costs you can plan for

Neither GOV.UK nor the German federal ministry (BMEL) publishes a government fee for this route in the guidance checked: there is no British charge for entering on an EU pet passport, and no official fee schedule for the passport itself. Your real costs are your German vet's charges for the passport, vaccination and tapeworm treatment, plus the carrier's pet fare or cargo charge. The expensive scenario is non-compliance — quarantine for up to 4 months is at your expense.

✈️ Government rules are only half the trip. Airlines set their own pet carriage rules (crate size, breed limits, seasonal embargoes). Re-confirm carriage with your airline after you meet the rules above.

Questions people ask about this route

Does my dog still need an animal health certificate (AHC) after Brexit?

No. An AHC is issued in Great Britain for pets leaving Great Britain for the EU, and it can only be used to come back to Great Britain within 6 months. For a dog starting in Germany, the entry document is the EU pet passport issued in Germany — or, if there is no passport, a Great Britain pet health certificate.

Can my dog fly in the cabin to Great Britain?

No, not on a scheduled flight. On approved air routes pets travel as cargo, unless they are recognised assistance dogs or you fly on a chartered private plane.

Are any dog breeds banned?

Yes — it is illegal to own Pit Bull Terrier, Japanese Tosa, Dogo Argentino, Fila Brasileiro and XL Bully types in the UK, and a banned type cannot be brought in unless it already has a valid Certificate of Exemption. 'Type' is judged by appearance, not by the breed name on the paperwork.

What if the paperwork is wrong?

Your dog can be quarantined for up to 4 months at your expense, or refused entry if it arrived by sea. The chip, the vaccination dates and the tapeworm timing are the three things checked most closely on this route.

Related guides

✓ Last verified: 2026-11-12

Official sources for this page

We check each rule against the exporting country's official page and the destination country's official page. If the two disagree, we show the disagreement instead of guessing.

Want a professional to run this route for you?

Licensed pet relocation companies handle permits, vet paperwork and flights daily. We are adding vetted partners for this route — check back soon.