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Bringing a Dog or Cat to Australia from the UK, USA or New Zealand (2026): Rules, Real Costs and a Real Case

Last updated: 2026-09-26

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Short answer: the UK and most of the USA are Group 3 routes, while New Zealand is a Group 1 route. From the United Kingdom or the United States of America excluding Guam and Hawaii, a dog or cat normally needs an Australian import permit, rabies vaccination, an RNATT, at least 6 months of preparation, arrival at Melbourne International Airport and at least 10 or 30 days at Mickleham quarantine. From New Zealand, DAFF says cats and dogs that meet the standard conditions do not need an import permit and have no quarantine period; if the pet has only lived in Australia or New Zealand, the typical timeframe is about 1 month.

For pets starting in mainland China rather than the UK, USA or New Zealand, read the separate China to Australia pet relocation guide. If you are comparing professional help, the PawCompass pet relocation company directory lists source-backed Australian transport companies alphabetically, not as rankings.

How do the UK, USA and New Zealand compare?

The UK and the United States excluding Guam and Hawaii follow Australia's Group 3 process, while New Zealand follows the Group 1 process.

RouteAustralian groupImport permitRabies / RNATTAustralian quarantineTypical prep timeExport-side authority / certificate
United KingdomGroup 3RequiredRabies vaccination and RNATT requiredMickleham minimum 30 days, or 10 days if identity conditions are metAt least 6 monthsAPHA / DAERA export health certificate process; GOV.UK lists dog certificate EHC 2580
United States, except Guam and HawaiiGroup 3RequiredRabies vaccination and RNATT requiredMickleham minimum 30 days, or 10 days if identity conditions are metAt least 6 monthsUSDA-accredited veterinarian, VEHCS and USDA endorsement; APHIS lists US dog and cat health certificates
New ZealandGroup 1Not needed when standard conditions are metNo rabies/RNATT route for standard NZ-origin pets; extra conditions apply if the pet has lived outside Australia/NZNo quarantine when standard conditions are metAbout 1 month if the pet has only lived in Australia/NZ; 6-7 months if it has lived elsewhereNZ MPI listed veterinarian; AUPET9 or AUPETOA9

What are the shared Australian steps for UK and USA pets?

UK and USA dogs and cats must meet the Australian Group 3 steps before they can travel to Australia.

  1. Confirm the country and animal are eligible. DAFF lists the United Kingdom and the United States of America excluding Guam and Hawaii as Group 3 countries. Group 3 cats and dogs must have lived in an approved country for at least 180 days before export, counted from the date the RNATT sample arrives at the laboratory.
  2. Use a government approved veterinarian. All pre-export veterinary procedures must be completed in an approved country by a government approved veterinarian. For cats and dogs, the competent authority in the export country tells owners which veterinarians and laboratories can prepare the pet.
  3. Verify the microchip before blood sampling. Microchips are the only approved identification method, and the vet must scan the microchip at each visit and before pre-export blood sampling. DAFF says the competent-authority identity verification that can reduce quarantine must happen before the RNATT blood sample is collected, and not at the same vet visit as the RNATT.
  4. Complete rabies vaccination and RNATT. The rabies vaccination must remain valid from the RNATT to export. The RNATT sample must be taken between 12 months and 180 days before export, the result must be at least 0.5 IU/ml, and the RNATT declaration must match the microchip number, test result and blood sampling date.
  5. Apply for and pay for the Australian import permit. Group 3 applications need the RNATT laboratory report and the corresponding RNATT declaration endorsed by the official government veterinarian. DAFF says most permits are issued in 20-40 business days, but some can take up to 123 business days.
  6. Book Mickleham and fly to Melbourne. DAFF says Group 3 cats and dogs must arrive directly at Melbourne International Airport as manifested cargo in an IATA-approved crate; domestic transfer from another Australian airport is not permitted before quarantine.
  7. Understand 10 days versus 30 days. Dogs and cats must spend 30 days at the Mickleham post-entry quarantine facility unless the export country's competent authority verified the pet's identity before the RNATT blood sample was taken, or the pet is of Australian origin and an Australian export certificate is provided with the permit application. Only then can the minimum be 10 days.
  8. Complete animal-specific final checks. The dog guide includes dog-specific disease testing and treatments, including Leishmania infantum, Leptospira interrogans serovar Canicola and Brucella canis conditions. The cat guide has cat-specific parasite timing and final certificate requirements. The issued import permit controls the exact schedule.

What does the UK export side require?

UK owners need the UK export health certificate process as well as Australia's import conditions.

GOV.UK publishes Export dogs to Australia: certificate 2580, published by the Animal and Plant Health Agency. For England, Scotland and Wales, dog exporters must apply online for EHC 2580 using the export health certificate service, with a Government Gateway account and a Defra account. GOV.UK says official vets and inspectors also need registration checked by APHA. For Northern Ireland, the same page says exporters apply through DAERA's online process.

The GOV.UK pages we checked only name the dog certificate 2580. If you are exporting a cat, use the GOV.UK export health certificate finder for Australia and contact APHA if the correct certificate is not clear. The GOV.UK certificate finder says exporters must nominate an official vet or local authority inspector to sign the certificate, and APHA is the contact point if the correct export health certificate cannot be found.

What does the USA export side require?

US pets from US states other than Hawaii, and pets not coming from Guam, need a USDA-accredited veterinarian and USDA-endorsed documents.

APHIS says USDA-accredited veterinarians can issue health certificates electronically and submit them through VEHCS for USDA digital endorsement. For US states except Hawaii and Guam, the veterinarian who prepares the pet for export to Australia must be USDA-accredited in the state where the work is performed.

For the optional identity-declaration route that enables 10-day Australian quarantine, APHIS describes a three-part process using two USDA-accredited veterinarians at different clinics and USDA endorsement through VEHCS. APHIS states that blood for the RNATT cannot be drawn until after the second microchip scanning, though it may occur on the same day as that second scan.

APHIS lists these completed and USDA-endorsed documents as travelling with the pet to Australia: Part 3 USDA Identity Declaration if chosen, RNATT Declaration, laboratory reports and export health certificate. For the health certificate, APHIS lists separate US dog and cat certificates for US states except Hawaii and Guam. Hawaii and Guam are treated separately on the APHIS page and follow Australia's Group 2 route.

What is different for New Zealand?

New Zealand is simpler only when the pet genuinely meets the New Zealand Group 1 conditions.

DAFF says cats and dogs from New Zealand do not need an import permit if they meet the standard health certificate conditions, and there is no quarantine period for cats and dogs from New Zealand that meet those standard conditions. If the cat or dog has only lived in Australia or New Zealand, the typical timeframe is about 1 month. If it has lived outside Australia or New Zealand, DAFF says it may take at least 6-7 months, and the pet must have lived only in New Zealand for at least 180 days immediately before export.

NZ MPI says exporters should contact an MPI listed veterinary practice. The certificate may be either a pre-printed export certificate completed by an MPI listed veterinary practice (AUPET9) or an official assurance export certificate completed by an MPI official veterinarian (AUPETOA9). MPI also says New Zealand's agreement with Australia means cats and dogs going to Australia do not need an Animal Welfare Export Certificate.

MPI recommends using a registered pet exporter, and says most airlines will only deal with pet exporters because it gives assurance that requirements are completed at the appropriate time. MPI also says cats and dogs imported into New Zealand must stay in New Zealand at least 180 days before travelling to Australia. Dogs imported into New Zealand require Leishmania infantum testing before Australia entry, and that test must be done again after the dog has lived in New Zealand for at least 21 days.

Which breeds and animals are banned or restricted?

Australia's pet-import guides ban some hybrid cats and dogs and some pure-bred dogs, even when the biosecurity paperwork is otherwise correct.

For cats, DAFF's New Zealand guide lists hybrid cats including Savannah, Safari, Chausie and Bengal cats, and states that as of 1 March 2026, Bengal cats are no longer permitted to enter Australia. The Group 3 cat guide also states that non-domestic cat hybrids are not allowed into Australia.

For dogs, DAFF lists hybrid dogs including Czechoslovakian wolfdog or Vlcak, Saarloos wolfdog or wolfhound, Lupo Italiano and Kunming wolfdog or Kunming dog. DAFF also lists pure-bred dog bans: Dogo Argentino, Fila Brasileiro, Japanese Tosa, American Pit Bull Terrier or Pit Bull Terrier, and Perro de Presa Canario or Presa Canario. Mixed-breed dogs may be allowed if they meet all other import conditions, but DAFF says Home Affairs may investigate if an imported dog is identified as possibly being a prohibited breed after arrival.

What official Australian fees should you budget for?

The Australian government-side charges are separate from vet work, export certification, flights, crates and agents.

DAFF's PEQ fee table lists these current Mickleham charges:

PEQ serviceCurrent listed charge
Reservation charge per animal$282
Importation charge per animal$1,132
Inspection fee per 30 minutes, per animal$84
Document assessment per 30 minutes, per animal$84
10-day quarantine accommodation at $56/day$560
30-day quarantine accommodation at $56/day$1,680
Overstay accommodation daily rate$56
Out-of-hours collection, weekday$176
Out-of-hours collection, weekend or public holiday$186
Release appointment airline handling recoveryMinimum $170

The minimum listed quarantine charges for a 10-day stay are $282 + $1,132 + $560 = $1,974 per animal. This labelled minimum excludes inspection time, document-assessment time, permit fees, veterinary costs, flights, crates, agents, export-side costs, non-compliance fees, extra treatments and any veterinary care during quarantine.

DAFF's import permit fee table says, exactly:

ServiceLodgementAssessmentTotal (AUD)
First cat or dog in a consignment$135.00$491.00$626.00
For each additional animal in the same consignment$135.00$164.00$299.00

DAFF notes that those assessment fees are minimum charges and that additional fees may apply if the application is incomplete, contains errors or requires a variation.

What did one owner's 2018 USA-to-Australia case cost?

Travelnuity's case is one owner's 2018 experience, not a quote for today.

The author, Shandos Cleaver, brought her Miniature Dachshund Schnitzel back to Australia in late 2018 via the United States. The route she describes was Los Angeles to Melbourne for the international leg, followed by post-quarantine transport from Melbourne to Sydney. The charges applied in 2018, before the current fee table and before the 2023 quarantine-rule changes for some pets.

Travelnuity itemised these costs:

2018 case itemCost listed by Travelnuity
Import permit$480
Quarantine application$29
Three vet visits$1,537
Standard quarantine fee$1,581
USDA APHIS VS endorsement$204
Crate and water bowl$82
Flight cost from LA to Melbourne$1,314
Flight from Melbourne to Sydney including pick-up from quarantine with Jetpets$235
Additional quarantine charge, recovery of airline handling charge$97
Total$5,559 AUD

The author says an animal transport company would typically add about $1,000 AUD more to the total, although she also says it is difficult to compare because costs are not always broken down. She also describes a stressful USDA APHIS Veterinary Services office issue: the office required an extra laboratory report, resulting in about 3 hours of back-and-forth before the documents were endorsed.

Compared with current official fees, the 2018 quarantine line should not be reused as today's number. Current DAFF PEQ charges alone make the labelled 10-day minimum $1,974 before inspection, document assessment and permit fees.

How should you choose an agent?

A good agent should make responsibilities clearer, not hide the regulatory process.

DAFF encourages owners importing Group 3 cats and dogs to use an experienced pet transport agent, and says owners can check IPATA. DAFF also says it cannot recommend one agent over another and has no influence over agent fees. IPATA's own homepage says IPATA does not ship pets; its members ship pets under their own company names.

Before paying, ask:

  • Which steps are included: import permit, RNATT declaration review, quarantine reservation, export health certificate, crate, airline booking and post-quarantine transport.
  • Who is responsible if a microchip number, date or laboratory report is rejected.
  • Whether the quote includes DAFF permit fees, PEQ fees, airline handling, inspection/document-assessment time and domestic transport after release.
  • Whether payment terms, cancellation terms and document-error responsibility are written into the contract.
  • Whether the company appears on IPATA or only claims membership on its own site.

For Australian company facts gathered from public sources, use the PawCompass pet relocation company directory. The directory is alphabetical and not a recommendation. Pet-scam warnings matter: Pet Express warns on its website that requests for Western Union or MoneyGram are probably scams, and IPATA maintains a pet-scammer list.

Want quotes from up to 3 pet relocation companies? Send one free quote request.

Sources checked September 2026

FAQ

How long does it take to bring a pet to Australia from the UK or USA?›

For the UK and the United States, excluding Guam and Hawaii, allow at least 6 months. Australia treats them as Group 3 countries, so the pet needs rabies vaccination, RNATT paperwork, an import permit and post-entry quarantine at Mickleham.

Does a dog or cat from New Zealand need an Australian import permit?›

No, if the cat or dog meets the standard New Zealand health-certificate conditions. DAFF says New Zealand pets that meet standard conditions do not need an import permit and do not have a quarantine period.

Why do some UK or USA pets stay 10 days in quarantine and others 30 days?›

Group 3 dogs and cats must spend 30 days at Mickleham unless the export country's competent authority verified the pet's identity before the RNATT blood sample was taken, or the pet is of Australian origin and an Australian export certificate is provided with the permit application. Only then can the minimum be 10 days.

What is the minimum listed quarantine charge for 10 days?›

Using the current DAFF PEQ fee table, reservation $282 + importation $1,132 + 10-day accommodation $560 equals $1,974 per animal. That excludes inspection time, document assessment time, permit fees, vets, flights, agents and export-side costs.

Should I use a pet relocation agent?›

DAFF says an agent is optional but recommended for Group 3 imports and points owners to IPATA. IPATA does not ship pets itself, so owners should verify the individual company, contract, inclusions and payment method.