Pet Passports

Following an agreement between the UK and EU made on May 19th 2025, pet passports are once again going to be valid for travel for pets between the UK and EU.

Pet passports were initially introduced in 2000 under the pet travel scheme (PETS). This scheme allowed dogs and cats to travel freely between the UK and EU as long as they meet specific requirements; namely being microchipped and having an up-to-date rabies vaccination.

Following Brexit, PETS was replaced with an animal health certificate. This was issued from your veterinary surgeon within 10 days of travelling and could be used for up to 5 pets provided they were all microchipped and had up to date rabies vaccinations. An animal health certificate allowed travel for 4 months within the EU, but a new certificate had to be issued every time you left the UK.

The return of the pet passport simplifies travel by eliminating the need for separate animal health certificates for each trip so saving owners considerable time and money.

The exact timeline and details of the transition back to pet passports are yet to be confirmed. In the meantime, owners will continue to require an EU passport (issued by an EU vet- this can’t be obtained in the UK) or animal health certificate.

The exception to this is a free pet travel document (PTD) which is already available online for travel from the UK to Northern Ireland only (you can’t travel onwards to Southern Ireland or another EU country using this). The pet only requires a microchip for this and not a rabies vaccine.