India Australia
Dog & Cat

Taking a pet dog or cat from India to Australia

Moving a pet dog or cat from India to Australia is one of the strictest, longest pet-relocation journeys in the world, and there is one fact every owner must understand before spending a rupee: India is NOT on Australia's list of approved countries. You cannot fly your pet directly from India to Australia. Australia only accepts cats and dogs from countries it has approved (its Group 1, 2 and 3 lists), and India is on none of them. The realistic pathway is to first move your pet to an approved country (for example UAE, Singapore, UK or another Group 2/3 country), have it live there continuously for at least 180 days while completing Australia's rabies and testing conditions, and export from that country. On the India side, the Animal Quarantine and Certification Service (AQCS) issues the export health certificate / NOC that lets your pet legally leave India. This guide covers both halves: what India requires to send the pet out, and what Australia requires to let it in. Always confirm the exact day-counts on the official pages linked below, because a single wrong date can mean refusal, extended quarantine, or your pet being sent back.

Strict — long lead time ~6+ months (via a third country) 12 steps 9 official sources
Where the authority lies

This page tells you where the official rule is and what it says. It is not the rule and it is not legal advice. The official source decides, and the official source is the one that counts if this page and it ever disagree.

Read this first

India is NOT on Australia's approved-country list, so you cannot fly a pet directly from India to Australia. The realistic path is to move your pet to an approved country (UAE, Singapore, UK, etc.), have it live there continuously for at least 180 days while completing Australia's rabies and testing conditions, and export from there. Expect at least 6 months.

At a glance

The whole journey in order. Every point below is spelled out in full further down.

  1. India is not an approved country — no direct India-to-Australia pet import is possible.
  2. Move the pet to an approved country and have it reside there continuously for at least 180 days.
  3. ISO microchip; an optional identity check before the RNATT cuts quarantine from 30 to 10 days.
  4. Rabies vaccine, then the RNATT blood test — result must be at least 0.5 IU/ml.
  5. Serve the mandatory 180-day wait counted from when the RNATT sample reaches the lab.
  6. Apply and pay for the Australian import permit through BICON.
  7. Final vet check and endorsed health certificate, then fly to Melbourne and quarantine at Mickleham.
Leaving India

Leaving India — the AQCS export side

AQCS issues the export certificate that lets your pet legally leave India — but this certificate only covers leaving India. Australia's entry conditions must be completed in an approved country, because India is not approved for direct entry.

Authority: Animal Quarantine and Certification Service (AQCS), Department of Animal Husbandry & Dairying

Book an AQCS appointment and prepare your export documents

To take a pet out of India you must get a No Objection Certificate (NOC) / export health certificate from the Animal Quarantine and Certification Service (AQCS), the Indian government's competent authority for animal export. AQCS operates six Animal Quarantine stations: Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai, Bengaluru and Hyderabad. You must book a prior appointment (about 7 days ahead) with the officer at your station by email or phone before visiting. Bring both original and photocopies of every document.

  • AQCS is India's competent authority for pet export certification
  • Six AQCS stations: Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad
  • Book a prior appointment ~7 days before travel
  • Bring originals plus photocopies of all documents
Source: AQCS India — export of pets

Present the pet and the required paperwork at AQCS

At the AQCS station an officer physically examines your pet. You must produce: (1) the pet itself for examination; (2) a veterinary health certificate ('fit to fly' by road/air/train) from a local registered veterinarian; (3) the microchip certificate; (4) the pet's vaccination details; (5) the owner's passport copy; (6) the owner's air ticket copy; (7) the airway bill if the pet travels as cargo; (8) an authority letter if an authorised person attends instead of the owner; (9) any specific requirements of the importing country (import permit, blood titre test, etc.); and (10) two postcard-size (4x6 inch) light-facing photographs of the pet. A separate application form is filled for each pet.

  • Local registered vet issues the 'fit to fly' health certificate
  • Microchip certificate and vaccination records required
  • Owner passport + air ticket (and airway bill if cargo)
  • Two 4x6 inch light-facing photos of the pet
  • A separate application form per pet
  • Importing-country requirements (e.g. Australian import permit) must also be shown
Source: AQCS India — export of pets

Collect the AQCS export certificate and travel within its 10-day validity

Once AQCS is satisfied, it issues the export certificate/NOC. This certificate is only valid for 10 days from the date of issue/examination, so your flight must be booked to depart within that window. If your pet is too young to have received a vaccination, you must bring the mother's vaccination record along with the pet. Note that this AQCS certificate lets the pet leave India; it does not satisfy Australia's entry conditions, which must be completed in an approved country (see destination steps).

  • AQCS export certificate is valid for only 10 days
  • Depart India within that 10-day window
  • If pet is too young to be vaccinated, bring the mother's vaccination record
  • This certificate covers leaving India, not entry to Australia
Source: AQCS India — export of pets

Understand: India is not approved for direct entry to AustraliaDon't get this wrong

Because India is not on any of Australia's approved-country lists, you cannot complete Australia's rabies-testing pathway in India or fly the pet straight to Australia. The pet must be relocated to an approved country and live there continuously for at least 180 days before export to Australia, meeting all of that country's conditions. Practically, this means your AQCS export from India is really an export to an intermediate approved country (for example UAE, Singapore or the UK), where the full Australian preparation is then carried out. Verify the current approved-country list on the Australian department's page before choosing your transit country.

  • India is not on Australia's Group 1, 2 or 3 approved lists
  • No direct India-to-Australia pet import is possible
  • Pet must reside in an approved country for at least 180 days first
  • All Australian conditions are completed in that approved country
Source: Australia DAFF — importing cats and dogs
Entering Australia

Entering Australia — the DAFF import side (from an approved country)

Australia only accepts cats and dogs prepared in an approved country. Since India is not one, the entire rabies-testing pathway is completed from a Group 2 or Group 3 country where your pet has lived at least 180 days. This is one of the strictest, longest pet journeys in the world.

Authority: Australian Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry (DAFF)

Confirm your route runs through an approved country and allow at least 6 monthsDon't get this wrong

Australia only accepts cats and dogs prepared in an approved country. Since India is not approved, you must complete the entire pathway from an approved Group 2 or Group 3 country where your pet has lived continuously for at least 180 days. Group 3 countries are those where 'rabies is present but well controlled' and the full rabies-testing pathway applies. Australia strongly recommends using an experienced pet transport agent, and warns the whole process takes at least six months.

  • Plan at least 6 months
  • All steps must be done in an approved country by a government-approved vet
  • Pet must reside in an approved country at least 180 days before export
  • An experienced pet transport agent is recommended
Source: Australia DAFF — importing cats and dogs

Microchip your pet (and optionally get an identity check to cut quarantine)

Your pet must have an ISO-compliant microchip (generally 10 or 15 digits); numbers starting with 999 are not accepted. A government-approved vet must scan the microchip at every visit and before every blood sample, and the number must match every document. Separately, an optional identity check by an official government veterinarian, done BEFORE the RNATT blood test and at a different visit, reduces the mandatory Australian quarantine from a minimum of 30 days to a minimum of 10 days. A pet passport, vaccination card or microchip certificate is not accepted as an identity check.

  • ISO-compliant microchip required (10 or 15 digits; not 999-series)
  • Vet must scan chip at every visit and before every blood draw
  • Optional identity check cuts quarantine from min 30 to min 10 days
  • Identity check must be done before the RNATT, at a separate visit
Source: Australia DAFF — importing cats and dogs

Vaccinate against rabies, then do the RNATT blood test

Your pet must be vaccinated against rabies with a vaccine approved in the country of export (for dogs, given when at least 84 days old). Vaccination must stay continuously valid from the RNATT date through to export. Then a government-approved vet takes blood for the Rabies Neutralising Antibody Titre Test (RNATT), performed at least 3-4 weeks after a primary vaccination course. The lab must use the FAVN or RFFIT test, and the result must be 0.5 IU/ml or more. A result below 0.5 IU/ml means re-vaccinate and repeat the test.

  • Rabies vaccine must be approved in the export country; dogs vaccinated at min 84 days old
  • RNATT taken at least 3-4 weeks after primary vaccination
  • Test must be FAVN or RFFIT
  • Result must be 0.5 IU/ml or higher
  • Vaccination must stay valid continuously to export or the 180 days restart
Source: Australia DAFF — importing cats and dogs

Serve the mandatory 180-day waiting period after the RNATTDon't get this wrong

This is the single hardest date to get wrong. Your pet cannot be exported to Australia until at least 180 days after the RNATT blood sample arrives at the laboratory. There are no exceptions. This is a residency/observation period (the pet lives with you in the approved country, it is not quarantine) that ensures the animal is not incubating rabies. The RNATT itself is only valid for 12 months (365 days) from the sampling date, so the export must happen inside the window between 180 days and 12 months after the sample. Let the RNATT lapse and you must re-test and restart the 180 days.

  • 180-day wait counts from when the RNATT sample ARRIVES at the lab
  • No exceptions to the 180 days
  • RNATT is valid 12 months / 365 days from sampling
  • Export must fall between day 180 and month 12
  • Not a quarantine period - pet lives with you during this time
Source: Australia DAFF — importing cats and dogs

Apply and pay for the Australian import permit via BICONDon't get this wrong

You must hold a valid biosecurity import permit before export, applied for through Australia's Biosecurity Import Conditions System (BICON). Apply as soon as possible after you have the RNATT declaration, and submit the RNATT lab report plus the endorsed RNATT declaration with the application. Pay in full at submission; the fee is non-refundable. Most permits issue in 20-40 business days but it can take up to 123 business days. For a Group 3 country the permit is valid only until the RNATT expires (12 months from the blood sample date), and it must be valid on the day the pet arrives.

  • Permit applied for in BICON before export
  • Submit RNATT lab report + endorsed RNATT declaration
  • Most permits: 20-40 business days; up to 123 business days possible
  • Fee paid in full at submission and is non-refundable
  • Group 3 permit valid only until the RNATT expires (12 months from sampling)
Source: Australia DAFF — importing cats and dogs

Complete the other required tests, vaccinations and parasite treatments

Dogs from a Group 3 country need extra checks beyond rabies: Leptospira interrogans serovar Canicola (either vaccinate, or test negative by MAT within 45 days of export); Brucella canis (if not desexed - RSAT, TAT or IFAT, negative, within 45 days of export); and Leishmania infantum (IFAT or ELISA, negative, within 45 days of export). External parasite (tick and flea) treatment must start at least 30 days before export and be maintained. Internal parasite treatment (nematodes and cestodes) must be given twice within 45 days of export, at least 14 days apart, with the second dose within 5 days of export. Country-specific extras exist (e.g. canine influenza for USA/South Korea/Canada). Cats have their own separate guide.

  • Leptospira Canicola: vaccinate, or MAT test negative within 45 days of export
  • Brucella canis (if not desexed): RSAT/TAT/IFAT negative within 45 days of export
  • Leishmania infantum: IFAT or ELISA negative within 45 days of export
  • External parasite treatment starts at least 30 days before export
  • Internal parasite treatment twice within 45 days, 14 days apart, 2nd dose within 5 days of export
  • Some prohibited dog breeds cannot enter Australia at all
Source: Australia DAFF — importing cats and dogs

Final vet check, health certificate and government endorsement

Within 5 days before export, a government-approved vet does a final clinical exam and completes the country-specific veterinary health certificate (you obtain the blank from the competent authority). Then an official government veterinarian must endorse it - completing, signing and stamping every page with an original 'wet ink' stamp - along with the RNATT lab report, Leishmania report, Brucella report (if not desexed) and Leptospira report/vaccination certificate. The health certificate must be an original; copies are not accepted. All these documents travel with the pet to Australia.

  • Final clinical exam within 5 days before export
  • Country-specific vet health certificate completed then officially endorsed
  • Every page needs an original wet-ink stamp + official vet signature
  • Health certificate must be an original, not a copy
  • Permit, health certificate, lab reports and RNATT declaration travel with the pet
Source: Australia DAFF — importing cats and dogs

Fly to Melbourne and complete post-entry quarantine at MicklehamDon't get this wrong

The pet must arrive directly at Melbourne International Airport (no domestic transfers) as manifested cargo in an IATA-approved crate, before the import permit/RNATT expires. On arrival a biosecurity officer transports the pet to the Mickleham post-entry quarantine facility. Dogs must stay a minimum of 30 days, reduced to a minimum of 10 days only if a valid pre-RNATT identity check was done (or the dog originated in Australia). You pay all quarantine costs before release, and any compliance issue can extend the stay.

  • Must arrive directly into Melbourne, as manifested cargo in an IATA crate
  • No domestic transfers (cannot land elsewhere and fly on to Melbourne)
  • Quarantine at Mickleham: minimum 30 days, or minimum 10 days with a valid identity check
  • Owner pays all quarantine fees before the pet is released
  • Non-compliance can mean longer quarantine, extra testing, re-export or euthanasia
Source: Australia DAFF — importing cats and dogs

Official sources

Every step above was read off one of these pages. They are the version that counts — check them before you travel or ship.

This page tells you where the official rule is and what it says. It is not the rule and it is not legal advice. The official source decides, and the official source is the one that counts if this page and it ever disagree.

Every day-count and test here was read off the official AQCS and Australian DAFF pages and independently fact-checked against the source text — it passed with no corrections.

This page is free to read and always will be. It is written from the official pages linked above; those pages can change, and if one has, the link is the fastest way to see what it says now.

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