Many dog owners take the leap to move Down Under, be that returning home, retirement or for a new career opportunity in Oz.

The definitive guide

The preparations for taking your dog with you to Australia are extensive and complex, but worry not we are here to help!

Here is a step by step guide as to what you can expect to do when preparing your dog for export to Australia from the UK:

• Have your vet scan your dog’s microchip, check its working, record the number, and then vaccinate your dog against rabies.
• Wait at least 4 weeks, then have your vet take a blood sample from your dog to be tested for rabies antibodies (this is called the RNATT, or rabies serology). This blood must be tested at an approved lab.
• Once the result has come back and it is satisfactory (more than 0.5IU/ml = PASS) you are ready to contact us to book in your dog’s travel!
• As soon as you have a booking with us and we have the required documents from you, we can get the RNATT declaration from our vets, and then apply for the import permit.
• Once the import permit is received we can then request the quarantine arrival space at the quarantine station in Melbourne.
• When the quarantine have reserved the arrival date, we can then get going with booking the flights, boarding, vet checks, and providing a schedule for you to work through with your vets for the tests, vaccinations and treatments required just before export.

You may also be wondering about the timeline- you can expect 7 months from the rabies vaccine before your dog can be exported to Australia, at the very earliest. Its 180 days from the day the lab receives the blood for testing for rabies antibodies before your dog can travel, and then of course its down to the quarantine having sufficient space to receive your dog.

Additionally, you might have seen that there have been changes recently to Australia rabies policy- what does this mean for your dog? Essentially there are three main changes for pets travelling from group 3 countries (of which the UK is one), we’ve them explained below

• The RNATT (rabies serology) is now only valid for one year from the date of sampling, meaning that the import permit is only valid up until the end of the year on the RNATT. You must import your dog to Australia before the expiry date of the permit otherwise you will need to apply again.
• Pets coming from the UK that have NOT been previously exported from Australia will be subject to 30 days quarantine in Melbourne (the only quarantine station), as the identification verification service is not available in the UK yet.
• Pets must be resident and have all preparations for export completed in a group 3 country – so if your dog is coming from a non-approved country they must spend 6-7 months in the UK before they can be exported to Australia

As with all pet relocations and destinations, we are here to help you with every step of the process, and guide you with preparing your beloved pets for export- do not hesitate to contact us for a quote for moving your dog Down Under!