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Pet travel route

Dog or cat from China to Vietnam: official requirements

Possible. With nothing done yet, start at least 10 days ahead. The main steps: on-site health check by customs: Shanghai Customs recommends 7 to 10 days before travel, quarantine (health) certificate from the exporting country and apply online to customs ("Internet + Customs"): Shanghai Customs recommends 10 to 14 days before departure.

Rules checked up to 13 October 2026From 4 official pages

Make my dated plan Reverse: Vietnam → China

In short

Limited official guidance. The authority for leaving China publishes little for this route. Everything it does say is here, with its wording. This is Shanghai Customs' procedure, as published on the Shanghai government's English portal (guide of September 2025 and answers from 2026). China's customs sites block automated readers and the national online service needs a login, so we could not read customs' own national guidance. Other cities' customs offices may use other inspection sites, documents and lead times, and the 10–14 and 7–10 day timings are Shanghai Customs' recommendations, not fixed rules. Check with the customs office where you live (hotline 12360) before you travel.

Limited official guidance. The authority for entering Vietnam publishes little for this route. Everything it does say is here, with its wording. Viet Nam's 2026 circular on animal quarantine sets out what happens at the border for a pet carried by a traveller, but it doesn't list what the exporting country's quarantine certificate must state (for example a rabies vaccination or its timing), and we found no official English page for pet owners. Ask the animal quarantine office at your arrival airport and your airline what the certificate must show before you travel.

At a glance

The rules on this route are the same for dogs and cats.

How early to start

10 days

whether or not your pet is already microchipped and vaccinated

Set by: Apply online to customs ("Internet + Customs"): Shanghai Customs recommends 10 to 14 days before departure (Shanghai Customs recommends applying 10 to 14 days before departure)

The least time the official waiting periods allow. Vet, lab and paperwork appointments come on top.

On this route

  • Official stamp on the certificate

Part of this route is still under review, so we don’t say what it doesn’t need.

Prefer a feed reader? China rule changes · Vietnam rule changes

China → Vietnam

What your pet needs

In the order you do them. Each step says whether China (leaving) or Vietnam (entering) asks for it.

Taking a dog or cat out of China (customs Animal Health Certificate): we summarised this from a short or older official page and it is still under review, so it may be incomplete.

  1. In the days before you travel

    1. Vet examLeaving China

      On-site health check by customs: Shanghai Customs recommends 7 to 10 days before travel

      At the appointed time, bring your pet and all original documents (passport, dog licence, vaccination booklet, antibody test report) to the customs inspection site: in Shanghai, Huangpu Customs' Sanmen Road office (No 617 Sanmen Road, Baoshan district). Customs checks that your pet matches your application and examines its health.

      Details and the official words

      “Every pet must undergo a health check.”

      “In Shanghai, this inspection takes place at the Sanmen Road Customs Office”

      “Attend the quarantine check: Bring your passport, dog license, vaccination booklet, antibody test report and your pet to the Sanmen Road Customs Office at the appointed time.”

      “Customs officers will confirm that the pet matches the submitted records and check its overall health.”

    2. PaperworkChina and Vietnam

      Quarantine (health) certificate from the exporting country

      Your pet travels with the quarantine certificate issued by the exporting country's authority. The border quarantine office in Viet Nam checks it. The circular doesn't say how recent it must be or what it must state: ask the quarantine office at your arrival airport.

      Details and the official words

      Customs Animal Health Certificate (needed for every pet leaving China): If your pet passes the inspection, customs issues the Animal Health Certificate within about three working days. In Shanghai, collect it at Huangpu Customs' Customs Clearance Service Hall (7F, No 8 Middle Huaihai Road) with the collection slip and your passport; someone collecting for you needs a signed authorisation letter, their own ID and a copy of your passport. Without this certificate your pet can't leave China. It is usually valid for 14 days (10 days for the EU).

      “Cơ quan kiểm dịch động vật cửa khẩu thực hiện: Kiểm tra Giấy chứng nhận kiểm dịch của nước xuất khẩu; kiểm tra lâm sàng động vật;”

      “Without it, pets won't be allowed out of China, and in some cases, they may even be refused entry upon arrival.”

      “If the inspection is cleared, the certificate will be ready in about three working days.”

      “The processing time will not exceed three working days.”

      “The collection slip and passport are required.”

      “If someone else is collecting on the owner's behalf, they must present a signed authorization letter, their own ID and a copy of the owner's passport.”

      “The certificate itself is only valid for a short time — usually 14 days, and just 10 days for the European Union.”

    3. Official stampLeaving China

      Apply online to customs ("Internet + Customs"): Shanghai Customs recommends 10 to 14 days before departure

      Register on the "Internet + Customs" platform (online.customs.gov.cn) with your passport or ID and apply under "携带出境宠物检疫" (Quarantine Service For Non-Commercial Export of Pet). Enter your details, your pet's and its rabies vaccination history, and upload a valid rabies vaccination certificate, a photo of your pet and, if your destination needs one, a rabies antibody test report from a government-recognised laboratory. Customs usually reviews it within three working days; once it is approved, book the on-site inspection.

      Details and the official words

      “Customs recommends filing the online application 10 to 14 days before departure, and completing the physical inspection seven to 10 days before travel.”

      “you must submit an application in advance through the "互联网+海关 (Internet + Customs)" platform, under the "携带出境宠物检疫 (Quarantine for Pets Carried Out of China)" section.”

      “First-time users need to register — individuals with their passport or ID, and businesses with an IC card.”

      “These include a valid rabies vaccination certificate, a pet photo, and in some cases, a rabies antibody test report from a government-recognized lab.”

      “Once submitted, the application is usually reviewed within three working days.”

  2. Travel day and arrival

    1. On arrivalEntering Vietnam

      Declare your pet at the border animal quarantine office

      For up to 2 animals you bring as pets or on a trip (not on the banned list), declare them for import quarantine directly at the animal quarantine office at the border. It checks the certificate and examines your pet, and issues Viet Nam's import quarantine certificate within 1 working day if everything is in order.

      Details and the official words

      “Kiểm dịch đối với trường hợp mang theo người không quá 02 con động vật với mục đích để nuôi làm cảnh, sinh hoạt trong gia đình hoặc mang theo đi du lịch, công tác, quá cảnh và không thuộc Danh mục động vật cấm xuất khẩu, nhập khẩu theo quy định”

      “Chủ hàng khai báo kiểm dịch nhập khẩu trực tiếp tại Cơ quan kiểm dịch động vật cửa khẩu;”

      “Trong thời hạn 01 ngày làm việc kể từ ngày thực hiện kiểm dịch, Cơ quan kiểm dịch động vật cửa khẩu cấp Giấy chứng nhận kiểm dịch động vật nhập khẩu”

Good to know

  • The circular doesn't list the vaccinations a pet must have. At the border, the quarantine office vaccinates an animal that hasn't been vaccinated against dangerous infectious diseases, and takes samples from an animal suspected of an infectious disease (the certificate then comes within 1 working day of the test result).
  • An animal with a dangerous infectious disease is destroyed near the border crossing, and an animal whose foreign quarantine certificate isn't valid is held.
  • Customs checks your pet against your destination's requirements (vaccination timing, rabies blood test, deworming and so on) and refuses the certificate if the paperwork is incomplete or doesn't meet them. It can also stop the inspection if your pet seems sick or behaves aggressively.
  • In Shanghai, a dog needs its Shanghai Dog Registration Certificate (dog licence), and a cat's owner may need to show proof of residence in Shanghai if the cat was vaccinated elsewhere.
  • Customs at Shanghai Pudong airport does no extra quarantine inspection of pets leaving: the Animal Health Certificate is arranged beforehand with Huangpu Customs (+86 21 6889 4323).
  • Shanghai Customs' hotlines for dogs and cats leaving China: applications 021-962116; on-site inspection 021-6889 0453.

Money

What it costs

Government fees exactly as the official pages state them, and what vets and labs in China publish for the steps above. The two are never added together.

Government fees on this route

No government fee is published on the official pages we use for this trip. That doesn’t always mean it’s free: ask the authority.

What vets and labs charge Not official figures

We have no published vet or lab prices for China yet.

Prices that businesses publish on their own pages, quoted as we read them; yours can differ. Ranges are the lowest to highest of these examples, never our estimate. How we collect prices

Airline fees aren’t included: check your airline’s pet page.

Round trip

Coming back to China

Nothing for the trip back has to happen before your pet leaves China.

The trip back asks for 6 steps: electronic microchip, rabies vaccination certificate, rabies antibody test report (pets from non-designated countries) and official clinical inspection within 14 days before arrival and more.

Every step from Vietnam to China

Nearby routes

Other routes

Where this comes from

Official sources

Last checked against the official pages: 2026-10-13.

Entering VietnamLeaving ChinaReport a mistakeGet rule-change alerts

Questions owners ask

Does my dog or cat need a rabies blood test to go from China to Vietnam?

We couldn't find this in our summary of the rules, but that summary is short and still under review. Ask the official authority before you rely on it.

Do I need an import permit to bring my dog or cat into Vietnam?

We couldn't find this in our summary of the rules, but that summary is short and still under review. Ask the official authority before you rely on it.

Will my dog or cat be quarantined in Vietnam?

We couldn't find this in our summary of the rules, but that summary is short and still under review. Ask the official authority before you rely on it.

How early should I start preparing my pet for China to Vietnam?

With nothing done yet, start at least 10 days ahead. The main steps: on-site health check by customs: Shanghai Customs recommends 7 to 10 days before travel, quarantine (health) certificate from the exporting country and apply online to customs ("Internet + Customs"): Shanghai Customs recommends 10 to 14 days before departure.

Every rule here is quoted from the official page and checked word for word; not legal advice. How we verify · Report a mistake

Read next

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