Pet travel route
Taking a dog or cat from Germany → Qatar
What the official rules ask for on this route, for a family pet travelling with its owner. Enter your travel date and your pet’s details to turn it into a dated checklist.
Limited official guidance. The authority for leaving Germany publishes little for this route. Everything it does say is here, with its wording. Germany has no single national procedure: the certificate comes from the veterinary office (Veterinäramt) of your district or city, and deadlines and fees differ between offices. This file shows two official examples (the district of Munich and the Berlin district of Treptow-Köpenick). Ask your own office.
Limited official guidance. The authority for entering Qatar publishes little for this route. Everything it does say is here, with its wording. Qatar's pets page is a short summary dated 2020, and the general Veterinary Quarantine Law adds only broad rules. Neither mentions a rabies blood test, a quarantine period or which origin countries are allowed, and the veterinary authority may require tests or vaccinations, so ask the Department of Animal Resources what applies to your route before you travel.
How early to start
4 weeks
if your pet has no microchip or rabies vaccination yet (the least time the official waiting periods allow)
3 days
if it is already microchipped and vaccinated
Counted only from the officially fixed waiting periods. Vet, lab and paperwork appointment times are on top, so start earlier.
Headlines for Qatar
- Import permit needed
- Advance notice to authority
- Designated entry point
What your dog needs
Dogs
Age rule
More than four months old
To get approval your pet must be older than four months.
Details and the official words
“the age of pets must be above four months”
Vaccination
Rabies vaccination
A rabies certificate is required, and vaccinations must have been given at least 30 days before the travel date.
Details and the official words
The page says 'its vaccinations' without naming which ones; only the rabies certificate is named as required.
“A copy of the animal's current vaccination record (rabies certificate is required).”
“has been given its vaccinations at least 30 days before the date of travel”
Paperwork
Official veterinary health certificate from the country of origin
The law says animals arriving in Qatar must come with an official veterinary health certificate from the country of origin. It must show the official stamps, the animal's origin, its testing immediately before shipping, and that it is free of the epidemic and infectious diseases the Qatari veterinary authority specifies. You present the documents on arrival, before the animal is unloaded.
Details and the official words
The law covers 'animal consignments' and lists cats and dogs among domestic animals. The government pets page doesn't mention a certificate, so ask the Department of Animal Resources what it wants for a pet. The law gives no number of days for 'immediately before shipping'.
Official health certificate (amtstierärztliche Gesundheitsbescheinigung) from your district's veterinary office: Send your veterinary office the completed application with the required documents (in Berlin's Treptow-Köpenick three to four weeks before the trip; in the district of Munich the application and a copy of the EU pet passport must arrive at least 3 working days before departure). Then you book an appointment: the pet must be brought in person, so the official vet can examine it and read its microchip. Bring the destination's own health-certificate form.
Deadlines and fees differ between offices (see the notice above): ask yours. The destination decides how recent the certificate must be.
“Official veterinary health certificate certified as valid by the country of origin and showing the official stamps of the consignment, its origin, its testing immediately before shipping, and that it is free of epidemic and infectious diseases specified by the competent veterinary authority.”
“The documents shall be presented to the appointee of the quarantine upon the arrival, and before the unloading, of the animal consignment.”
“means animals used for the purpose of domestic keeping, such as cats and dogs”
“Geforderte Bescheinigungen können von uns ausgestellt bzw. bestätigt werden.”
“Ihr vollständig ausgefüllter Antrag und die Kopie des EU-Heimtierausweises mindestens 3 Werktage vor Abfahrt bei uns im Veterinäramt vorliegen muss”
“Das Tier muss zum Termin mitgebracht werden, da es im Veterinäramt von einem Amtstierarzt untersucht werden muss und seine Identität durch das Ablesen des Mikrochip festgestellt werden muss.”
“übersenden Sie uns einfach das ausgefüllte und unterschriebene Antragsformular einschließlich der erforderlichen Unterlagen, drei bis vier Wochen vor der geplanten Reise.”
Permit
Import permit from the Department of Animal Resources
Visit a Department of Animal Resources veterinary clinic (Al Matar Street in Al Rayyan, or Al Shamal), fill in the import request form and bring a copy of your ID card and your pet's current vaccination record. The permit is valid for one month, so it must be used within a month of issue. The law says importing animals is prohibited unless the permit was obtained beforehand.
Details and the official words
“To obtain an import license, visit one of the Department of Animal Resources' veterinary clinics on Al Matar Street in Al Rayyan area or Al Shamal to fill out an import request form”
“The import permit is valid for one month.”
“shall be prohibited unless the necessary permit has been previously obtained from the competent veterinary authority.”
Notice
Tell the veterinary authority at least 72 hours before arrival
The law requires the owner of an animal to inform the competent veterinary authority at least seventy-two hours before the date of arrival.
Details and the official words
“The owners of the animal consignments shall inform the competent veterinary authority at least seventy-two hours before the date of arrival or exit from the country.”
Route
Enter through a designated port
The law names Doha Sea Port, Doha International Airport and Abou Samara land port as the ports animals may enter through (the minister may add others). The government's pets page describes pets arriving at Hamad International Airport, where they are kept in a special facility until customs clearance is complete.
Details and the official words
“except through the following ports: 1- Doha Sea Port; 2- Doha International Airport; 3- Abou Samara land port;”
Good to know
- The veterinary authority can run tests on animals before it lets them enter or leave Qatar. The government pages don't say which tests apply to a pet, so ask the Department of Animal Resources.
- The general rules below come from an English translation of Qatar's Veterinary Quarantine Law (the copy on FAO's FAOLEX database), not from the official Arabic text, and the law still names the old ministry (Municipal Affairs and Agriculture): check the current requirements with the Department of Animal Resources.
- The health certificate must be written in Arabic or English, or translated into one of them by a certified translation attested by the embassy of the country of export.
- Banned in Qatar: American Staffordshire Terrier, Boerboel, Boston Terrier, Boxer, Bull Terrier, Bulldog, Chinese Shar-Pei, Doberman, Great Dane, Japanese Akita, Neapolitan Mastiff, Afghan Hound, Rottweiler and Staffordshire Bull Terrier.
- Incoming pets are kept at a special facility at Hamad International Airport until customs clearance is complete. Approved pets may come as cargo or excess baggage.
- When you travel to a non-EU country, the rules of that country apply. As the owner you must find out the current rules yourself and in good time, for example from the embassy or consulate. The Berlin office says it cannot give information on other countries' entry rules.
- If the country you travel to, or your return to the EU, needs a rabies titer value, talk to your own vet about it.
- Fees depend on the office. In the Berlin district of Treptow-Köpenick the fee follows the time spent, from 41 to 615 euros, and covers the final check of all documents, preparing the health documents and the official vet's consultation.
- Planning to bring your pet back to the EU? After a short stay in a non-EU country you can skip the 3-month wait after the rabies blood test, but only if, before you leave the EU, your pet was vaccinated against rabies, passed a successful titer test, and your vet recorded both in its EU pet passport. So do the blood test before you go.
What your cat needs
Cats
Age rule
More than four months old
To get approval your pet must be older than four months.
Details and the official words
“the age of pets must be above four months”
Vaccination
Rabies vaccination
A rabies certificate is required, and vaccinations must have been given at least 30 days before the travel date.
Details and the official words
The page says 'its vaccinations' without naming which ones; only the rabies certificate is named as required.
“A copy of the animal's current vaccination record (rabies certificate is required).”
“has been given its vaccinations at least 30 days before the date of travel”
Paperwork
Official veterinary health certificate from the country of origin
The law says animals arriving in Qatar must come with an official veterinary health certificate from the country of origin. It must show the official stamps, the animal's origin, its testing immediately before shipping, and that it is free of the epidemic and infectious diseases the Qatari veterinary authority specifies. You present the documents on arrival, before the animal is unloaded.
Details and the official words
The law covers 'animal consignments' and lists cats and dogs among domestic animals. The government pets page doesn't mention a certificate, so ask the Department of Animal Resources what it wants for a pet. The law gives no number of days for 'immediately before shipping'.
Official health certificate (amtstierärztliche Gesundheitsbescheinigung) from your district's veterinary office: Send your veterinary office the completed application with the required documents (in Berlin's Treptow-Köpenick three to four weeks before the trip; in the district of Munich the application and a copy of the EU pet passport must arrive at least 3 working days before departure). Then you book an appointment: the pet must be brought in person, so the official vet can examine it and read its microchip. Bring the destination's own health-certificate form.
Deadlines and fees differ between offices (see the notice above): ask yours. The destination decides how recent the certificate must be.
“Official veterinary health certificate certified as valid by the country of origin and showing the official stamps of the consignment, its origin, its testing immediately before shipping, and that it is free of epidemic and infectious diseases specified by the competent veterinary authority.”
“The documents shall be presented to the appointee of the quarantine upon the arrival, and before the unloading, of the animal consignment.”
“means animals used for the purpose of domestic keeping, such as cats and dogs”
“Geforderte Bescheinigungen können von uns ausgestellt bzw. bestätigt werden.”
“Ihr vollständig ausgefüllter Antrag und die Kopie des EU-Heimtierausweises mindestens 3 Werktage vor Abfahrt bei uns im Veterinäramt vorliegen muss”
“Das Tier muss zum Termin mitgebracht werden, da es im Veterinäramt von einem Amtstierarzt untersucht werden muss und seine Identität durch das Ablesen des Mikrochip festgestellt werden muss.”
“übersenden Sie uns einfach das ausgefüllte und unterschriebene Antragsformular einschließlich der erforderlichen Unterlagen, drei bis vier Wochen vor der geplanten Reise.”
Permit
Import permit from the Department of Animal Resources
Visit a Department of Animal Resources veterinary clinic (Al Matar Street in Al Rayyan, or Al Shamal), fill in the import request form and bring a copy of your ID card and your pet's current vaccination record. The permit is valid for one month, so it must be used within a month of issue. The law says importing animals is prohibited unless the permit was obtained beforehand.
Details and the official words
“To obtain an import license, visit one of the Department of Animal Resources' veterinary clinics on Al Matar Street in Al Rayyan area or Al Shamal to fill out an import request form”
“The import permit is valid for one month.”
“shall be prohibited unless the necessary permit has been previously obtained from the competent veterinary authority.”
Notice
Tell the veterinary authority at least 72 hours before arrival
The law requires the owner of an animal to inform the competent veterinary authority at least seventy-two hours before the date of arrival.
Details and the official words
“The owners of the animal consignments shall inform the competent veterinary authority at least seventy-two hours before the date of arrival or exit from the country.”
Route
Enter through a designated port
The law names Doha Sea Port, Doha International Airport and Abou Samara land port as the ports animals may enter through (the minister may add others). The government's pets page describes pets arriving at Hamad International Airport, where they are kept in a special facility until customs clearance is complete.
Details and the official words
“except through the following ports: 1- Doha Sea Port; 2- Doha International Airport; 3- Abou Samara land port;”
Good to know
- The veterinary authority can run tests on animals before it lets them enter or leave Qatar. The government pages don't say which tests apply to a pet, so ask the Department of Animal Resources.
- The general rules below come from an English translation of Qatar's Veterinary Quarantine Law (the copy on FAO's FAOLEX database), not from the official Arabic text, and the law still names the old ministry (Municipal Affairs and Agriculture): check the current requirements with the Department of Animal Resources.
- The health certificate must be written in Arabic or English, or translated into one of them by a certified translation attested by the embassy of the country of export.
- Incoming pets are kept at a special facility at Hamad International Airport until customs clearance is complete. Approved pets may come as cargo or excess baggage.
- When you travel to a non-EU country, the rules of that country apply. As the owner you must find out the current rules yourself and in good time, for example from the embassy or consulate. The Berlin office says it cannot give information on other countries' entry rules.
- If the country you travel to, or your return to the EU, needs a rabies titer value, talk to your own vet about it.
- Fees depend on the office. In the Berlin district of Treptow-Köpenick the fee follows the time spent, from 41 to 615 euros, and covers the final check of all documents, preparing the health documents and the official vet's consultation.
- Planning to bring your pet back to the EU? After a short stay in a non-EU country you can skip the 3-month wait after the rabies blood test, but only if, before you leave the EU, your pet was vaccinated against rabies, passed a successful titer test, and your vet recorded both in its EU pet passport. So do the blood test before you go.
Common questions
Does my dog need a rabies blood test to go from Germany to Qatar?
No. The official rules we have verified for this route don't ask for a rabies blood test.
Do I need an import permit to bring my dog into Qatar?
Yes: Visit a Department of Animal Resources veterinary clinic (Al Matar Street in Al Rayyan, or Al Shamal), fill in the import request form and bring a copy of your ID card and your pet's current vaccination record.
Will my dog be quarantined in Qatar?
Not on the routes we have verified: the official rules list no quarantine for a pet that meets the requirements.
Does my dog need a microchip?
The official rules we have verified for this route don't list a microchip requirement.