Pet travel route
Taking a dog or cat from Ireland → Singapore
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.
How early to start
9 weeks
if your pet has no microchip or rabies vaccination yet (the least time the official waiting periods allow)
9 weeks
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.
Which rules apply to you
Ireland is in the group “Schedule I — no rabies vaccination, serology or quarantine” in Singapore’s published list.See every group
Headlines for Singapore
- Rabies blood test for some origins
- Import permit needed
- Quarantine possible
What your dog or cat needs
Identification
ISO microchip
Your pet must have an ISO 11784 or ISO 11785 (Annex A) microchip, and the number must appear on every vaccination and treatment record.
Details and the official words
“Ensure that your dog or cat is microchipped according to International Standards Organisation (ISO) Standard 11784 or ISO Standard 11785 Annex A.”
Age rule
At least 12 weeks old at export
Your dog or cat must be at least 12 weeks old on the day it leaves for Singapore.
Details and the official words
“Your dog/cat must be at least twelve (12) weeks of age at the time of export.”
Vaccination
Core vaccinations
Dogs: valid vaccinations against canine distemper, adenovirus type 1 and parvovirus type 2. Cats: calicivirus, herpesvirus-1 and panleukopaenia. They must be given at least 2 weeks before export. Bring the records (with microchip number, dates, vaccine brand and batch, vet's signature).
Details and the official words
Schedule I (Australia, New Zealand, Ireland, United Kingdom): a dog or cat under 16 weeks old needs at least two vaccinations, the first no earlier than 6 weeks of age and the second at least 2 weeks before export.
“in the case of a dog, the dog was vaccinated according to the vaccine manufacturer’s recommendations and not less than two (2) weeks prior to export against Canine Distemper virus, Canine Adenovirus type 1 and Canine Parvovirus type 2.”
“in the case of a cat, the cat was vaccinated according to the vaccine manufacturer’s recommendations and not less than two (2) weeks prior to export against Feline calicivirus, Feline Herpesvirus-1 and Feline Panleukopaenia virus.”
“in the case of a dog under sixteen (16) weeks of age, the dog was vaccinated according to manufacturer’s recommendations against Canine Distemper virus, Canine Adenovirus type 1 and Canine Parvovirus type 2 with at least two (2) vaccinations, with the first vaccination administered at no earlier than 6 weeks of age, and the second vaccination must be given at least two (2) weeks prior to export”
“These must be supported by vaccination records upon arrival in Singapore.”
Permit
Dog or cat licence (PALS)
Get a dog or cat licence on the Pet Animal Licensing System (PALS) — you need it before you can apply for the import licence.
Details and the official words
“To import a dog or cat, you must obtain a dog or cat licence before applying for an import licence.”
Permit
Import licence
Apply on the GoBusiness Licensing Portal (S$50, issued in 2 working days; S$100 express, 1 working day). It's valid for 90 days from issue with no extension, so your pet must arrive within that time. Mixed breeds need a colour photo.
Details and the official words
“An import licence is valid for 90 days from the date of issue.”
On arrival
Book the border inspection
Book your pet's arrival inspection at least 5 days before it arrives (with the import licence number and flight details). Without a booking you pay S$133 per hour.
Details and the official words
“five days before the animal’s arrival, or earlier”
“The owner or agent must make an appointment for the pet’s inspection at least 5 working days before the arrival of the animal”
Treatment
Internal and external parasite treatment
Between 2 and 7 days before export, your vet treats your pet for internal and external parasites and completes Sections I–III of Singapore's veterinary certificate.
Details and the official words
“Between 2 and 7 days of export, send your dog or cat for parasite treatments and complete the veterinary health certificate.”
“the dog/cat has been treated with a product effective against external parasites (fleas and ticks) between 2 and 7 days of export”
Paperwork
Veterinary health certificate endorsed by an official vet
Use Singapore's certificate template for your country's Schedule. Your vet completes Sections I–III; your country's official government veterinarian endorses Section IV. The certificate must be dated no more than 7 days before export and is valid for 7 days.
Details and the official words
Government stamp and signature from your Regional Veterinary Office: The most likely scenario: you and your private vet prepare the pet (vaccinations, blood tests and so on) and fill in the health certificate the destination asks for, then you bring it to your local Regional Veterinary Office for a government stamp and signature.
DAFM's page gives no deadline for how recent the certificate must be: the destination's own requirements decide.
“Request the exporting country’s official government veterinarian to endorse Section IV of the same veterinary certificate.”
“a veterinary certificate (in accordance with the attached template) bearing a date not more than seven (7) days prior to export”
“a veterinary certificate (in accordance with the attached template) bearing a date not more than seven (7) days prior to export”
“a veterinary certificate (in accordance with the attached template) bearing a date not more than seven (7) days prior to export”
“CERTIFICATION VALIDITY: This certification is valid for seven (7) days.”
“The most likely scenario is that you and your private vet will prepare the pet (vaccinations, blood tests etc.) and provide a health certificate, that you can then bring to your local Regional Veterinary Office to get a government stamp and signature”
Transport
Airline captain's declaration
Ask your airline for the signed captain's declaration (template in Singapore's veterinary conditions) and hand it in at the arrival inspection. It's also what allows a transit through a Schedule III country.
Details and the official words
“you also need to obtain a signed captain's declaration form endorsed by the transporting airline(s).”
Notice
Contact your Regional Veterinary Office at least 2 months before you travel
Contact your Regional Veterinary Office at least 2 months before the trip so it can certify the documents. The department may not be able to sign your pet's documents if you contact it later.
Details and the official words
“make sure you plan well in advance and contact the Regional Veterinary Office at least 2 months in advance of travel to ensure that necessary documentation can be certified by department officials”
“The department may not be able to sign documentation for your pet to travel if you have not contacted your Regional Veterinary Office at least two months in advance of travel with your pet.”
Good to know
- Singapore's veterinary conditions say your pet must have lived continuously in the country it leaves from (or in another Schedule I or II country) for at least 6 months before export, or since birth. The official vets certify this.
- For Schedule I countries, the certificate states that no case of rabies has been reported in the country for at least 24 months before export.
- Not allowed into Singapore: Pit Bull types (incl. American Staffordshire and Staffordshire Bull Terriers), American Bulldog, Akita, Boerboel, Dogo Argentino, Fila Brasileiro, Neapolitan Mastiff, Tosa, Perro de Presa Canario and their crosses; and 1st–4th generation Bengal or Savannah cat crosses. Housing rules also limit pets (an HDB flat: 2 cats or 1 non-specified dog).
- Even if your pet flies in the cabin, bring a rigid IATA-standard crate: soft bags aren't allowed for the transfer to the quarantine station.
- You may need a Customs In-Payment (GST) permit before arrival — check Singapore Customs' rules for personal pets.
- Ireland does not keep the entry (certification) requirements of other countries: contact the destination country for them, then follow its instructions for the health certificate. Allow enough time for any required tests.
- No tapeworm treatment is needed to leave Ireland. A dog needs the treatment from a vet abroad before it returns to Ireland.
- Make sure your pet qualifies to return to Ireland: the same rules apply to re-enter from a non-EU country whether the pet usually lives there or is an Irish pet that was there briefly on holiday.
- 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 or cat need a rabies blood test to go from Ireland to Singapore?
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 or cat into Singapore?
Yes: Get a dog or cat licence on the Pet Animal Licensing System (PALS) — you need it before you can apply for the import licence.
Will my dog or cat be quarantined in Singapore?
Not on the routes we have verified: the official rules list no quarantine for a pet that meets the requirements.
Does my dog or cat need a microchip?
Yes: Your pet must have an ISO 11784 or ISO 11785 (Annex A) microchip, and the number must appear on every vaccination and treatment record.