Pet travel route
Taking a dog or cat from Qatar → South Korea
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.
We’re re-checking these rules. An official source they rely on has changed since we last verified them, so something here may be out of date. Before you book or travel, confirm the details with the official authority.
- Overseas rabies-free countries (regions): list as of 4 April 2023 (HWPX attachment, in Korean) · page changed, noticed 12 Oct 2026
Limited official guidance. The authority for leaving Qatar publishes little for this route. Everything it does say is here, with its wording. Qatar publishes no step-by-step guide for taking a pet out. These steps come from the general Veterinary Quarantine Law (an English translation), which sets the rules for exporting any animal, and from one sentence on the government's pets page. The destination decides what the certificate must say, and the veterinary authority may add tests or vaccinations, so ask the Department of Animal Resources early.
How early to start
3 days
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.
Which rules apply to you
Qatar is in the group “Not on APQA's rabies-free list — rabies antibody test needed (pets aged 90 days or older)” in South Korea’s published list.See every group
Headlines for South Korea
- Rabies blood test for some origins
What your dog or cat needs
Identification
ISO microchip
Every dog and cat must have a microchip. It should be ISO-compliant (ISO 11784 and 11785); with any other chip you must bring your own scanner. Its number must match the one on the health certificate.
Details and the official words
If this is missed: An animal without a microchip, or whose chip number doesn't match the certificate, may be quarantined longer so one can be implanted at the owner's expense.
“Microchips implanted in cats and dogs must be ISO-compliant (ISO11784 and 11785 standards). For any other chips, importers must bring their own microchip scanners.”
“it is mandatory that they have microchips implanted in them.”
Blood test
Rabies blood test (antibody titer)
Dogs and cats aged 90 days or older that come from a country not on APQA's rabies-free list need a rabies-neutralizing antibody test at an internationally approved laboratory (or by the exporting country's competent authority). The result must be at least 0.5 IU/ml and is listed on the health certificate. Pets under 90 days old, or from a rabies-free country, do not need it.
The official wording is ambiguous. Confirm this point with the authority.
Details and the official words
Our age cut-off is 3 calendar months at arrival (APQA says 90 days): a pet whose 90th day falls just before its 3-month birthday in a long month is treated as under 90 days. If your pet is that close, ask APQA.
Labs: APQA points to the EU's list of designated laboratories and Taiwan's list of approved laboratories.
If this is missed: An animal that has not had the antibody test, or whose titer is below 0.5 IU/ml, may be quarantined for an extended period (average about 10 days, longer in some cases) to have the test done, at the owner's expense.
“The rabies-neutralizing antibody test must be administered by an internationally approved laboratory or by the competent authority of the exporting country within 24 months after collecting blood samples.”
“whose rabies-neutralizing antibody titer is below 0.5IU/㎖”
Paperwork
Health certificate from the exporting country's government
A health certificate issued by the government agency of the country your pet is leaving. It must show the microchip number and birth date, and for pets aged 90 days or older not from a rabies-free country, also the rabies antibody test result. You hand it to the animal quarantine officer on arrival.
Details and the official words
APQA's pet page doesn't say how many days before arrival the certificate must be issued. Ask the exporting country's authority and APQA.
Examination and health certificate from the supervising veterinarian: A supervising veterinarian competent to issue veterinary certificates examines the animal and gives you a health certificate confirming it is free of infectious disease. It records the number and type of animals, their distinguishing characteristics, the export date and the destination.
The destination country decides what else its certificate must say and how recent it must be.
“a health certificate issued by the government agency of the exporting country confirming the animal's microchip number and the result of the rabies antibody test must be submitted to the animal quarantine officer.”
“a health certificate issued by the government agency of the exporting country which states the animal's microchip number and birth date.”
“Animal consignments intended for export shall be tested by a supervising veterinarian competent to issue veterinary certificates in accordance with the provisions of this law.”
“the exporting person shall be given a veterinary health certificate confirming that the animals are free of infectious disease, and indicating the number, type of animals, the distinguished characteristics regarding the animals”
On arrival
Quarantine inspection at the port of entry
On arrival the quarantine officer checks your documents and your pet's health with a clinical exam. If all is in order your pet may be released the same day.
Details and the official words
If this is missed: Animals with missing or mismatched microchip, missing antibody test or low titer may be quarantined for an extended period at the owner's expense.
“may be released on the day of arrival.”
Permit
Export permit from the veterinary authority
The law says exporting animals is prohibited unless the necessary permit was obtained beforehand from the competent veterinary authority. The application states the number and type of animals, the country the animals are going to, the means of transport and the date of shipment.
Details and the official words
The pages don't say where to apply for a pet's export permit or how long it takes: ask the Department of Animal Resources.
“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 you leave
The law requires the owner of an animal to inform the competent veterinary authority at least seventy-two hours before the date of exit from Qatar.
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
Leave through a designated port
The law names Doha Sea Port, Doha International Airport and Abou Samara land port as the ports animals may leave through (the minister may add others).
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
- Whether your pet needs a rabies antibody test depends on APQA's list of rabies-free countries. The only version we could read is dated 4 April 2023, and APQA changes the list as countries report rabies or declare themselves free. Ask APQA (or check its current list) before you rely on the 'no blood test' route.
- If you arrive without the government health certificate, your pet has to go back to the country it came from, at your cost.
- APQA's pet page does not set a rabies vaccination schedule or a waiting period; it asks for the antibody test (pets aged 90 days or older, not from a rabies-free country). Your vet will need to vaccinate before that test.
- Qatar's Department of Animal Resources issues import permits and oversees the exportation, transfer and transit of pets across borders.
- The veterinary authority may require any test, health condition or vaccination it considers necessary before it approves an export. The pages don't say which apply to a pet, so ask the Department of Animal Resources.
- These rules 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.
Common questions
Does my dog or cat need a rabies blood test to go from Qatar to South Korea?
Yes: Dogs and cats aged 90 days or older that come from a country not on APQA's rabies-free list need a rabies-neutralizing antibody test at an internationally approved laboratory (or by the exporting country's competent authority).
Do I need an import permit to bring my dog or cat into South Korea?
Yes: The law says exporting animals is prohibited unless the necessary permit was obtained beforehand from the competent veterinary authority.
Will my dog or cat be quarantined in South Korea?
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: Every dog and cat must have a microchip.