Pet travel route
Taking a dog or cat from Sweden → Saudi Arabia
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 Sweden publishes little for this route. Everything it does say is here, with its wording. Jordbruksverket says it usually does not know other countries' requirements and gives no fixed deadline or fee for the certificate: the destination's own rules decide, and an official vet in your area issues the certificate.
Limited official guidance. The authority for entering Saudi Arabia publishes little for this route. Everything it does say is here, with its wording. MEWA's permit page lists only the conditions below. It does not mention a rabies blood test, quarantine or which origin countries are allowed, and MEWA's older printed pet-import guide is no longer online. Those rules may still exist, so ask MEWA (call 939) what applies to your route before you travel.
How early to start
2 weeks
if your pet has no microchip or rabies vaccination yet (the least time the official waiting periods allow)
2 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.
Headlines for Saudi Arabia
- Import permit needed
What your dog needs
Dogs
Identification
Microchip or other approved identification
Your pet must be identified with an electronic microchip or another approved method.
Details and the official words
“Pets must be identified with an electronic microchip or another approved identification method.”
Age rule
At least 4 months old
Your pet must be at least four months old.
Details and the official words
The page doesn't say on which date the age is counted; we count it on the day your pet leaves.
“The pet must be at least 4 months old”
Vaccination
Rabies vaccination
A rabies vaccination certificate must travel with your pet. The vaccination must still have at least 6 months of validity left.
Details and the official words
The page doesn't say on which date the 6 months are counted; we count them from the arrival date. It also doesn't say how long after the shot your pet may travel.
“The remaining validity period of the rabies vaccination must not be less than 6 months.”
Paperwork
Original veterinary health certificate
Your pet must travel with the original veterinary health certificate issued by the competent authorities in your country, plus the rabies vaccination certificate. You upload copies of both (and the vaccination record) with the permit application.
Details and the official words
The page gives no deadline for how recent the certificate must be.
Health certificate from an official vet in your area: Most often your dog or cat needs both a passport and at least one type of animal health certificate issued by an official vet. Once you know which certificates you need, contact an official vet near you to help you meet the conditions and have the certificates issued.
Jordbruksverket's page gives no deadline for how recent the certificate must be: the destination's own requirements decide.
“The pet must be accompanied by the original veterinary health certificate issued by the competent authorities and a rabies vaccination certificate (or for any other required diseases).”
“Oftast behöver hunden både pass och minst en typ av djurhälsointyg som utfärdas av en officiell veterinär.”
“Oftast behöver katten både pass och minst en typ av djurhälsointyg som utfärdas av en officiell veterinär.”
“När du har tagit reda på vilka intyg som du behöver ska du kontakta en officiell veterinär i ditt närområde för att få hjälp med att uppfylla villkoren och få intygen utfärdade.”
Permit
Entry permit from MEWA (Naama platform)
Apply online on the Naama platform at least 15 days before the shipping date (it takes 5–7 days and is free). The permit is valid for 30 days from issue, and your pet must enter through the port named in it.
Details and the official words
“The request must be submitted at least 15 days before the shipping date”
“The permit is valid for 30 days from the issuance date”
Good to know
- The person applying for the permit must be at least 21 years old for a dog and at least 18 for a cat.
- Banned in Saudi Arabia, pure or mixed: Pit Bull, Rottweiler, Boxer, Mastiff, Tosa, Bulldog and Perro de Presa Canario. Dogs must belong to a breed that is allowed.
- When your dog or cat travels to a country outside the EU, the rules of that country apply and they differ from country to country. It is your responsibility to find out what applies, to use the right certificate and to make sure the pet meets the rules. Contact the destination's veterinary authority or its embassy in Sweden in good time.
- If your pet travels with wrong or incomplete documents, the authorities of the destination decide what happens: it can be refused entry and sent back, put in quarantine at your cost, or in the worst case put down.
- Contact the destination's veterinary authority, ask for the requirements in writing, and ask whether it accepts Jordbruksverket's health certificate for dogs and cats. Ask about special certificates, sampling, deworming or other treatments (for example Norway requires deworming against the fox tapeworm). Use the right terms: the rules can differ for a holiday trip with the owner and a trip to change owner by sale, adoption or rehoming.
- Make sure your pet meets the rules for coming back to Sweden before you go. If a rabies antibody test is needed to return and its result is not in the passport before the trip, a dog may have to wait up to 4 months before it can come home.
- 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
Identification
Microchip or other approved identification
Your pet must be identified with an electronic microchip or another approved method.
Details and the official words
“Pets must be identified with an electronic microchip or another approved identification method.”
Age rule
At least 4 months old
Your pet must be at least four months old.
Details and the official words
The page doesn't say on which date the age is counted; we count it on the day your pet leaves.
“The pet must be at least 4 months old”
Vaccination
Rabies vaccination
A rabies vaccination certificate must travel with your pet. The vaccination must still have at least 6 months of validity left.
Details and the official words
The page doesn't say on which date the 6 months are counted; we count them from the arrival date. It also doesn't say how long after the shot your pet may travel.
“The remaining validity period of the rabies vaccination must not be less than 6 months.”
Paperwork
Original veterinary health certificate
Your pet must travel with the original veterinary health certificate issued by the competent authorities in your country, plus the rabies vaccination certificate. You upload copies of both (and the vaccination record) with the permit application.
Details and the official words
The page gives no deadline for how recent the certificate must be.
Health certificate from an official vet in your area: Most often your dog or cat needs both a passport and at least one type of animal health certificate issued by an official vet. Once you know which certificates you need, contact an official vet near you to help you meet the conditions and have the certificates issued.
Jordbruksverket's page gives no deadline for how recent the certificate must be: the destination's own requirements decide.
“The pet must be accompanied by the original veterinary health certificate issued by the competent authorities and a rabies vaccination certificate (or for any other required diseases).”
“Oftast behöver hunden både pass och minst en typ av djurhälsointyg som utfärdas av en officiell veterinär.”
“Oftast behöver katten både pass och minst en typ av djurhälsointyg som utfärdas av en officiell veterinär.”
“När du har tagit reda på vilka intyg som du behöver ska du kontakta en officiell veterinär i ditt närområde för att få hjälp med att uppfylla villkoren och få intygen utfärdade.”
Permit
Entry permit from MEWA (Naama platform)
Apply online on the Naama platform at least 15 days before the shipping date (it takes 5–7 days and is free). The permit is valid for 30 days from issue, and your pet must enter through the port named in it.
Details and the official words
“The request must be submitted at least 15 days before the shipping date”
“The permit is valid for 30 days from the issuance date”
Good to know
- The person applying for the permit must be at least 21 years old for a dog and at least 18 for a cat.
- When your dog or cat travels to a country outside the EU, the rules of that country apply and they differ from country to country. It is your responsibility to find out what applies, to use the right certificate and to make sure the pet meets the rules. Contact the destination's veterinary authority or its embassy in Sweden in good time.
- If your pet travels with wrong or incomplete documents, the authorities of the destination decide what happens: it can be refused entry and sent back, put in quarantine at your cost, or in the worst case put down.
- Contact the destination's veterinary authority, ask for the requirements in writing, and ask whether it accepts Jordbruksverket's health certificate for dogs and cats. Ask about special certificates, sampling, deworming or other treatments (for example Norway requires deworming against the fox tapeworm). Use the right terms: the rules can differ for a holiday trip with the owner and a trip to change owner by sale, adoption or rehoming.
- Make sure your pet meets the rules for coming back to Sweden before you go. If a rabies antibody test is needed to return and its result is not in the passport before the trip, a dog may have to wait up to 4 months before it can come home.
- 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 Sweden to Saudi Arabia?
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 Saudi Arabia?
Yes: Apply online on the Naama platform at least 15 days before the shipping date (it takes 5–7 days and is free).
Will my dog be quarantined in Saudi Arabia?
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?
Yes: Your pet must be identified with an electronic microchip or another approved method.