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Dog or cat from Vietnam to Hawaii (US): the rules

Possible. With nothing done yet, start at least 9 weeks ahead. The main steps: rabies vaccination #1, rabies vaccination #2 (a booster, more than 30 days before arrival) and rabies antibody blood test (OIE-FAVN) and a 30-day wait and 4 more.

Rules checked up to 13 October 2026From 3 official pages

Make my dated plan Reverse: Hawaii (US) → Vietnam

In short

Limited official guidance. The authority for leaving Vietnam publishes little for this route. Everything it does say is here, with its wording. Viet Nam's 2026 circular on animal quarantine sets one export procedure for all animals; we found no official page written for pet owners. It doesn't give the fees or say what the quarantine office checks beyond a clinical examination and the destination's requirements. Ask the regional animal health sub-department (or your province's veterinary authority) where you will apply.

Limited official guidance. The authority for entering Hawaii (US) publishes little for this route. Everything it does say is here, with its wording. Hawaii's own checklists (PDF) could not be read: they hold details this page does not, such as the microchip rule and the result needed on the rabies antibody test. Pets arriving from the British Isles, Australia, Guam and New Zealand follow a different checklist that we have not read. The pages were read from stored copies of Hawaii's official pages because the site blocks automated readers; the pre-arrival waits below come from those pages. Contact the Animal Quarantine Station (rabiesfree@hawaii.gov) to confirm the current checklist for your pet.

At a glance

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

How early to start

9 weeks

if your pet has no microchip or rabies vaccination yet

Set by: Rabies vaccination #2 (a booster, more than 30 days before arrival) (more than 30 days before arrival)

4 weeks

if it is already microchipped and vaccinated

Set by: Rabies antibody blood test (OIE-FAVN) and a 30-day wait (at least 30 days after the laboratory received the blood sample)

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

On this route

  • Rabies blood test needed
  • No import permit
  • No quarantine
  • Parasite treatment before travel
  • Official stamp on the certificate

Prefer a feed reader? Vietnam rule changes · Hawaii (US) rule changes

Vietnam → Hawaii (US)

What your pet needs

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

  1. Get ready

    1. VaccinationEntering Hawaii (US)

      Rabies vaccination #1

      Your pet needs certification of at least two rabies vaccinations. This is the first one; documents for the earlier vaccination are required, because with only the most recent vaccination the pet does not qualify.

      Details and the official words

      “Certification of at least two rabies vaccinations is required.”

    2. VaccinationEntering Hawaii (US)

      Rabies vaccination #2 (a booster, more than 30 days before arrival)

      The second rabies vaccination (a booster) must be given no less than 30 days after the previous one, and more than 30 days before your pet arrives in Hawaii.

      Details and the official words

      “To qualify, your pet will need to receive a booster no less than 30 days after the previous vaccination. In addition, this second vaccination must be given more than 30 days before arrival in Hawai‘i.”

    3. Blood testEntering Hawaii (US)

      Rabies antibody blood test (OIE-FAVN) and a 30-day wait

      Your pet needs a passing OIE-FAVN rabies antibody test, and a 30-day wait from the day the laboratory received the blood sample before it arrives. A passing result is valid for 36 months from the day the blood reached the laboratory.

      Details and the official words

      Hawaii's checklists (not readable here) give the pass mark and other details of the test: confirm them with the Animal Quarantine Station.

      “To avoid your animal being placed into quarantine, proof of two rabies vaccinations within the required timeframe and a passing FAVN test are required for all dogs and cats entering the State of Hawai‘i.”

      “The OIE-FAVN test result is valid for 36 months from the day the blood was received at the laboratory.”

  2. In the days before you travel

    1. TreatmentEntering Hawaii (US)

      Tick treatment within 14 days before arrival

      Your vet treats your dog or cat with a long-acting oral or topical product labelled to kill ticks (equivalent or better than fipronil) within 14 days before arrival, and the treatment is written on the health certificate. K-9 Advantix is acceptable for dogs only, never for cats; Revolution is not acceptable.

      Details and the official words

      “Dogs and cats must be treated by your veterinarian with a long-acting oral or topical product labeled to kill ticks that is equivalent or better than Fipronil within 14 days prior to arrival and the treatment must be documented on the health certificate.”

    2. PaperworkVietnam and Hawaii (US)

      Health certificate

      A veterinary health certificate (with the tick treatment on it) goes with your pet. If it can't reach the Animal Quarantine Station with the other documents 10 days before arrival, the original must be handed to the inspector on arrival. Hawaii's pages give no validity period for it: ask the Animal Quarantine Station.

      Details and the official words

      Export quarantine certificate (form 13a): The quarantine office examines your pet, checks it against the dossier and carries out the checks the destination (or you) ask for. If no samples need testing, it issues the export quarantine certificate (form 13a) within 1 working day of the quarantine; if samples are tested, within 5 working days. At the border where you leave, the quarantine office checks the certificate and confirms it.

      “If the health certificate cannot be sent 10 days before arriving with the rest of the documents, the original must be given to the inspector upon arrival in Hawai‘i.”

      “Kiểm tra lâm sàng đối với động vật; kiểm tra thực trạng hàng hóa đối với sản phẩm động vật; đối chiếu thông tin lô hàng với hồ sơ kiểm dịch;”

      “Thực hiện kiểm tra các nội dung vệ sinh thú y theo yêu cầu của nước nhập khẩu hoặc chủ hàng;”

      “Đối với lô hàng không phải lấy mẫu xét nghiệm: Trong thời hạn 01 ngày làm việc kể từ ngày bắt đầu thực hiện kiểm dịch, nếu đáp ứng yêu cầu kiểm dịch, Cơ quan kiểm dịch động vật cửa khẩu cấp Giấy chứng nhận kiểm dịch động vật xuất khẩu theo mẫu 13a”

      “Đối với lô hàng phải lấy mẫu xét nghiệm: Trong thời hạn 05 ngày làm việc kể từ ngày bắt đầu thực hiện kiểm dịch”

      “Xác nhận đã kiểm tra vào Giấy chứng nhận kiểm dịch hoặc thực hiện cấp đổi Giấy chứng nhận kiểm dịch xuất khẩu theo yêu cầu của chủ hàng.”

    3. Official stampLeaving Vietnam

      Register your pet for export quarantine before you leave

      Before departure, send the registration dossier to the regional animal health sub-department (Chi cục Chăn nuôi và Thú y vùng) or the provincial veterinary authority it has delegated: the export quarantine registration form (form 2a), the destination's written veterinary requirements if any, and the destination's certificate model if any. You can send it through the National Single Window, the public service portal, by post, by email, by fax or in person (after an email or fax, send the original). The office checks the dossier within 1 working day and tells you when and where the quarantine will take place.

      Details and the official words

      “Trước khi xuất khẩu động vật, sản phẩm động vật có yêu cầu kiểm dịch, chủ hàng gửi 01 bộ hồ sơ đăng ký kiểm dịch theo quy định tại Điều 7 Thông tư này đến Chi cục Chăn nuôi và Thú y vùng hoặc Cơ quan quản lý chuyên ngành Thú y cấp tỉnh được Cục Chăn nuôi và Thú y ủy quyền”

      “qua Cổng thông tin một cửa quốc gia hoặc Cổng dịch vụ công hoặc qua dịch vụ bưu chính công ích hoặc gửi qua thư điện tử, fax hoặc gửi trực tiếp. Trường hợp gửi hồ sơ đăng ký qua thư điện tử, fax, sau đó chủ hàng phải gửi bản chính.”

      “Đơn đăng ký kiểm dịch động vật xuất khẩu theo mẫu 2a quy định tại Phụ lục V ban hành kèm theo Thông tư này.”

      “Văn bản thể hiện yêu cầu nội dung vệ sinh thú y của nước nhập khẩu hoặc chủ hàng (nếu có).”

      “Mẫu Giấy chứng nhận kiểm dịch của Cơ quan có thẩm quyền của nước nhập khẩu (nếu có).”

      “Trong thời hạn 01 ngày làm việc kể từ ngày nhận được hồ sơ đăng ký, Cơ quan kiểm dịch động vật cửa khẩu xem xét tính đầy đủ, hợp lệ của hồ sơ.”

    4. PaperworkEntering Hawaii (US)

      Dog and Cat Import Form (AQS-279) and documents, at least 10 days before arrival

      Send one completed Dog and Cat Import Form (AQS-279) per pet, with two rabies vaccination certificates, the health certificate and pre-payment, so the Animal Quarantine Station has them at least 10 days before arrival. This qualifies your pet for the 5 Day Or Less program and for direct release at Honolulu airport ($185; $244 if the documents are late). You can apply online through the Hawaii Pet Owner Portal. Arrivals at Kona, Kahului or Līhu'e need a Neighbor Island Inspection Permit.

      Details and the official words

      “NO LESS THAN 10 DAYS BEFORE PET ARRIVES IN HAWAI‘I TO QUALIFY FOR 5 DAY OR LESS or AIRPORT RELEASE”

      “If you seek direct release of the pet at the airport, you must submit the required original documents so that the office receives the paperwork at least 10 days prior to your pet’s arrival.”

      “the higher fee of $244 is assessed instead of $185.”

Good to know

  • Hawaii is rabies-free, so every dog and cat, whatever its age or purpose, must meet its import rules. A pet that doesn't meet every requirement of the '5 Day Or Less' program is quarantined for up to 120 days on arrival.
  • Non-domestic dogs and cats and hybrids such as wolf crosses, Dingo, Bengal and Savannah are prohibited under Hawaii's Plant Quarantine law.
  • A newborn puppy or kitten will be about 6 months old by the time the preparations are finished; pets that can't meet every requirement are quarantined for 120 days.
  • A pet that arrives before its 30-day waiting period is complete does not qualify for direct airport release and is quarantined (with a daily charge) until the waiting period ends.
  • Dogs and cats are animals that must be quarantined. If neither the destination nor you ask for an export quarantine certificate, the circular instead requires the quarantine for moving animals out of a province.
  • A pet that leaves Viet Nam temporarily (and will come back) goes through the same export quarantine when it leaves.

Money

What it costs

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

Government fees on this route

No fee applies to every trip; these may, depending on your case

What vets and labs charge Not official figures

No published prices yet for Vietnam: rabies vaccination, parasite treatment, health certificate (vet’s fee).

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 Vietnam

Nothing for the trip back has to happen before your pet leaves Vietnam (dogs).

The trip back asks for 3 steps: quarantine (health) certificate from the exporting country, declare your pet at the border animal quarantine office and use a USDA-accredited veterinarian.

Nothing for the trip back has to happen before your pet leaves Vietnam (cats).

The trip back asks for 3 steps: quarantine (health) certificate from the exporting country, declare your pet at the border animal quarantine office and use a USDA-accredited veterinarian.

Every step from Hawaii (US) to Vietnam

Nearby routes

Other routes

Where this comes from

Official sources

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

Entering Hawaii (US)Leaving VietnamReport a mistakeGet rule-change alerts

Questions owners ask

Does my dog or cat need a rabies blood test to go from Vietnam to Hawaii (US)?

Yes: Your pet needs a passing OIE-FAVN rabies antibody test, and a 30-day wait from the day the laboratory received the blood sample before it arrives.

Do I need an import permit to bring my dog or cat into Hawaii (US)?

No. The official rules we have verified for this route don't ask for an import permit.

Will my dog or cat be quarantined in Hawaii (US)?

Not on the routes we have verified: the official rules list no quarantine for a pet that meets the requirements.

How early should I start preparing my pet for Vietnam to Hawaii (US)?

With nothing done yet, start at least 9 weeks ahead. The main steps: rabies vaccination #1, rabies vaccination #2 (a booster, more than 30 days before arrival) and rabies antibody blood test (OIE-FAVN) and a 30-day wait and 4 more.

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

Turn this into dates for your pet

Where from, where to, when. You get every step with its deadline and the official page it comes from.

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