Bringing a dog or cat to Canada

Easy for dogs and cats from every origin group the authority lists.

Difficulty from Germany
Easy
Prep time
1 week
Quarantine
None
Authority
Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) sets the rules; Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) inspects pets at the border on the CFIA's behalf
Rules researched 24 Sep 2026 · 28 sources
01

Requirements

Dog from Germany · 4 steps

It depends on where you're coming from. Pick your country, or compare the origin groups the authority itself uses below.

COMING FROM
Prep time 1 week

Dog from Germany (All other (every country not listed elsewhere)): 4 requirements

Open as my dated checklist
  1. 01
    Non-commercial limits
    Personal pet dog only: the dog will live with its owner, and the owner must be the importer and be able to prove, on request, that they owned the dog before it entered Canada. A dog to be given away, sold, adopted out, fostered, bred, shown, used in research or trained as an assistance dog is a commercial import with different rules. "Accompanied by owner" means the owner personally; a friend, family member or flight companion counts as "unaccompanied".
    Source:Canadian Food Inspection Agency — Automated Import Reference System (opens official site: AIRS — Domestic dogs, Personal dogs accompanied by owner (origin Thailand, Travellers & Personal use))· checked 24 Sep 2026
  2. 02
    Rabies vaccination
    Dog 3 months or older at arrival: valid rabies vaccination certificate issued and signed by a licensed veterinarian, in English or French (CFIA's tool also accepts an official translation). It must identify the dog (age, breed, sex, colour/markings, weight, microchip/tattoo number if any) and the owner, give the vaccination date, vaccine trade name and serial number, and the validity period — if no validity is stated the vaccination counts as valid for 1 year. The dog must have been at least 3 months old when vaccinated and the vaccination must be current on arrival. No minimum wait after vaccination is stated. An EU pet passport is accepted if it contains all these elements.
    • Only if: For pets aged 3 months or more
    Source:Canadian Food Inspection Agency — Automated Import Reference System (opens official site: AIRS — Domestic dogs, Personal dogs accompanied by owner (origin Thailand, Travellers & Personal use))· checked 24 Sep 2026
  3. 03
    Customs declaration
    Declare the pet to CBSA on arrival and present it with all documents at the first port of entry. Undeclared animals, including family pets, can be refused entry, confiscated or detained.
    Source:Canada Border Services Agency (opens official site: Travelling with animals)· checked 04 Oct 2026
  4. 04
    Arrival inspection
    CBSA officers check the documents (rabies certificate valid, description matches the animal) and look at the pet. A healthy pet with correct papers that was transported humanely is released without the CFIA. A sick animal or a humane-transport problem is referred to a CFIA veterinarian (extra CFIA fees). A pet without a valid rabies certificate gets a Notice to Vaccinate: vaccinate within the deadline given (at most 14 days) and send proof to the CFIA; otherwise the CFIA typically orders the animal removed from Canada. Carry paper originals.
    Source:Canadian Food Inspection Agency (opens official site: Bringing animals to Canada: Importing and travelling with pets (interactive tool — dog and cat results))· checked 24 Sep 2026

Dog from Germany: 4 requirements.

In short: Valid rabies vaccination certificate for dogs 3 months or older. No permit, no microchip, no titer test, no waiting period after vaccination, no quarantine. Puppies under 8 months flying without their owner also need a vet health certificate issued within 72 hours of arrival. CBSA fee about CAD 37 for the first pet.

Always confirm with the destination's official authority and your airline before travelling.

Compare by origin group

The groups are the authority's own lists. Pick a cell to see that group's checklist above.

FromDogCat
All other (every country not listed elsewhere)
From Germany: dog · cat
US
From United States: dog · cat
1 place
United States
Rabies free
From United Kingdom: dog · cat
9 places
Australia, Fiji, Finland, Iceland, Ireland, Japan, New Zealand, Sweden, United Kingdom
Still deciding where to go?
See Canada side by side with other destinations from Germany.
Compare with other destinations
02

Quarantine

None

No quarantine

Source:Canadian Food Inspection Agency (incorporated by reference into the Health of Animals Regulations) (opens official site: Import Reference Document (As referenced in the Health of Animals Regulations), Part III ss. 1–2, Part IV)· checked 04 Oct 2026
03

Official fees

4 official fees
CBSA inspection — first animal in the shipmentCanada Border Services Agency
CAD 36.95 per consignment (excl. tax)
CBSA inspection — each additional animal in the shipmentCanada Border Services Agency
CAD 6.16 per animal (excl. tax)
vaccination order — first animal in the shipmentOnly if an officer issues a vaccination order (Notice to Vaccinate); charged for arrivals from every country, including the United StatesCanadian Food Inspection Agency
CAD 67.75 per consignment (excl. tax)
vaccination order — each additional animal in the shipmentOnly if an officer issues a vaccination order (Notice to Vaccinate); charged for arrivals from every country, including the United StatesCanadian Food Inspection Agency
CAD 36.95 per animal (excl. tax)

Official fees only. Vet, airline and courier prices are not part of the rules.

04

Going back to Germany

Moderate

Returning to Germany from Canada: 0 weeks; a rabies antibody test is needed. Timing set by: Rabies antibody (titer) test.

Germany guide
05

Approved entry points

Any port of entry

  • Any port of entry.

    2 notes on this list

    No source designates ports of entry for personal pet dogs, cats or assistance dogs: present the pet to CBSA at the first port of entry (see the arrival inspection step). This is our reading of the sources' silence.

    CFIA inspectors are not at every port at all hours — book ahead only when a CFIA inspection is required (medical exemption, some commercial imports).

06

Breed bans

5 breeds
  • Banned from import and ownership in Ontario · dogs
    • Pit Bull Terrier
    • Staffordshire Bull Terrier
    • American Staffordshire Terrier
    • American Pit Bull Terrier
    • dogs substantially similar in appearance to these

    Exceptions: Registered show dogs of non-residents brought into Ontario within the 14 days before an approved dog show (O. Reg. 157/05 s. 5)..

    Definition of "pit bull" — includes look-alikes; the owner must prove a dog is not a pit bull.

    Narrow exception — registered show dogs of non-residents may be brought in within 14 days before an approved dog show (O. Reg. 157/05 s. 5).

    Municipal by-laws (other provinces' cities) may restrict breeds too; not researched.

    Source:Government of Ontario (e-Laws) (opens official site: Dog Owners' Liability Act, R.S.O. 1990, c. D.16 (Ontario), ss. 1–11)· checked 24 Sep 2026
07

Transit through Canada

Not researched

Transit rules for Canada have not been researched yet. Ask the authority and your airline before booking a connection with the pet.

08

Leaving Canada with your pet

1 rule
09

Rule changes

None dated

No dated change in the researched rules of Canada. Tell us if you know of one.

10

Good to know

6 notes
11

Checklists to Canada

12 route pages

Step-by-step route pages for the origins people move from most, dated timeline and all.

12

Traveller reports

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No traveller reports for Canada yet. If you have made this trip, tell the next person what was actually checked at the border.

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13

Sources

28 official pages
Report a rule change

Every official page behind this guide, with the last day its text was confirmed unchanged.

Show all 28 sources