Travel to Norway

Travel to Norway with your pets

The Pet Travel Scheme (PETS) allows dogs, cats or ferrets to enter Norway without quarantine. However they need to comply with the regulations. It also allows pet owners in Norway to take their pets to other European countries and return with them without need for quarantine. There are different regulations for pets moving from a member state of the European Union to Norway and from third countries outside of the European Union to Norway.

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TRAVELING FROM EU MEMBER STATES TO NORWAY

Pets from EU member states, including Andorra, the Faeroe Islands, Gibraltar, Greenland, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Monaco, Norway, San Marino, the Vatican City State and Switzerland may enter Norway by air and sea. The pet needs comply with the following requirements:

  1. Pet passport: The pet must have an EU pet passport and the passport must be issued by a licensed veterinarian.

  2. Rabies vaccination: All pets older than 3 months must have been vaccinated against rabies. This must be certified by a veterinarian in the pet passport.

  3. Microchip: The pet must have a microchip implanted on the same day or before the first rabies vaccination has taken place.

  4. Echinococcus Multilocularis treatment: A licensed veterinarian must treat the pet for tapeworm (Echinococcus Multilocularis)  and record it in the pet passport. The treatment must have been given no less than 24 hours and no more than 120 hours (5 days) before arrival in Norway. Pets coming directly from Finland, Ireland, Malta or the United Kingdom are exempt from tapeworm treatment.

TRAVELING FROM THIRD COUNTRIES TO NORWAY

First, it is important to check whether the country the pet is coming from is a low or a high risk country regarding rabies. The regulations for importation are different for both categories. Territories or third countries listed below ( Annex II to Regulation (EU) No 577/2013) are considered a low risk. If the country the pet is traveling from is not on this list, it is considered a high risk country.

Acension Island Bonaire, Sint Eustasius and Saba Sait Kitts and Nevis New Zealand United States of America
United Arab Emirates Belarus Cayman Islands French Polynesia American Samoa
Argentina Canada Sait Lucia Sair Piere and Miquelon Guam, Northern Mariana Islands
Australia Chile Montserrat Russia Puerto Rico and Virgin Islands
Aruba Fiji Macedonia Singapore Saint Vincent and the Grenadine
Bosnia and Herzegovina Falkland Islands Mauritius Saint Helena British Virgin Islands
Barbados Hong Kong Malaysia Sint Maarten Vanuatu
Bahrain Jamaica Mexico Trinidad and Tobago Wallis and Fortuna
Bermuda Japan New Caledonia Taiwan Mayotte

TRAVELING FROM LOW RISK RABIES COUNTRIES

If you travel with a pet from a low risk third country to Norway, the pet needs to meet the following requirements:

  1. Microchip: The pet must have a microchip implanted on the same day or before the first rabies vaccination has taken place.

  2. Rabies Vaccination: The pet must be vaccinated against rabies at least 21 days prior to arrival in Norway.

  3. Echinococcus Multilocularis treatment: A licensed veterinarian must treat the pet for tapeworm (Echinococcus Multilocularis)  and record it in the pet passport. The treatment must have been given no less than 24 hours and no more than 120 hours (5 days) before arrival in Norway. Pets coming directly from Finland, Ireland, Malta or the United Kingdom are exempt from tapeworm treatment.

  4. Veterinary Certificate: The pet must have a Veterinary Certificate according to Regulation (EU) nr. 577/2013. The certificate needs to be issued by an official veterinarian from the country the animal is travelling from. Alternatively an EU Animal Passport according to Regulation (EU) nr. 577/2013 when the animal originates from the EU. The Veterinary Certificate can be found HERE. The Veterinary Certificate should be completed and issued by an authorized veterinarian. It should subsequently be endorsed by the competent authority. It should contain the alpha-numeric code of the microchip. Additionally the details of vaccination against rabies and where applicable details of titertest and treatment against Echinococcus Multilocularis. The Veterinarian Certificate is valid for 10 days from the date of issue. For the purpose of further movement into other member states of the EU it is valid for a total of four months. Alternatively until the date of expiry of the anti rabies vaccination, whichever date is earlier.

  5. Written declaration: The pet must be accompanied by a written declaration. The declaration should be completed by the owner or an authorized person. This declaration can be found HERE.

TRAVELING FROM A HIGH RISK RABIES COUNTRY

Additional regulations apply to pets entering Norway from countries with a high risk of rabies. In addition to the requirements for traveling from a low risk rabies country, your pet will also need a:

6. Rabies antibody blood titer test: A rabies antibody level blood test must be carried out. A blood sample must be drawn from the pet at least 30 days after the date of the rabies vaccination. The sample will need to be tested by an EU approved laboratory. You can find EU approved laboratories HERE. The results of the test must be at least 0,5 IE/ml. If the results are good, the pet will have to wait another 90 days before it can enter Norway. This period is for the possible presence of rabies despite the vaccination and positive blood test.

MINIMUM AGE FOR PETS TO BE IMPORTED TO FINLAND

Member States of the European Union have discretion whether or not they allow the introduction onto their territory of “young dogs, cats and ferrets”, i.e. dogs, cats and ferrets which are:

  • less than 12 weeks old and have not received an anti-rabies vaccination, or

  • between 12 or 16 weeks old and have received an anti-rabies vaccination but are not yet fully protected (i.e. do not met the validity requirements for the anti-rabies vaccination).

To find out if your young pet is allowed to travel to your country of destination within Europe, you can have a look on the website of the European Commission.

If young pets are not allowed into your country of destination and you are travelling from a EU member state or a low risk third country, your pet will have to be 15 weeks of age upon entry. After the first rabies vaccination at 12 weeks, a period of 21 days needs to go by before the pet is allowed to enter. Young pets traveling from third countries with a high risk of rabies have to be at least 7 months upon entry (3 months before first rabies vaccination +1 month after that the rabies anti body test + 3 month waiting period).

EXTRA REGULATIONS

The maximum number of pets you are allowed to import for non commercial purposes is five. If you and your pet(s) travel separately, your pet(s) are not allowed to arrive more than 5 days before or after your arrival.

FEES FOR ENTERING NORWAY

The are no fees for importing a pet into Norway.

PROHIBITED BREEDS OF PETS FOR ENTERING NORWAY

It is against the law to own certain breeds of dogs which are considered dangerous in Norway. This ban also applies to crossbreeds where there is one or more of these breeds in any proportion.

These are the currently prohibited breeds:

  • The Pit Bull Terrier

  • The American Staffordshire Terrier

  • The Fila Brasilerio

  • The Toso Inu

  • The Dogo Argentino

  • The Czechoslovakian Wolfdog

MORE INFORMATION

For more information, you can have a look on the website of the Norwegian Food Safety Authority. IAlterna