Bringing your pet to the UK from Ukraine
What you must do to bring your pet to the UK from Ukraine if you are seeking refuge.
If you are from Ukraine and are seeking refuge in the UK, you can follow rules to bring your pet dog, cat or ferret without it going into quarantine or isolation if it has:
- been microchipped
- been vaccinated against rabies and had a blood test 30 days later to confirm the vaccine worked, and waited 3 months after the blood test to travel to the UK
- a GB pet health certificate
- had tapeworm treatment (dogs only) between 24 hours (one day) and 120 hours (5 days) before travel
If your pet does not have a GB pet health certificate but does have an EU pet passport, call the Animal and Plant Health Agency on +44 3000 200 301 for advice.
If your pet does not meet these requirements or you do not have proof that it does, you must apply for a licence to bring your pet to the UK.
You can get a single licence covering up to 5 of your own pets that are travelling with you.
If you want to bring more than 5 pets, or any rescue animals, with you to England, Scotland and Wales this would be classed as a commercial import. This requires Approved Importer status for pets from Ukraine, Poland, Belarus and Romania.
Do not travel to the UK with your pet before you have a licence and you have arranged with the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) when to travel.
There are different rules for pet birds, rodents, rabbits and other small mammals.
Before you travel to the UK
You must have a visa to enter the UK.
Follow these steps to apply for a licence to bring up to 5 pets with you to the UK from Ukraine.
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Before you travel to the UK, apply to bring your pets to Great Britain from Ukraine. You will need a Google or Facebook account.
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If you do not have a Google or Facebook account, call the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) on +44 3000 200 301 (option 2) or email [email protected]
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APHA will review your licence application and the vaccines and healthcare your pet has had.
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APHA will call you to discuss a date, time and entry point into the UK and if your pet needs to go into quarantine or home isolation when it arrives in the UK.
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You must book your travel to arrive on the date and time agreed with APHA.
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If you are travelling to England or Scotland and your pet may be able to isolate at home, a vet will visit the home where you will be staying to check if it is suitable.
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APHA will email you a licence.
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If APHA has given you a licence for your pet to isolate at home, book an appointment at the Pet Vet Check Centre for when you arrive by Eurotunnel or at Dover. Your licence will explain how to book.
Pets that can go into home isolation
APHA will tell you if your pet may be able to isolate at home or if it needs to go into quarantine for up to 4 months. You will not have to pay to quarantine or isolate your pet in kennels.
Your pet may be able to isolate at home on arrival in England and Scotland if you have documents to show it has been:
- microchipped
- vaccinated against rabies and had a blood test 30 days later by an approved laboratory to confirm the vaccine worked
Find an approved laboratory inside the EU, outside the EU or an APHA laboratory in the UK.
You must have access to transport (such as a car) to take your pet to the home where you will be staying. You cannot travel on public transport.
Your pet cannot isolate at home if you are travelling to Wales. Your pet must isolate in an authorised quarantine facility. Read the pet travel rules for Wales.
Where to arrive in the UK
You must arrive at an approved port or airport and follow your carrier’s rules for travelling with pets. Your pet must travel with you.
If APHA has given you a licence for your pet to isolate at home, you should arrive by Eurotunnel (Calais to Folkestone) or at Dover. If you arrive at another entry point, your pet will have to go into quarantine before they can isolate at home.
If APHA has told you that your pet is going into quarantine, you should arrive at one of the UK’s main entry points for animals:
- Eurotunnel (Calais to Folkestone)
- Port of Dover
- London Heathrow airport
You can also arrive at one of these other approved entry points.
Ports
These are the approved ports:
- Harwich International Port
- Hull
- Portsmouth
Airports
These are the approved airports:
- Belfast
- Edinburgh
- Glasgow
- Leeds Bradford
- London Gatwick
- Manchester
When you arrive in the UK
If your pet is going into quarantine, APHA will collect your pet. If you travel by:
- ferry, your pet will be collected from you before leaving the ferry
- Eurotunnel, your pet will be collected from you in Coquelles (Calais), France
- air, your pet will be collected from the plane when you land in the UK
If APHA has given you a licence for your pet to isolate at home, take your pet to the Pet Vet Check Centre in Dover or Folkestone for its appointment.
At the quarantine facility
If your pet goes into quarantine on arrival in the UK, a vet will assess your pet and give it appropriate healthcare.
You will not have to pay for any essential healthcare that your pet needs while in quarantine.
Your pet will be:
- microchipped if necessary
- given a blood test to check if your pet has enough immunity against rabies - results of the blood test should take 14 days, but may take longer when large numbers of animals are entering the UK
- vaccinated for other diseases such as kennel cough and parvovirus
- given tapeworm treatment if it is a dog and the treatment is necessary
If the blood test shows that your pet does not have enough immunity against rabies
If your pet has not had a rabies vaccination, or does not have enough immunity, the vet will vaccinate your pet and keep it under observation in an authorised quarantine facility.
After 30 days your pet will have another blood test to check if the vaccine has worked.
Your pet will then move to isolation.
If the blood test shows that your pet has enough rabies immunity
If the blood test shows that your pet has enough rabies immunity, APHA will arrange for your pet to go into isolation.
Isolation after quarantine
APHA will tell you where your pet will need to go for isolation and how long your pet will need to be in isolation. This may be for up to 3 months.
Your pet may isolate:
- at isolation kennels if APHA still need to monitor it for signs of rabies or if your accommodation is not suitable for home isolation - you will not have to pay to isolate your pet in kennels
- at the home where you are staying in England or Scotland if APHA assess that your pet and home are suitable
At the Pet Vet Check Centre (Dover or Folkestone)
If APHA has given you a licence for your pet to isolate at home in England or Scotland, take your pet to the Pet Vet Check Centre for its appointment.
At the appointment, the vet will check vaccination or blood test records you have brought with you. They will give your pet:
- a physical examination
- a microchip, if they aren’t already microchipped
- a blood test to check your pet’s immunity against rabies, or give them a vaccination if they haven’t already been vaccinated
- tick and tapeworm treatment (tapeworm for dogs only)
- a routine vaccination against common pet diseases
If the vet has any concerns, your pet may not be allowed to isolate at home. The vet will take your pet to a quarantine facility for more checks and assessments. This is to prevent diseases spreading in the UK.
Following a successful pet vet check
You will take your pet to the home where you will be staying to isolate.
You must have access to transport (such as a car) to take your pet to the home where you will be staying. You cannot travel on public transport.
APHA will assign a vet to your pet while it is isolating at home in England or Scotland. If your pet is unwell you should contact this vet. You will not have to pay for any essential healthcare for your pet while it is isolating.
You must follow the home isolation conditions until the end of the isolation period. Your pet may have to go into quarantine if you do not follow the conditions.
You must tell APHA immediately if you move, or intend to move, to another location during the isolation period.
If you plan to leave and return to the UK with your pet dog, cat or ferret
Telephone APHA on 03000 200 301 to find out what you need to do before you leave the UK.
Bringing a pet bird, rodent, rabbit or other small mammal to the UK from Ukraine
You need a licence from APHA to bring your pet bird, rodent, rabbit or other small mammal to the UK from Ukraine.
Follow these steps to apply to bring up to 5 pets with you to the UK from Ukraine.
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Before you travel to the UK, apply to bring your pets to Great Britain from Ukraine. You will need a Google or Facebook account.
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If you don’t have a Google or Facebook account, call the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) on +44 3000 200 301 (option 2) or email [email protected]
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APHA will call you to discuss your pet. You will agree a date, time and entry point into the UK with APHA. You must book your travel to arrive on the date and time agreed with APHA.
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APHA will email you a licence.
When you have a licence you can travel to the UK with your pet. For 30 days after your pet arrives in the UK it must:
- be kept at home indoors in an enclosure
- not have any contact with any other pets or wildlife
- not use a garden or an outdoor run
If your pet is unwell during its first 30 days in the UK, do not take it to a vet. You must call APHA, they will tell you what to do.
Animal and Plant Health Agency
Telephone: +44 3000 200 301
Updates to this page
Published 8 April 2022Last updated 30 March 2023 + show all updates
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Added guidance on what to do if you plan to leave and return to the UK with your pet dog, cat or ferret.
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Bringing more than 5 pets to England, Scotland and Wales is classed as a commercial import. It requires Approved Importer status for pets from Ukraine, Poland, Belarus and Romania.
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Updated guidance for how to apply for a licence to bring your pets to Great Britain from Ukraine.
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Added more information about pets isolating at home and what happens before, during and after Pet Vet Check Centre appointments.
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Added Ukrainian and Russian translations.
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Removed out-of-date Russian and Ukrainian translations.
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Restructured to make the process clearer.
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Clarified that licences are for pets, not commercial imports.
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Added Russian translation.
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Added Ukrainian translation.
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First published.