Travelling to Australia with a Dog: Requirements & Flights

Travelling to Australia with a dog is not easy. With restrictions on the country of export, an extensive list of preparation steps and a stay in quarantine for almost all arriving dogs, it’s a long and expensive process. If you’re relocating to Australia or heading to Australia for an extended stay, find out what’s involved.

Is It Reasonable to Travel to Australia with a Dog?

While travelling to Australia with a dog is difficult and expensive, as I clearly showed when documenting my experience returning to Australia with my dog, it is not completely out of the question.

For starters, the quarantine period is now a lot less than it used to be (as low as 10 days), although some changes in early 2023 have complicated things.

If you’re heading overseas for an extended period, or relocating for work, you can bring along your dog, at least if you’re currently living in most developed countries. The process is even easier if you’re just travelling from New Zealand.

Steps to Travel to Australia with a Dog

The steps to import a dog to Australia depend on the country that you will be exporting your dog from. These are the key steps for different groups of countries…

Importing a Dog from Group 1 Countries

The simplest steps to import a dog to Australia apply to dogs being imported from Group 1 countries, which only includes New Zealand plus the Australian territories of Norfolk Island and Cocos Islands.

The preparation required is fairly minimal and no quarantine is required. However, you’ll still probably need the assistance of a pet transport company, at least to book your dog’s flight. For more information, see my guide to flying dogs between Australia and New Zealand.

Importing a Dog from Group 2 Countries

The next easiest set of countries for exporting a dog into Australia are the Group 2 countries and territories. These countries and territories are regarded as rabies-free, and include many island nations, plus the US territory of Guam and state of Hawaii. Note that your dog needs to have been resident in one of these countries for six months for the steps to apply.

Although quarantine is required for dogs and cats from these countries they do not require a rabies vaccine or rabies titre test. A recent new step to be introduced is an identity verification step, that needs to be done at least 180 days in advance. For more information, click here.

Importing a Dog from Group 3 Countries

Finally, there are Group 3 countries. This includes most European countries, the USA and Canada. This applied when I flew back to my home country of Australia from the USA with my dog (despite my dog having been born in Australia).

The full step of preparation steps applies in these countries, including a rabies vaccine, rabies titre test and quarantine. Allow at least seven months for all the steps, as detailed here.

In recent years, a new identity step has been introduced for Group 3 countries so that your pet is eligible for 10 days quarantine, otherwise they require a 30 day stay in quarantine. This step isn’t yet able to be completed in many countries, increasing your pet’s likely stay in quarantine.

What About Other Countries?

However, you’ll probably notice that there’s many countries that haven’t been listed in any of these three groups, including many developing countries such as Thailand. (For the full list of Group 1, 2 and 3 countries, see this page.)

Unfortunately, you cannot import your dog directly from these other countries to Australia. Instead, your dog needs to travel to Australia via a Group 2 or Group 3 country. Previously only the final preparation steps needed to be done in this second country, but the rules have changed to require a stay of at least six months in this second country.

Flying Your Dog to Australia

Nearly all dogs that arrive in Australia fly into the country, unless you are travelling by yacht. This means that your dog will almost certainly need to fly as cargo (in the hold) to Australia, generally to Melbourne Airport.

Dogs are not allowed to fly in the cabin on flights into Australia, due to biosecurity regulations, apart from on exempt chartered flights (not regular commercial flights). For more information, see my guide on whether you can fly with a dog in the cabin to Australia.

Luckily though, the same prohibition doesn’t apply on flights departing Australia, although only a limited number of airlines that provide this option – most airlines insist on flying dogs in cargo.

Further Information

I’ve also written a number of additional guides about importing dogs to Australia (and exporting dogs). See these guides for more details on various aspects:

• Tips for Importing a Dog to Australia
• Bringing a Dog to Australia: My Experience
• How Much Does It Cost to Bring a Dog to Australia?
• Complete Guide to Dog Quarantine in Australia
• Is There a Way to Avoid Pet Quarantine in Australia?
• How to Take Your Dog Overseas from Australia
• How to Export a Dog From Australia

And when you’re finally in Australia, check out my guide to travelling in Australia with a dog.