Red Tape Travel

Flying a cat from Great Britain to Northern Ireland

UK — Northern Ireland: Northern Ireland, which stays in the EU pet travel scheme.

Last verified 14 primary sources

Conditional: yes, with 1 hard deadline

A cat can enter Northern Ireland (Northern Ireland, which stays in the EU pet travel scheme) from Great Britain without quarantine when every condition is met. It must fly with a carrier DAERA has approved. It needs a notice to DAERA at least 10 working days before departure, a Northern Ireland Pet Travel Document and a signed no-onward-travel declaration, applied for from APHA in Great Britain and a microchip. Other ways in: If you live in Northern Ireland; Everyone else. If a condition is missed: The pet may be detained and sent back to the country it travelled from, at the owner's cost.

Cabin
Airline decidesWhether a pet flies in the cabin, the hold or as cargo is the airline's rule. Carriers need DAERA's approval to transport pets to Northern Ireland.
Quarantine
NoneIf a rule is missed: The pet may be detained and sent back to the country it travelled from, at the owner's cost.
Rabies titer
Not requiredPart 2 listed country, such as the USA or Great Britain
Lead time
15 days

Your deadlines, counted back from arrival

1 of these steps is a hard deadline. Changing the date re-dates the plan in your browser; it fetches nothing.

Lead time: 15 days

  1. By 15 days before arrival

    Advance noticeHard deadline

    No later than

    Anyone flying into Northern Ireland with a pet emails DAERA at daeratradeimports@daera-ni.gov.uk at least 10 working days before travelling, to pre-notify the arrival. Timing: at least 10 working days before departure.

    Fails if: Telling DAERA fewer than 10 working days before the flight.

  2. Arrival

    Arrive on

This plan assumes one air journey, with every step done before you leave. It assumes you leave the day before arrival or on arrival day. Where a rule counts hours, it assumes you land at 12:00 local time. Times are local to Northern Ireland (Europe/London).

Other ways in

The plan above is for the first way in: If you live in England, Scotland or Wales. These follow their own rules, which the sources below cover.

  • If you live in Northern Ireland

    Residents of Northern Ireland coming back from Great Britain need no travel document. The pet must be microchipped.

  • Everyone else

    Everyone else follows the EU pet travel rules for the country the pet comes from. From Great Britain, that includes anyone travelling via an EU country, including Ireland.

Which airlines carry cats on this route

No airline in our sources carries this route yet.

1 change in 12 months

  • Animal health certificate valid for 6 months of onward EU travel, up from 4

    Was
    Valid for 4 months of onward travel within the EU.
    Now
    Valid for 6 months of onward travel within the EU.

    Source: DAERA (Northern Ireland) · found at our first read

Where every rule above came from

Rules change without notice. Confirm each item against the linked official page before you book: we re-check weekly and date every check, but the official page is the authority.

See everything that applies in Northern Ireland, or what changed across the site.