Red Tape Travel

Flying a cat from Great Britain to the United States

USA: Federal rules for pets entering the US mainland. Each state can add its own entry rules.

Last verified 45 primary sources

Yes

A cat can enter the United States (Federal rules for pets entering the US mainland) from Great Britain without quarantine when every condition is met. It needs a healthy appearance on arrival. If a condition is missed: An animal refused entry after a flight is returned by the airline to the country it left, on the next available flight and at the importer's expense.

Cabin
Airline decidesA cat may arrive through any US airport. The federal rules we read set no cabin, hold or cargo limit for cats, so the airline decides.
Quarantine
NoneIf a rule is missed: An animal refused entry after a flight is returned by the airline to the country it left, on the next available flight and at the importer's expense.
Rabies titer
Not required
Lead time
0 days

Your deadlines, counted back from arrival

None of these steps is a hard deadline. Changing the date re-dates the plan in your browser; it fetches nothing.

Lead time: 0 days

  1. 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 the United States (America/New_York).

Which airlines carry cats on this route

Fees are per animal, one direction, as published on .
AirlineCabinHoldManifest cargoFee fromSnub-nosed
American AirlinesNoRestrictedYesQuoted on requestRefused
British AirwaysNoNoYesQuoted on requestCase by case
Delta Air LinesNoNoNoNoNo
United AirlinesNoNoNoNoNo
Virgin AtlanticSuspendedSuspendedSuspendedSuspendedSuspended
  • American Airlines: From May 1 to September 30, no pets outside the cabin to, through or from Phoenix, Tucson, Las Vegas or Palm Springs.
  • American Airlines: American Airlines Cargo will not carry animals when the ground temperature at the origin, a connection or the destination is above 85 or below 20 degrees Fahrenheit. Between 20 and 44 degrees it needs a vet's acclimation letter, and even then carriage is not guaranteed.
  • American Airlines: American Airlines Cargo will not carry animals on any single flight of 12 hours or more.
  • American Airlines: Pets cannot be booked through to another airline, including codeshare flights with an American flight number that another airline operates. American Eagle and American Connection flights are not affected.
  • American Airlines: A pet shipped from outside the United States must be booked through an IATA-regulated freight forwarder or professional pet shipper.
  • American Airlines: American's pets page lists a checked-pet fee for flights from the United Kingdom.
  • American Airlines: American's fee table has no checked-pet fee for Europe or the United Kingdom.
  • American Airlines: American's filed international tariff says checked pets are accepted through AA Cargo.
  • British Airways: IAG Cargo asks for live animals to be checked in 4 hours before departure, subject to the station; some stations set their own cut-off.
  • British Airways: IAG Cargo takes no dangerous dogs at Heathrow or Gatwick, and restricts some snub-nosed (brachycephalic) breeds there.
  • British Airways: No live-animal exports from Phoenix (PHX) from 15 March to 31 October, and no live-animal imports there at weekends.
  • British Airways: IAG Cargo's St. Louis (STL) flight is seasonal, from 19 April until 23 October 2026.
  • British Airways: IAG Cargo takes no live-animal imports at Denver (DEN) on days 6 or 7, and restricts live animals at Dallas Fort Worth (DFW) on days 6 and 7 and on holidays. Neither page defines the day numbering.
  • British Airways: Collect the pet on the day it lands at New York (JFK), which has no storage, and on arrival at Philadelphia (PHL).
  • British Airways: British Airways' Conditions of Carriage still allow checked baggage; its current pet pages say cargo, which is what we show.
  • Delta Air Lines: Delta Cargo accepts no pets at Amsterdam (AMS), Paris (CDG), Frankfurt (FRA) or London Heathrow (LHR), even for military and Foreign Service families.

No rule changes in 12 months

We have recorded no change to the rules on this page in the last 12 months. See every recorded change.

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 United States, or what changed across the site.