Animal Customs Clearance

What You Should Know

Animal customs clearance refers to the process of importing pets, livestock, and animals across international borders, ensuring compliance with veterinary requirements and customs regulations. It is essential for pet relocation, breeding animal imports, and livestock trade, requiring proper handling of health documentation, quarantine regulations, and import permits for safe and legal entry into the destination country.

Animal customs clearance accommodates various animal types including dogs, cats, horses, and other companion animals or livestock. With adherence to EU animal health regulations, veterinary certificates, and country-specific import requirements, PUREPROGRESS assists pet owners, breeders, and animal transporters in navigating the necessary customs procedures and documentation requirements.

While animal import clearance involves more documentation than standard cargo, including veterinary certificates, microchip verification, rabies vaccination records, and health attestations, having support through the process helps ensure smoother clearance. Service coordination includes pet import clearance, livestock customs processing, and assistance with TRACES registration and veterinary border inspection requirements. Combined with proper documentation preparation and understanding of animal welfare standards, animal customs clearance facilitates international pet travel, breeding animal imports, and cross-border livestock trade throughout the EU and other destinations.

Getting Started With Our Services

PUREPROGRESS offers comprehensive, reliable, and tailored freight forwarding solutions, and expert knowledge services in customs clearance designed to meet the unique needs of each customer. Whether it’s handling urgent deliveries, sensitive goods, or complex logistics, PUREPROGRESS is your trusted partner, providing personalized service, competitive pricing, customs clearance, and seamless transport solutions from start to finish. 

Why Choose PUREPROGRESS?

I imported my horse from Germany to Switzerland with Pureprogress. Everything went perfectly. Excellent service. They took plenty of time to explain everything, and the import went smoothly. Thank you very much.

 – Silvia S

Pureprogress did a great job. Fast and uncomplicated. Without the support I would not have been able to complete the customs formalities. I can absolutely recommend it.

– Mirco C

Very friendly and professional contact. Phone calls and emails were always responded to immediately. We can only recommend it.

– Doreen M

Steps to Request Animal Customs Services

Consultation

Reach out to PUREPROGRESS with information about your animal transport needs. Provide details including the type of animal (pet, livestock, horse, etc.), breed, age, microchip number, origin and destination countries, and your preferred travel dates. This initial information helps us assess the specific requirements and regulations applicable to your animal’s journey.

Prepare Documents

Gather all necessary veterinary and identification documents for customs clearance. We’ll provide you with a complete checklist of required documents based on your specific route and animal type to ensure nothing is missing.

Submit Documents

Send all completed documentation to our team for verification and customs preparation. We’ll review your paperwork for accuracy and completeness, register your animal in the TRACES system (for EU movements), coordinate with veterinary border inspection posts, and prepare the customs declaration. 

Ready for Delivery

Once documentation is approved, we handle the customs clearance process at the border or port of entry. We’ll keep you informed throughout the process and notify you when your animal is cleared and ready for collection or delivery.

FAQs

We handle customs clearance for a wide variety of animals including companion pets, livestock, and commercial animals. While we process documentation for all animal types, we most frequently work with horses, dogs, and sheep, having extensive experience with their specific import requirements, veterinary regulations, and transport coordination. Whether you’re relocating a family pet, importing breeding livestock, or transporting commercial animals, our team can guide you through the necessary customs procedures.

Animal customs clearance typically takes between 3 to 7 business days, depending on the country of origin, destination, completeness of documentation, and whether veterinary border inspections are required. Factors such as quarantine requirements, TRACES registration processing, and veterinary certificate verification can affect the timeline. We recommend starting the documentation process at least two weeks before your planned travel date to ensure all requirements are met and to avoid any delays.

Essential documents include a veterinary health certificate issued within 10 days of travel, proof of rabies vaccination (for dogs, cats, and ferrets over 12 weeks old), microchip identification documentation, pet passport for EU travel, proof of ownership or purchase, and any country-specific import permits. Additional requirements may include parasite treatment records, blood test results for certain countries, and CITES permits for protected species.

Not all animals require quarantine, as it depends on the origin country, destination country, and the animal’s vaccination status. Animals traveling within the EU with proper pet passports and up-to-date vaccinations typically do not need quarantine. However, animals from certain non-EU countries or those without complete documentation may be subject to quarantine periods ranging from a few days to several months. We can advise you on specific quarantine requirements based on your travel route and ensure all necessary preparations are made to minimize or avoid quarantine when possible.

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