Argentina is the entry in my spreadsheet with the most empty cells and the fewest surprises. No import permit. No titer test. No quarantine. What Argentina does care about is the certificate itself, and it gives you sixty days of validity, which is generous enough that the usual panic about vet appointments simply does not apply here. Luna approves of countries that count in months.

Pet import to Argentina is overseen by the national veterinary authority. Confirmed against an official source so far: a rabies vaccination and a health certificate. Anything else — commonly a microchip, rabies vaccination and health certificate — is not yet confirmed for Argentina against an official source, so it's flagged in the table below rather than assumed.

How Argentina handles your pet

Key points

  • Governing instrument: MERCOSUR Resolución GMC 17/15 (repeals GMC 04/96 and 05/96), applied by SENASA
  • HARD EXCLUSION — no test is required, but a history of the disease bars entry outright: "Section 17 - The Member State receiving the animals shall not authorize the entry into its territory of animals previously diagnosed with Leishmaniosis." NO MICROCHIP is required by Argentina; GMC 17/15 s.18 leaves identification to each Member State and only prescribes an ISO format if a chip is used
  • PUPPIES/KITTENS UNDER 3 MONTHS may enter unvaccinated: "If the dog or cat is less than 3 (three) months old, the veterinary authority must certify the age of the animal and that the animal has not been on any property where a case of urban rabies has occurred in the last 90 (ninety) days prior to shipment." RABIES-FREE ORIGIN: "If the animal comes from a country or zone declared free of rabies as established by the OMSA, it may enter if the veterinary authority issuing the CVI states this condition in said CVI or passport." TRAVELLING AS CARGO (pet not on the same aircraft) is a different regime from accompanied baggage: "The freight forwarder or the person responsible for the cargo must give prior notice or Request for Intervention to the border post through which it is to be entered within 24 working hours." and "Upon arrival at the border post, for the verification of pets entering as cargo with or without commercial purposes, the entry permit fee must be paid." Accompanied pets need neither
  • LANGUAGE: under Res
  • Senasa 1354/1994 the certificate must be in Spanish, or be translated by a national public translator on arrival

Downloadable forms

Each fact comes straight from the operator’s published policy. Tap the to read the exact wording; the opens the source page.

Health & documents

Microchip · Required Noverified 2026-09-03
Microchip · Must be done before vaccination Noverified 2026-09-03
Quarantine · Required Noverified 2026-09-03
Rabies titer test (FAVN) · Required Noverified 2026-09-03
Import permit · Required Noverified 2026-09-03
Tick treatment · Required Yesverified 2026-09-03
Health certificate · Required Yesverified 2026-09-03
Health certificate · Endorsed byVeterinary Authority of the Exporting Countryverified 2026-09-03
Health certificate · Validity days60 daysverified 2026-09-03
Health certificate · Original required Yesverified 2026-09-03
Health certificate · Government endorsed Yesverified 2026-09-03
Rabies vaccination · Required Yesverified 2026-09-03
Rabies vaccination · Booster required Yesverified 2026-09-03
Rabies vaccination · Waiting period after vaccination21 daysverified 2026-09-03
Tapeworm treatment · Required Noverified 2026-09-03
Internal parasite treatment · Required Yesverified 2026-09-03
Internal parasite treatment · Timing notesdentro de los 15 (quince) días previos a la fecha de emisión del CVI o a la intervención del pasaporteverified 2026-09-03

Other rules

Pets accepted Acceptedverified 2026-09-03

Service & assistance animals

Import rules modified Yesverified 2026-09-03
Documentation required Yesverified 2026-09-03

Timing chain

Day -21 rabies vaccine deadline · Day -60 health certificate issued · Day 0 arrive at customs

Argentina does not require a microchip, and it does not require one to be implanted before the rabies vaccination. Identification is left to each member state under Section 18 of the MERCOSUR certificate. Chip the animal anyway: the airline, the departure country and any onward destination are likely to ask for one, and a chip fitted late is cheaper than a certificate reissued late.
The International Veterinary Certificate is valid for sixty calendar days from its date of issue, which is the widest window on this list. That removes the most expensive failure in pet travel, which is a certificate that expires between a delayed flight and a rebooked one. Book the vet when it suits the vet, not the countdown.
Argentina is the destination where the paperwork is short and the deadline is not tight, which is rarer than it sounds. The only real work is getting the certificate endorsed by the right office in your departure country, and that varies more than Argentina's own rules do. Build your personalized plan with your real dates and it will tell you which office, and by when.
Get YOUR personalized plan for Argentina →

Glossary

ISO chip
ISO 11784/11785 — the universal microchip standard.
FAVN
Fluorescent Antibody Virus Neutralization — a rabies serology test required by rabies-free destinations.
Brachycephalic
Snub-nosed breeds (French Bulldogs, Pugs, Persians, Himalayans) with restricted airline acceptance due to heat-stress risk.
AVIH
Animal Vehicle In Hold — IATA's term for cargo pet shipment, with fees that vary by carrier and route.