Germany is the destination where my spreadsheet finally earned its keep, because four dog breeds are banned from entry outright and the rule is federal, not local. Past that it is the standard EU sequence: chip, then rabies vaccination, then a titre test from a non-listed country, then a certificate good for ten days. Luna, being a cat, was never in scope.

Bringing a pet to Germany requires three documents in the right order: a microchip, a rabies vaccine within the destination's wait window, and a government-endorsed health certificate. The table below lays out exactly what's required, what's not, and where each rule comes from.

How Germany handles your pet

Key points

  • The rules changed on 22 April 2026
  • Germany applies the EU pet-travel regime, and "As of 22 April 2026, new European rules apply regarding private travel with pets such as dogs, cats and ferrets" (Delegated Commission Regulation (EU) 2026/131)
  • One transitional date still matters: "Animal health certificates drawn up under Annex IV to Implementing Regulation (EU) 577/2013 remain valid for bringing pet dogs, cats or ferrets into the EU if issued before 1 October 2026" — a certificate issued on or after that date must use the new model in Annex III to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2026/705
  • Points of entry
  • Pets arriving from outside the EU must clear a designated travellers' point of entry, but there is an exemption list: "The duty to enter via authorised points of entry does not apply when arriving from Andorra, the Faroe Islands, Gibraltar, Greenland, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Monaco, Norway, San Marino, Switzerland and Vatican City"
  • Banned breeds, and the exceptions
  • Germany's Dog Transfer and Import Restrictions Act (HundVerbrEinfG) bans the import of Pit Bull Terrier, American Staffordshire Terrier, Staffordshire Bull Terrier and Bull Terrier, and crosses of them
  • Two exceptions are published: "Dangerous dogs accompanying individuals who are not staying in the Federal Republic of Germany for longer than four weeks (particularly intended for tourists)", and "A dog that is classified as dangerous may be imported where it is returning from a period abroad and being transferred back into the Land in which the owner has an authorisation to keep the dog." Service, guide, rescue and civil-protection dogs are also excepted
  • In every case the owner must carry the original documents (pedigree, vaccination record, character-test certificate) and present them on entry
  • Quarantine is a sanction, not a routine step
  • A compliant pet is not quarantined; quarantine only appears if the paperwork fails — "If your pet does not meet the requirements, it may be sent back to the country of departure or placed under quarantine until it meets the EU health provisions"
  • More than five pets
  • The five-animal limit can be exceeded only where "the journey serves to enable participation in training, a competition, a dog / cat exhibition or a sporting event", all animals are older than six months, and the organiser's written confirmation is produced at any control; otherwise the EU commercial trading rules apply instead
  • Where you may land
  • Germany designates 24 travellers' points of entry — 20 airports (including Frankfurt am Main, München, Berlin Brandenburg, Düsseldorf, Hamburg Fuhlsbüttel, Köln and Stuttgart) and 4 seaports (Bremen, Bremerhaven, Hamburg and Rostock)
  • Rostock is the one entry with a narrower scope than its name suggests: "Rostock nur die Kontroll- positionen a) Passagierkai Warne- münde b) Seehafen Rostock mit Warnowkai, den Hafenbecken A,B,C und dem Ölhafen- becken." Opening hours differ by site and several are part-day only, so check the competent authority's hours in the ministry's list before booking an arrival time

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 Yesverified 2026-09-02
Microchip · StandardISO Standard 11784verified 2026-09-02
Microchip · Tattoo accepted Yesverified 2026-09-02
Microchip · Must be done before vaccination Yesverified 2026-09-02
Rabies titer test (FAVN) · Required Yesverified 2026-09-02
Rabies titer test (FAVN) · Minimum level iu ml0.5verified 2026-09-02
Rabies titer test (FAVN) · Approved laboratory required Yesverified 2026-09-02
Rabies titer test (FAVN) · Waiting period after test days90 daysverified 2026-09-02
Rabies titer test (FAVN) · Test must follow vaccination days30 daysverified 2026-09-02
Health certificate · Issuerofficial or authorised veterinarianverified 2026-09-02
Health certificate · Required Yesverified 2026-09-02
Health certificate · Endorsed bycompetent authorityverified 2026-09-02
Health certificate · Validity days10 daysverified 2026-09-02
Health certificate · Government endorsed Yesverified 2026-09-02
Rabies vaccination · Required Yesverified 2026-09-02
Rabies vaccination · Booster required Yesverified 2026-09-02
Rabies vaccination · Waiting period after vaccination21 daysverified 2026-09-02
Rabies vaccination · Max vaccine age at travel3 monthsverified 2026-06-23
Rabies vaccination · Min age at vaccination12 weeksverified 2026-09-02
Tapeworm treatment · Required Noverified 2026-09-02

Other rules

Pets accepted Acceptedverified 2026-09-02

Timing chain

Day -90 microchip implant · Day -21 rabies vaccine deadline · Day -10 health certificate issued · Day 0 arrive at customs

Conditional requirements

These rules apply only to some travellers — where the pet is departing from, where it has been, or who is travelling with it. Most people can ignore them, but if one applies to you it can change what you need, or mean denied entry if you skip it.

Pet arriving from, or recently in, a third country or territory NOT listed in Annex I or II to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2026/636 — If your pet has been in one of 154 higher-risk countries in the last 6 months:

  • Rabies titer (blood) test: Rabies antibody titration test >= 0,5 IU/ml, on a sample taken by an authorised veterinarian at least 30 days after the primary vaccination and not less than 90 days before the animal health certificate is issued, performed in a designated laboratory (Del. Reg. (EU) 2026/131; model certificate Annex III to Impl. Reg. (EU) 2026/705, point II.3.1).

Breed restrictions

Banned breeds: Pitbull-Terrier, American Staffordshire-Terrier, Staffordshire-Bullterrier, Bullterrier verified 2026-09-02

Ports of entry (24)

  • Berlin Brandenburg Airport
  • Bremen Airport
  • Bremen Port
  • Bremerhaven Port
  • Dortmund Airport
  • Dresden Airport
  • Düsseldorf Airport
  • Erfurt-Weimar Airport
  • Frankfurt am Main Airport
  • Frankfurt-Hahn Airport
  • Hamburg Fuhlsbüttel Airport
  • Hamburg Port
  • Hannover-Langenhagen Airport
  • Köln Airport
  • Leipzig/Halle Airport
  • München Airport
  • Münster/Osnabrück Airport
  • Nürnberg Airport
  • Paderborn/Lippstadt Airport
  • Rostock Port
  • Rostock-Laage Airport
  • Saarbrücken Airport
  • Stuttgart Airport
  • Weeze Airport

verified 2026-09-02

The date of administration of the vaccine does not precede the date of identification or reading of the microchip. That is the condition the certificate attests to, and it is checked against the two dates written in the passport. A vaccination dated before the chip cannot be certified, so read both dates off the passport before the veterinary appointment is even booked.
German law prohibits the import and movement into the country of dogs of the Pitbull Terrier, American Staffordshire Terrier, Staffordshire Bullterrier and Bullterrier breeds. The ban covers bringing the dog in at all, not merely keeping it, and no microchip, titre result or EU pet passport creates an exemption. Check the breed recorded in the passport before anything else is arranged.
The certificate is valid for 10 days from the date of issue by the official veterinarian until the date of the documentary and identity checks at the points of entry designated by each EU country. Ten days is the whole budget, and it is spent on travel as well as paperwork. Schedule the signing appointment as close to departure as the vet allows.
Germany splits neatly into a yes-or-no question and a scheduling problem. The breed list answers the first, and it answers it before any money is spent. The second is the 90-day titre wait sitting behind a 10-day certificate window. Check the breed, then run your dates through the plan builder and let it place the blood draw and the vet visit for you.
Get YOUR personalized plan for Germany →

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.