Guadeloupe follows France's rules as its baseline, then states its own arrival conditions depending on where the animal comes from. That is the part people miss: a flight from Paris, a crossing from French Guiana and an arrival from outside the EU each carry a different checklist. Cooper's paperwork changed completely between two of those routes. Start by identifying which branch applies to you.

Bringing a pet to Guadeloupe 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.

Who sets the rules here

Guadeloupe applies the rules of France as its baseline, and adds requirements of its own on top.

Official source
guadeloupe.gouv.fr
Relationship to France
inherits, plus local rules

How Guadeloupe handles your pet

Key points

  • Guadeloupe applies DIFFERENT arrival conditions by where the animal comes from, and the requirements stored on this row are the STRICTEST case (arrival from a third country outside the EU)
  • (1) From mainland France, an animal needs only a microchip and to be "âgé de plus de 8 semaines s’il ne voyage pas avec sa mère" — no rabies vaccination is demanded on that route
  • (2) From French Guiana or an EU country, the animal must additionally "être âgés de plus de 12 semaines", hold a valid rabies vaccination and a passport
  • (3) From a third country it must also "avoir subi un titrage sérique des anticorps antirabiques" in an EU-approved laboratory and carry the original health certificate
  • Travellers from a country on the DAAF's serological-exemption list (Argentina, Australia, Canada, USA, Japan, Mexico, Switzerland and others) are exempt from that titration
  • Dangerous dogs: first-category "type" American Staffordshire terrier, Mastiff and Tosa are barred outright — "Leur introduction en Guadeloupe est interdite conformément à l’arrêté préfectoral PREF/CAB/DSV/N°02-259 du 11 mars 2002"
  • Second-category dogs (LOF-registered American Staffordshire terrier, Tosa Inu, Mastiff, Rottweiler, and "type" Rottweiler) may enter but "De plus, le propriétaire doit avoir obtenu, dans la commune où il réside, un permis de détention."

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 Yesverified 2026-09-15
Microchip · StandardISO 11784/11785verified 2026-09-03
Microchip · Tattoo accepted Yesverified 2026-09-03
Microchip · Must be done before vaccination Yesverified 2026-09-03
Quarantine · Typenone_if_compliantverified 2026-09-03
Quarantine · Required Noverified 2026-09-03
Rabies titer test (FAVN) · Required Yesverified 2026-09-15
Rabies titer test (FAVN) · Minimum level iu ml0.5verified 2026-09-03
Rabies titer test (FAVN) · Approved laboratory required Yesverified 2026-09-15
Rabies titer test (FAVN) · Waiting period after test days90 daysverified 2026-09-03
Rabies titer test (FAVN) · Test must follow vaccination days30 daysverified 2026-09-03
Import permit · Required Noverified 2026-09-03
Flea treatment · Required Noverified 2026-09-15
Heartworm test · Required Noverified 2026-09-15
Tick treatment · Required Noverified 2026-09-15
Health certificate · Issuerofficial_vetverified 2026-09-03
Health certificate · Required Yesverified 2026-09-15
Health certificate · Endorsed byofficial veterinarianverified 2026-09-03
Health certificate · Validity days10 daysverified 2026-09-03
Health certificate · Original required Yesverified 2026-09-03
Health certificate · Bilingual required Noverified 2026-09-03
Health certificate · Government endorsed Yesverified 2026-09-03
Other vaccinations · Distemper Noverified 2026-09-03
Other vaccinations · Adenovirus Noverified 2026-09-03
Other vaccinations · Bordetella Noverified 2026-09-03
Other vaccinations · Leishmania Noverified 2026-09-03
Other vaccinations · Parvovirus Noverified 2026-09-03
Other vaccinations · Leptospirosis Noverified 2026-09-03
Other vaccinations · Canine influenza Noverified 2026-09-03
Rabies vaccination · Required Yesverified 2026-09-15
Rabies vaccination · Booster required Yesverified 2026-09-03
Rabies vaccination · Waiting period after vaccination21 daysverified 2026-09-03
Rabies vaccination · Max vaccine age at travel3 monthsverified 2026-09-03
Rabies vaccination · Min age at vaccination12 weeksverified 2026-09-03
Tapeworm treatment · Required Noverified 2026-09-15
Screwworm treatment · Required Noverified 2026-09-15
Internal parasite treatment · Required Noverified 2026-09-15

Other rules

Pets accepted Acceptedverified 2026-09-03
Minimum age12 weeksverified 2026-09-15

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 mainland France, French Guiana or an EU country

  • Rabies titer (blood) test: Not required
  • Health certificate: DAAF Guadeloupe: "Pour voyager avec son animal de compagnie au sein de l’Union Européenne, il n’est pas nécessaire d’obtenir un certificat vétérinaire officiel." — an EU-origin arrival travels on the EU pet passport, not a third-country health certificate. The BASE leaf keeps the strict third-country requirement.

Pet arriving from a third country on the DAAF serological-exemption list

  • Rabies titer (blood) test: Not required

Pet arriving from mainland France (movement within France)

  • Rabies vaccine: Not required

Breed restrictions

Banned breeds: American Staffordshire terrier (de type, non-LOF), Mastiff (de type, non-LOF), Tosa (de type, non-LOF) verified 2026-09-03

Restricted breeds: chiens de 2ème catégorie verified 2026-09-03

Identification must always come before the rabies vaccination: a vaccine given to an animal that was not yet microchipped does not count. The dates on the vaccination record and the identification record are what get compared, so an animal vaccinated first has to be revaccinated after chipping, and for arrivals that need a titer test the whole waiting period restarts from that new date.
Dogs of American Staffordshire Terrier, Mastiff and Tosa type that are not registered in the French stud book (LOF) are classed as first-category attack dogs and cannot be brought in. The distinction is registration, not appearance alone: a pedigree dog of those breeds is treated differently from a type dog, so the LOF status needs checking before anything is booked.
The health certificate is valid for only 10 days from its date of issue, extended by the length of the voyage when the animal travels by sea. Ten days is tight for air travel, and a postponed flight can mean paying for a second certificate. Booking the veterinary appointment only once the departure date is fixed is the simplest way to avoid that.
Guadeloupe is simple once you know which of its arrival branches you are on. Confirm the microchip came before the rabies vaccine, check whether your origin requires a titer test, book the 10-day health certificate close to departure, and confirm the LOF status of any restricted breed. Cooper and I now start every French overseas move with the origin question. Build the plan from that answer.
Get YOUR personalized plan for Guadeloupe →

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.