Hong Kong is on Nala's short list of cities where the paperwork window and the flight window need to touch each other perfectly, and Sam and I have watched other owners lose a week to a microchip that went in after the vaccine. The order is the whole game. Get the chip in first, then the shot, then the permit — the arrival at HKG lines up from there.

Bringing a pet to Hong Kong 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.

Your pet cannot travel in the cabin or as checked baggage to Hong Kong.

Hong Kong requires pets to travel as manifest cargo.

“Animals/birds must be transported by the fastest and most direct route as MANIFESTED CARGO”

How Hong Kong handles your pet

Dogs and cats more than 4 weeks pregnant must not be imported.

Downloadable forms

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

In the cabin Not accepted
In the hold / cargo Accepted

Cabin policy

Pets accepted Not acceptedverified 2026-09-07

Hold & cargo policy

Hold: Pets accepted Not acceptedverified 2026-09-07
Cargo: Pets accepted Acceptedverified 2026-09-07

Health & documents

Microchip · Required Yesverified 2026-09-07
Microchip · StandardISO 11784/11785 or AVIDverified 2026-09-07
Microchip · Must be done before vaccination Yesverified 2026-09-07
Quarantine · TypeAFCD Animal Management Centre or Licensed Quarantine Centreverified 2026-09-07
Quarantine · Required Yesverified 2026-09-07
Quarantine · Reducible Yesverified 2026-09-07
Quarantine · Duration120 daysverified 2026-09-07
Quarantine · Pre-approval required Yesverified 2026-09-07
Quarantine · Reduced duration30 daysverified 2026-09-07
Quarantine · Approved facility required Yesverified 2026-09-07
Rabies titer test (FAVN) · Required Yesverified 2026-09-07
Rabies titer test (FAVN) · Minimum level iu ml0.5verified 2026-09-07
Rabies titer test (FAVN) · Test validity months12 monthsverified 2026-09-07
Rabies titer test (FAVN) · Approved laboratory required Yesverified 2026-09-07
Rabies titer test (FAVN) · Waiting period after test days90 daysverified 2026-09-07
Rabies titer test (FAVN) · Test must follow vaccination days30 daysverified 2026-09-07
Import permit · Cost$432verified 2026-09-07
Import permit · Required Yesverified 2026-09-07
Import permit · Lead time5 daysverified 2026-09-07
Import permit · Issuing authorityAFCDverified 2026-09-07
Import permit · Permit validity180 daysverified 2026-09-07
Import permit · Documents required to obtained by AFCD. Original vaccination record (rabies and other diseases). Original RNATT report. Original veterinary health certificate issued/endorsed by a  government veterinary officer Official escort to quarantine facility Applicant is responsible for arranging transportation of the animal from the border to the quarantine facility. AFCD staff will escort the animal during the transportation. Complverified 2026-09-07
Health certificate · Required Yesverified 2026-09-07
Health certificate · Endorsed bygovernment veterinary officerverified 2026-09-07
Health certificate · Validity days14 daysverified 2026-09-07
Health certificate · Government endorsed Yesverified 2026-09-07
Other vaccinations · Distemper Yesverified 2026-09-07
Other vaccinations · Adenovirus Yesverified 2026-09-07
Other vaccinations · Parvovirus Yesverified 2026-09-07
Rabies vaccination · Required Yesverified 2026-09-07
Rabies vaccination · Booster required Yesverified 2026-09-07
Rabies vaccination · Approved vaccines list
  • inactivated or recombinant vaccine
verified 2026-09-07
Rabies vaccination · Waiting period after vaccination30 daysverified 2026-09-07
Rabies vaccination · Max vaccine age at travel12 monthsverified 2026-09-07

Other rules

Pets accepted Acceptedverified 2026-09-07
Dangerous breeds banned Yesverified 2026-09-07
Breed restrictions apply Yesverified 2026-09-07

Service & assistance animals

Advance notice hours24 hoursverified 2026-09-07
Documentation required Yesverified 2026-09-07
Recognized organizations
  • Assistance Dogs International
  • International Guide Dog Federation
verified 2026-09-07

Timing chain

Day -90 microchip implant · Day -30 rabies vaccine deadline · Day -14 health certificate issued · Day 0 arrive at customs

Conditional requirements

These rules apply only to pets with a specific travel history. Most travelers can ignore them — but if one applies to you, skipping it can mean denied entry.

Pet arriving from a Group III country (high rabies risk) — If your pet has been in one of 104 higher-risk countries in the last 6 months:

  • Quarantine: Required
  • Rabies titer (blood) test: Required
  • Import permit: Required

Breed restrictions

Banned breeds: Pit Bull Terrier, American Staffordshire Terrier, Japanese Tosa, Dogo Argentino, Fila Braziliero verified 2026-09-07

Ports of entry

  • the port

verified 2026-09-07

The microchip must be implanted before the rabies vaccination for Hong Kong entry, and a rabies dose given to a dog with no scannable chip does not count toward the permit application. The vaccination window restarts from the day the chip finally goes in. Schedule the microchip visit first as its own appointment, confirm the ISO chip reads clean, then book the rabies vaccine at least 21 days out.
Five breeds are refused entry to Hong Kong: Pit Bull Terrier, American Staffordshire Terrier, Japanese Tosa, Dogo Argentino, and Fila Braziliero. Border officers check the passport-listed breed and the microchip breed record, not the visual identity of the dog. Confirm both documents show a permitted breed before any HKG cargo or cabin booking is placed, since a mixed-breed identity flagged as one of these will not release at arrival.
The Hong Kong import permit runs around 432 USD per dog, invoiced separately from the vet, the airline, and the ground handler. That figure is per animal and it does not scale down for a second dog in the same shipment. Line up the permit fee the week the vet visit is booked so the funding sits ready when the application goes in.
Hong Kong rewards owners who treat the chip-shot-permit order as one connected plan and hang the HKG flight date off the end. Sam and I sketch the sequence on paper first, then let Pawgo's personalized plan lay it out day by day for the actual booking. Nala has opinions about layovers, and a permit already in hand is what keeps the layover feeling like a stopover, not a scramble.
Get YOUR personalized plan for Hong Kong →

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.