Lebanon is the destination where my spreadsheet had to be rebuilt around a single sentence. The rabies vaccination must be a month old on arrival, which is a waiting period most summaries omit entirely. Beyond that: a microchip, a health certificate good for ten days, and an import permit obtained on arrival rather than in advance. Luna would call that refreshingly direct.

Pet import to Lebanon is regulated by Customs officer at the port of entry. The core requirements are summarized below: a microchip, a rabies vaccine within the right window, and a government-endorsed health certificate. Some destinations also require a titer test or short quarantine — those are flagged in the table.

How Lebanon handles your pet

Key points

  • The instrument is Ministry of Agriculture Decision No
  • 1/657 of 8 August 2016, "تنظيم استيراد الحيوانات المنزلية الأليفة" (Regulating the import of domestic pet animals), issued under the Veterinary Quarantine Law, Decree No
  • 12301 of 20 March 1963
  • It is still the ONLY decision on importing domestic pets in the Ministry's own Import/Export Decisions register, and no amending, suspending or wartime instrument has been issued
  • So despite the conflict the legal requirements are unchanged — what the war has disrupted is flight availability into Beirut, not the rules
  • Plan for the route, not for a rule change
  • Quarantine is NOT routine, and this is the single most misunderstood point
  • Under Article 5 it bites only on an animal that arrives without a microchip or without the required vaccinations; such an animal is held at its owner's premises or at a registered approved farm, and is admitted only once it has been chipped and vaccinated, at the owner's expense
  • A compliant pet is not quarantined at all
  • Article 6 separately lets the Directorate of Animal Resources quarantine and blood-test an imported animal where necessary
  • Rabies alone is not enough, and this is the mistake that gets pets turned away at Beirut
  • Article 4 additionally requires vaccination against viral enteritis (parvovirus) and feline panleukopenia, and requires that the animal be treated with anthelmintics
  • The Consulate General of Lebanon states the fuller combination: "For dogs, necessary vaccinations include distemper, hepatitis, parvovirus, and leptospirosis." and "Cats should be vaccinated against panleukopenia, rhinotracheitis, and calicivirus." A record showing only a rabies shot does not meet the requirement
  • The rabies shot itself must be given at least one month before arrival in Lebanon
  • Your permit is issued at the border, not before you fly: "Upon arrival, pet owners must secure an import permit from a customs officer." There is no advance application and no consular step — "Pets can be shipped to Lebanon without the need to go through the Consulate." Budget nothing for permit lead time, but do budget for the certificate, which has a hard ten-day window: "The certificate must be completed within 10 days prior to the journey." Under Article 3 a personal consignment accompanying its owner of up to three animals is exempt from the importer-registration regime; above three you must apply to the Directorate of Animal Resources first
  • Clearance happens at a border agricultural and veterinary quarantine centre — for air arrivals, Beirut-Rafic Hariri International Airport
  • The framework decree is still listed as current on the Ministry's register with no repeal recorded: "This decree shall apply to the veterinary quarantine, which consists in subjecting animals and animal based products exported to Lebanon to the veterinary health control in order to prevent the infiltration of pandemic deceases to Lebanon." Its special handling attaches to where the animal comes FROM, not to every arrival: "It also determines the import procedures for certain types of animals coming from endemic countries"

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 2026-09-03
Quarantine · Required Noverified 2026-09-03
Rabies titer test (FAVN) · Required Noverified 2026-09-03
Import permit · Required Yesverified 2026-09-03
Import permit · Lead time0 daysverified 2026-09-03
Import permit · Issuing authorityCustoms officer at the port of entryverified 2026-09-03
Import permit · Documents required to obtain
  • Identification card (passport) signed by a veterinarian and certified by the competent veterinary authorities at the border crossing in the country of origin
  • Veterinary health certificate issued by the official veterinary authorities of the exporting country
  • Certificate of origin showing the source and origin of the animal
verified 2026-09-03
Flea treatment · Required Noverified 2026-09-03
Heartworm test · Required Noverified 2026-09-03
Tick treatment · Required Noverified 2026-09-03
Health certificate · IssuerOfficial veterinary authorities of the exporting countryverified 2026-09-03
Health certificate · Required Yesverified 2026-09-03
Health certificate · Endorsed byCompetent veterinary authorities at the border crossing in the country of originverified 2026-09-03
Health certificate · Validity days10 daysverified 2026-09-03
Health certificate · Government endorsed Yesverified 2026-09-03
Other vaccinations · Distemper Yesverified 2026-09-03
Other vaccinations · Adenovirus Yesverified 2026-09-03
Other vaccinations · Bordetella Noverified 2026-09-03
Other vaccinations · Leishmania Noverified 2026-09-03
Other vaccinations · Parvovirus Yesverified 2026-09-03
Other vaccinations · Leptospirosis Yesverified 2026-09-03
Other vaccinations · Canine influenza Noverified 2026-09-03
Rabies vaccination · Required Yesverified 2026-09-03
Rabies vaccination · Waiting period after vaccination30 daysverified 2026-09-03
Tapeworm treatment · Required Noverified 2026-09-03
Screwworm treatment · Required Noverified 2026-09-03
Internal parasite treatment · Required Yesverified 2026-09-03

Other rules

Pets accepted Acceptedverified 2026-09-03

Timing chain

Day -90 microchip implant · Day -30 rabies vaccine deadline · Day -10 health certificate issued · Day 0 arrive at customs

Ports of entry (8)

  • Abboudieh (North Lebanon)
  • Port of Tripoli (North Lebanon)
  • Masnaa (Beqaa)
  • Qaa (Beqaa)
  • Port of Beirut (Beirut)
  • Rafic Hariri International Airport (Beirut)
  • Saida (South Lebanon)
  • Arida (North Lebanon) — temporary

verified 2026-09-03

Animals must be vaccinated against rabies one month before the date of their arrival in Lebanon. That is a 30-day waiting period between the vaccination and the flight, and it is not a titre test, which is not required here. Count 30 days back from the arrival date to find the latest the rabies vaccination can be given.
Upon arrival, pet owners must secure an import permit from a customs officer. There is no lead time to plan for and nothing to submit in advance, which removes an application from the pre-departure list entirely. It also means the permit cannot be confirmed before travelling, so carry complete vaccination and certificate documentation to the customs desk.
Lebanon inverts the usual shape: no permit application before departure, but a 30-day vaccination wait that quietly sets the earliest possible flight. Those are the only two numbers that really constrain the trip. Put the arrival date into the plan builder and it will show the latest day the rabies vaccination can be given and still count.
Get YOUR personalized plan for Lebanon →

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.