South Africa is a four-column row in my spreadsheet and none of the columns are empty: microchip, health certificate, import permit and quarantine on arrival. Luna disapproves of taxiing, and she would disapprove more of the permit queue. The two dates that decide the trip are the certificate window and the permit, and they have to be made to line up.

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

How South Africa handles your pet

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 2026-10-03
Quarantine · Typequarantine stationverified 2026-10-03
Quarantine · Pre-approval required Yesverified 2026-10-03
Import permit · Cost140 ZARverified 2026-10-03
Import permit · Required Yesverified 2026-10-03
Import permit · Lead time28 daysverified 2026-10-03
Import permit · Issuing authorityDirectorate: Animal Health, Import Export Policy Unit (Department of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development)verified 2026-10-03
Health certificate · Issuera veterinarian authorised by the veterinary authority of the exporting countryverified 2026-10-03
Health certificate · Required Yesverified 2026-10-03
Health certificate · Validity days10 daysverified 2026-10-03
Health certificate · Original required Yesverified 2026-10-03
Health certificate · Government endorsed Yesverified 2026-10-03
Rabies vaccination · Required Yesverified 2026-10-03
Rabies vaccination · Booster required Yesverified 2026-10-03
Rabies vaccination · Waiting period after vaccination30 daysverified 2026-10-03
Rabies vaccination · Min age at vaccination12 weeksverified 2026-10-03

Other rules

Pets accepted Acceptedverified 2026-10-03

Timing chain

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

Ports of entry (3)

  • OR Tambo International Airport (Johannesburg)
  • Cape Town International Airport
  • Durban

verified 2026-10-03

Health certificate issuance and endorsement must both occur within 10 days of travel. That is one window covering two signatures, not ten days for each, so the vet visit and the official endorsement have to be scheduled together. An endorsement collected outside the window voids the certificate and the pair has to be redone.
The import permit tariff is 140 ZAR per permit. One permit per application, and the figure is small enough that the real cost of this route is the quarantine and the freight rather than the paperwork. Pay the tariff early because the permit fixes your arrival date, and the quarantine booking follows from it.
South Africa: a 140 ZAR permit, a 10-day window covering both the certificate and its endorsement, and quarantine at the far end. The permit is cheap and the sequence is not forgiving, which is an awkward combination to discover late. Build your plan on Pawgo and the dates come back resolved for your own route instead of as a checklist.
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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.