Einreise mit Tier: Japan (2026)

Key points

• Two routes, and which one you are on depends on where the pet has lived
• Japan splits the world into designated (rabies-free) regions and everywhere else
• From a designated region — "To import dogs and cats from the designated regions (Iceland, Australia, New Zealand, Fiji Islands, Hawaii, and Guam) , they must meet import requirements (e.g. microchip implanting and clinical inspection)." — there is no rabies antibody test and no 180-day wait
• Everywhere else is the full route: microchip, two rabies vaccinations, an antibody test, and "Dogs and cats are required to arrive in Japan after 180 days have passed from the date of blood sampling for the rabies antibody test"
• The requirements shown on this plan are the FULL (non-designated) route, which is the one that applies to almost every origin
• Residence, not the airport you fly from, decides it: "The dog or cat has been continuously resident in a designated region for at least 180 days immediately before export to Japan" If the pet has been in a designated region for less than 180 days, "it must be subject to detention quarantine upon arrival in Japan to compensate for the insufficient days" What happens on arrival: "If dogs and cats meet import requirements upon arrival in Japan, the quarantine period will be within 12 hours" — otherwise the pet is detained at the port's animal quarantine facility for the days still outstanding, at the owner's expense
• The paperwork gate is the advance notification, not a permit
• You file it at least 40 days before arrival and "Animal Quarantine Service will examine the "Notification" and related documents to issue an “Approval of Import Inspection of Animals”." One microchip trap worth checking before you travel — MAFF has suspended a range of chip numbers: "numbers starting with "900 202" are currently under investigation for their validity
• Please note that for the time being, these microchips will not be accepted as a means of identification." Money: the government part is free — "A: Import inspection by animal quarantine officers is free of charge
• However, the importer is responsible for bearing the cost of transportation to the quarantine facility, cares during the quarantine period, electricity and water,vet visits etc
• Please ask caretaking company about cost of cares during the quarantine period." So a smooth arrival costs you nothing in fees; a failed one is billed by a private company, and there is no published tariff
• Vaccine timing has no fixed number: Japan does not set a booster interval in months, it defers to your vaccine's own duration of immunity — "Within the effective period of the first vaccination ＊Effective period is not the expiration date for use of the vaccine, but the duration of immunity." Miss that window and it is not a late booster, it is a new primary course: "If the effective period of the rabies vaccination will expire before arrival in Japan, an additional rabies vaccination must be administered" — which restarts the titre test and the 180-day wait
• One thing to check on the day you book the blood test: MAFF's designated-laboratory list carries revocations inline, not just additions — "ATTENTION：This facility( Biobest Laboratories Ltd. ) has been revoked from the list of designated laboratories due to violations of the designation standards
• Individuals with certificates issued between November 27, 2024 and June 25, 2025, are kindly requested to contact the Animal Quarantine Office at your port of entry." Read the list itself rather than a copy of it
• Number of animals: MAFF sets no published limit — its procedure is written per animal ("Dogs and cats to be imported into Japan must undergo import quarantine."), and neither the import guide nor the AQS Q&A states a maximum
• Notify each animal on the same 40-day advance notification
• Pawgo operator-verified, 2026-09-02; MAFF publishes no number, so treat a large group as worth confirming with your arrival port's AQS office before booking

Downloadable forms

• 📄 Import free 22
• 📄 Import free 23
• 📄 Import free 4
• 📄 Import other 42
• 📄 Appli im cat20210721
• 📄 Import free 6
• 📄 Index 4
• 📄 FormAB Sample EN
• 📄 Guidenonfree e
• 📄 Notifi degi en
• 📄 Notifi non degi en
• 📄 Japan AQS — Dog/Cat Import Requirements
• 📄 Japan Form AC — Health Certificate (PDF)