29 Sept 2026
Mary-Anne Frank BVSc, CertSAM, MScAHE, MRCVS demystifies the current issues facing clients who are travelling with their pets.
Mary-Anne Frank
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Image: Melinda Nagy / Adobe Stock
Why are so many people needing animal health certificates (AHC) now when we were promised the return of the UK Pet Passport scheme?
What has changed? Previously, UK residents could ask an EU vet to complete an EU passport for them and this facilitated travel without an AHC. However, in April 2026, the laws changed and OVs were briefed that the EU was no longer allowing non-residents to use EU pet passports for entry into the EU.
The slightly bitter irony is that last year the EU announced it would consider the return of a UK pet passport scheme.
The legal framework for returning to the old UK pet passport scheme is part of a new sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) agreement and is likely to take some time to set up, and the EU is currently aiming for 2027. So for now, we expect to see an increased demand for AHCs for pets travelling to the EU.
This article is a non-OV summary aimed at colleagues who did not get the APHA memo, but who are nonetheless expected to answer questions about it.
Most of the EU pet travel requirements have not changed and are worth running through with clients, as well as asking them to check the latest guidance on the gov.uk website:
Many GB residents are reportedly still entering the EU successfully on EU pet passports, despite the April rule change. A clear gap exists between APHA guidance and what is being enforced at borders, and clients will inevitably hear about this and may push back on the need for an AHC. Our position has been to follow APHA’s advice, which is: “GB residents need an AHC. If a client chooses to travel without one anyway, that is their decision and their risk to take – not the practice’s responsibility.”
While not part of the April changes, invalid rabies vaccinations are a major headache for OVs and frustrating for pet owners when problems with the rabies vaccination affect their travel plans.
A few things must be remembered when administering a rabies vaccine for pet travel.
The first is co-administration. Per the MSD data sheet, Nobivac Rabies can be given on the same day as Nobivac L4, provided the two are administered at separate injection sites and not mixed in the same syringe.
Same-day administration with Nobivac KC or FeLV is not supported, and the co-administration rule does not extend to other rabies brands. If any doubt exists at all, give the rabies vaccine separately. How far apart you give the vaccines is not specified; ideally, 7 to 14 days, but technically it is fine so long as it is not on the same day – useful to know when you are faced with annual boosters and travel preparations within a short timeframe.
The second is the waiting period. The rabies vaccine validity still starts 21 days after administration for the majority of products used in GB: Nobivac Rabies, Canigen Rabies (Virbac) and Versiguard Rabies (Zoetis). However, since 1 December 2025, the requirements for pet travel changed to align with the manufacturer’s stated onset of immunity, which means the Boehringer Ingelheim rabies portfolio now requires a longer wait before travel: four weeks for Purevax Rabies and one month for Rabisin before the pet can legally enter the EU. If you stock these, make sure you are allowing enough time between vaccination administration and the planned travel date, bearing in mind that the AHC can only be issued once the rabies vaccination is valid.
A booster rabies vaccination given within the validity period is still valid straight away. No 21-day waiting period exists for boosters to become valid.
The third step to remember is a record that the microchip was scanned at the time of the rabies vaccine administration. This is a requirement, and if it is not done, the AHC will not be issued. Without this record, the OV cannot certify that the vaccination was given to the pet in question.
Bear in mind that not all vets that administer rabies vaccinations are OVs.
It can be helpful to everyone to have a visual reminder, such as a brightly coloured sign next to the rabies vaccines in the fridge. This reminds the vet that they need to avoid administering rabies vaccines with other vaccines (unless the MSD exception applies) and to record in the clinical notes that the microchip was scanned at the time of vaccination.
A question that has been frequently asked since April is: “Can I use the entry in the EU pet passport as evidence of a rabies vaccination?”
For the most part this is completely fine as, it is a requirement to scan the pet’s microchip before making an entry into the passport. So long as the entry was completed correctly and the OV is satisfied with the evidence, they can use the passport entry as proof of vaccination for issuing an AHC.
Demand for AHCs is now going to be higher than ever, and practices that have not already started planning will struggle. A few things worth thinking about include:
The current arrangement is not the end state. If the SPS agreement progresses on the EU’s planned 2027 timeline, we may yet see a UK pet passport return. Until then, AHCs are necessary for pet travel to the EU, and the practices that can meet AHC demand will be the ones that have planned the rota, trained the team, and made the workflow as efficient as possible.
Mary-Anne Frank founded OVForm after experiencing first-hand how much time issuing animal health certificates was taking out of a busy practice day. OVForm’s mission is to give vets back the time lost to paperwork, so they can focus on doing what they do best: taking excellent care of their patients.