Moving to Cyprus with a pet
Expats who have pets know that figuring out the logistics of how to bring their beloved animals to their new country can be overwhelming. Thankfully, as Cyprus is part of the EU, bringing your pet from an EU country will be a straightforward process. In any case, as long as your pets are up to date with vaccination and are microchipped, you should have no real problems bringing them to Cyprus.
If your pet comes from an EU country
If you are an EU national, bringing your pets to Cyprus is rather easy. The first thing you need to do is make sure your pet is microchipped ' and that the pet microchip is 15 digit-and ISO 11784/11785 compliant. Coming from the EU also means that your country of origin is probably either rabies-free or rabies-controlled (you can find comprehensive lists of rabies-free countries here and rabies-controlled countries here). So the next step would be to vaccinate your pet against rabies, as per the vaccine producer's recommendations. Note that the producer must be approved by the World Health Organization (WHO). After your pet is vaccinated, 21 days must pass until it is allowed to travel. If your pet was vaccinated again in the past, there is no need for the 21-day wait, as long as the first vaccine was administered after your pet was microchipped.
Note that it is mandatory for your pet to have a European passport delivered by a licensed veterinary, mentioning the different treatments received.
Good to know:
You are not allowed to travel with more than five pets unless you have written evidence that you are attending a competition or show. Even then, all your animals should meet the pet travel rules, be at least six months old ' and you'll have to fill in a declaration.
Important:
Due to Brexit, from 28 March 2019, any pets entering or returning to Cyprus from the UK will be defaulted as coming from a non-listed, high-rabies country. If this applies to your case, then your pet will need to do a titer test at least three months in advance before entering Cyprus.
If your pet comes from a non-EU country
If you're coming from a non-EU country, the process is slightly more complicated for your pet. Firstly, if your country of origin is non-listed, high-rabies, your pet will need to do a titer test at least three months in advance before entering Cyprus. However, regardless of whether your country of origin is a listed one (having an intensive rabies control program) or a non-listed one (which does not have a real rabies control program), you will have to make sure that your pet:
- has a health certificate established as per the 2004/203/CE model, supporting a valid rabies vaccine
- has undergone a rabies medical checkup, as well as treatments against ticks, tapeworms and echinococcus
- wears an identification microchip
- has a pet health certificate (E9.207 form) that was issued 90 days following the tests and vaccinations
- is declared by its owner (that would be you)
Important:
The Turkish-occupied part of Cyprus is not recognised as an EU country, so if you are moving your pet from that part of the country, you should be prepared for more extensive processes.
Useful link:
