New EU Pet Travel Rules for GB Residents Take Effect from 22 April 2026

In force from 22 April 2026 · Published April 2026

New EU rules now affect how people living in Great Britain travel to the EU with their pets. From 22 April 2026, GB residents are being told not to rely on EU pet passports for entry into the EU, even where one was issued before that date. Instead, the UK government says owners resident in Great Britain should get an Animal Health Certificate for dogs, cats or ferrets travelling from Great Britain to an EU country. The change applies to non-commercial movements and sits alongside a broader set of updates around certificate validity, paperwork and private vehicle limits.

According to the Defra and APHA announcement published on 21 April, the new EU rules apply to the non-commercial movement of pet dogs, cats and ferrets entering the EU from Great Britain. The key practical point is that EU pet passports may now only be issued to people whose main home is in the EU. GOV.UK says they should not be used by people who only have holiday homes in the EU or who visit seasonally, and it adds that EU pet passports issued to GB residents before 22 April 2026 may no longer be valid for entry into the EU.

That is the part likely to catch some pet owners off guard. A passport that once helped make travel feel more straightforward may no longer be enough to guarantee a smooth crossing into the EU. For anyone planning a trip in the coming weeks, the safer assumption is that older arrangements should be checked again, rather than treated as unchanged.

The government’s position is clear. To avoid delays, owners resident in Great Britain should get an Animal Health Certificate if they are travelling from Great Britain to an EU country with a dog, cat or ferret. GOV.UK also stresses that pet owners should always check the specific entry requirements of the destination country when travelling to an EU country, because individual member states may apply their own additional requirements.

There is some good news in the detail. Although an Animal Health Certificate is still single-use for each trip from GB to the EU, it can now be used for up to six months for onward travel within the EU and for re-entering Great Britain, provided rabies vaccinations remain valid. In other words, the paperwork burden on departure remains, but the certificate has become more flexible once the trip is under way.

The 21 April announcement also highlights two other points that are easy to miss. First, if the owner is not travelling with the pet, the animal must travel within five days of the owner, and the accompanying person must carry written permission from the owner along with the pet’s travel document. Secondly, there is now a five-pet limit per private vehicle for non-commercial travel into the EU, rather than a five-pet limit per person. The existing five-pet limit for people travelling on foot stays the same, with exceptions for competitions, events or training where certain conditions are met.

There are no major changes to pet travel requirements for re-entry into Great Britain, and GOV.UK says GB residents are still able to use EU pet passports for the return journey to GB. Even so, the broader message is that pet travel is no longer an area where owners can safely assume last year’s paperwork still works this year. Owners returning home should still check the current GOV.UK guidance on bringing a pet to Great Britain.

This is the sort of change that matters because it sits right at the point where planning and real life meet. Families often book holidays first and revisit pet paperwork later. The new rules make that a riskier habit, especially for people who already hold EU pet passports and may assume those documents remain valid for outbound travel from Great Britain.

For pet owners, the practical takeaway is not panic. It is preparation. Checking the latest destination guidance, arranging an Animal Health Certificate where needed, and confirming timings before departure are now part of responsible travel planning. That may feel administrative, but it is much easier than discovering a document problem at the border.

This is the kind of update that looks administrative at first glance but can have a real impact on ordinary pet owners. Travel paperwork often feels straightforward right up until the point it is checked, and changes like this tend to catch people who are relying on what worked last year. The bigger takeaway is that pet travel rules remain a moving area, especially where Great Britain and the EU are concerned, so even experienced travellers may need to treat each trip as something that deserves a fresh check.