USA to the Philippines
Pet Shipping from the USA to the Philippines
We provide international pet transport from the USA to the Philippines, planned around its import rules, the season and your move date.
Book door-to-door pet relocation, or only the parts you need.
- Airline booking
- The travel crate
- The export and import paperwork
- Check-in at your US airport
- Pickup in the Philippines with delivery to your new address
The Philippines at a glance
Full requirementsThe Philippines’ Bureau of Animal Industry asks for an approved import clearance, the SPSIC, before a dog or cat travels.
- Microchip
- Number given with proof on the clearance application, and written on the health certificate
- Rabies vaccination
- First dose at 84 days old or later, and two weeks or more before applying for the clearance; valid until arrival
- Other vaccinations
- Dogs: distemper, hepatitis, parvovirus, parainfluenza, leptospirosis. Cats: panleukopenia. Each at least 14 days before applying
- Parasite treatment
- Deworming at least 7 days before applying; the APHIS certificate wants both parasite treatments in the 30 days before travel
- Import permit
- The SPSIC from the Bureau of Animal Industry, valid for 60 days
Pet Shipping from the USA to the Philippines
The Philippines works on a clearance issued before the trip. Its Bureau of Animal Industry wants an approved import clearance, the SPSIC, in hand before a dog or cat leaves; the US health certificate has to be written to its terms. So the order is fixed: vaccinations and parasite treatment first, the clearance next, and the certificate at the end. If you would like a simple overview of international moves first, start with our guide to international pet shipping destinations. Bringing a pet the other way, into the United States? See our US import guide.
Approved Routes and Entry into the Philippines
The Bureau of Animal Industry’s arrival procedure covers two ways in. A dog or cat hand-carried or checked in on its owner’s flight is presented to the Veterinary Quarantine Officer at the port of entry with printed copies of the approved clearance and the original health certificate. One released at the cargo terminal needs those two documents and an air waybill stamped by the airline to show it has arrived. Which of the two a flight offers is the airline’s decision, so the route is booked once the clearance and the size of the crate are settled.
Route details: USA to the Philippines
- Route
- USA to the Philippines
- How the pet flies
- Hand-carried or checked in by the importer, or released from the airport cargo terminal on an air waybill, the Bureau of Animal Industry says
- Import permit
- SPSIC from the Bureau of Animal Industry, approved before the pet leaves the USA; valid 60 days, one shipment; 11 working days to process
- Health certificate
- Issued by a USDA-accredited vet, valid 10 days from issue to departure; APHIS endorses it before travel, digitally through VEHCS
- Quarantine on arrival
- BAI quarantine officers check the papers at the airport; without an export certificate, the BAI says, entry is refused or the pet seized
- Time to get ready
- At least 4 weeks: vaccines 14 days before the SPSIC application, then 11 working days for BAI to process it (rules to Dec 31, 2026)
- From January 1, 2027
- SPSIC needs Form 1 and a rabies titer of 0.5 IU/ml or more (FAVN or RFFIT), blood drawn 30 or more days after the first shot
Work out your pet’s dates for this route
From official sources, read October 29, 2026: Bureau of Animal Industry, New Requirements Pet: Bringing Dogs and Cats to the Philippines; Bureau of Animal Industry, Pet import: Bringing dogs and cats into the Philippines; Bureau of Animal Industry, step-by-step SPSIC application guide; USDA APHIS, Pet Travel From the United States to the Philippines; USDA APHIS, Veterinary Health Certificate for Export of Dogs and/or Cats from the United States of America to Philippines.
What are the entry requirements for pets going to the Philippines?
The short answer
Where the SPSIC is approved by December 31, 2026, a US dog or cat needs, by the Bureau of Animal Industry’s rules, that import clearance, a microchip, the listed vaccinations, deworming at least 7 days before the application, and a health certificate issued within 10 days before departure. What changes for one approved from January 1, 2027 is set out with the planning timeline below.
Which pets can enter the Philippines?
The Bureau of Animal Industry accepts a dog or cat that is at least 4 months old on the day the clearance is applied for. Its first rabies shot has to be given at 84 days of age or older, and no less than two weeks before that application; the Bureau holds an annual booster to the same two weeks. A pet that is pregnant when the application goes in is refused, and one that has given birth qualifies only if the litter arrived 12 or more weeks before the trip. The Bureau caps each importer at three animals a year, or the same three, known by their microchip numbers, on more than one trip a year; APHIS puts the limit as up to three animals listed on one SPSIC, and adds that the health certificate has to name the same animals as the clearance.
Every vaccination on the record has to remain valid until the pet lands. The Bureau also asks that the vaccination card match the health certificate in every detail, with the consignor and consignee named exactly as it names them, so a mismatch in either is the thing to catch before the endorsement rather than at the port.
On landing, the Bureau’s Veterinary Quarantine officers inspect the documents, and its step-by-step SPSIC guide warns that officers refuse entry to, or confiscate, a pet arriving without its US export certificate. Neither of its two pet import pages, read October 29, 2026, describes a quarantine period for a pet whose papers are in order. Ready to start? Request a quote.
What vet work and documents does a pet need for the Philippines?
Four things come before the clearance application. The first is a microchip, whose number goes in with the application. The second is rabies vaccination. Third come the other vaccines: for a dog, distemper, infectious hepatitis, parvovirus, parainfluenza and leptospirosis, and for a cat, panleukopenia, each 14 or more days ahead. Last is deworming, no later than 7 days before applying; the Bureau calls external parasite treatment recommended but optional, and the APHIS certificate has the veterinarian certify that the pet was treated for internal and external parasites in the 30 days before travel. The application is made online with the vaccination and parasite records, proof of the microchip and a photograph of the pet, each file a PDF or JPG under 5 MB. Once it is approved, a USDA-accredited veterinarian issues the health certificate to the clearance’s terms, and APHIS endorses it, electronically where VEHCS is used.
| Requirement | the Philippines, from the United States |
|---|---|
| Microchip | Number given with proof on the clearance application, and written on the health certificate |
| Rabies vaccination | First dose at 84 days old or later, and two weeks or more before applying for the clearance; valid until arrival |
| Other vaccinations | Dogs: distemper, hepatitis, parvovirus, parainfluenza, leptospirosis. Cats: panleukopenia. Each at least 14 days before applying |
| Parasite treatment | Deworming at least 7 days before applying; the APHIS certificate wants both parasite treatments in the 30 days before travel |
| Import permit | The SPSIC from the Bureau of Animal Industry, valid for 60 days |
| Health certificate | Written by a USDA-accredited vet in the 10 days before departure, then endorsed by APHIS |
| Quarantine | Papers inspected on landing by the Bureau’s Veterinary Quarantine officers; a pet with no export certificate faces refused entry or confiscation |
The checklist on this page comes from five published sources, each read October 29, 2026. For the US export side, APHIS’s page on pet travel from the United States to the Philippines explains how the health certificate is issued and endorsed, and the certificate APHIS publishes for the Philippines shows what the veterinarian signs. For the entry rules, the Bureau of Animal Industry’s page on bringing a dog or cat to the Philippines sets out the clearance, the vaccinations and their timing, its SPSIC guide walks through the application, and its page on the new requirements covers clearances approved from January 1, 2027, including the arrival procedure.
Planning Timeline for Pet Shipping to the Philippines
For an adult pet with current vaccinations the calendar is short but tight, because the clearance lasts 60 days and the certificate must fall in the final 10 before the flight. For a puppy or kitten, age sets it: the opening rabies shot has to wait for 84 days of age, the application for 120, and at least 14 must pass between the two. The sequence runs from a consultation to the microchip and vaccinations, the parasite treatment, the application and its approval, and a flight booked inside the clearance’s validity. Then come the health certificate, the APHIS endorsement and travel.
All of the above holds for a clearance approved on or before December 31, 2026, and such a clearance can still be used on the old terms until it expires. One approved from January 1, 2027 falls under the Bureau of Animal Industry’s Memorandum Circular No. 60, dated October 26, 2026. The application then carries a Form 1 for each pet, recording its rabies vaccination, its parasite treatment and a rabies titer of at least 0.5 IU/ml from an FAVN or RFFIT test, with the blood drawn 30 or more days after the first rabies shot, and the form is endorsed by a government-accredited veterinarian authorized to sign for the national veterinary authority, or by that authority’s own veterinarian. The pet must be 18 weeks or older when it is entered for the clearance, and a mother needs 18 weeks since her litter. Rabies becomes the only vaccine the Bureau requires, both parasite treatments become compulsory with no set wait before applying, there is no cap on how many animals come in, and officers at the airport also look for a copy of the titer report and the signed Form 1, according to the new requirements page the Bureau posts, read October 29, 2026.
Elsewhere in the region, we also cover Vietnam and Indonesia.
Planning the budget? See what shipping a pet from the USA to the Philippines costs, fee by fee.
Every Pet Travels
Differently
Different destinations, different routes, different challenges.
Destination-Focused Planning
The Bureau of Animal Industry publishes what the health certificate must state, from the microchip number to the brand of each vaccine. We check the certificate against that list, and the clearance too, before it goes to APHIS.
Smart Routing and Logistics
We help choose practical routes, travel windows, and handoff procedures so your pet’s trip is safer and more predictable.
Personalized Support
Pet Travel Advisors assigns a move coordinator who keeps you updated and checks details before travel so nothing important is missed.
Questions about moving a pet to the Philippines
Request a QuoteWhat does it cost to ship a pet from the USA to the Philippines?
Costs depend on your pet’s size and crate, the route and airline, vet and document fees, and whether the move is door to door. The fastest way to get a real number is a quote based on your origin city and travel date. Request a quote here.
How long does the process take?
That depends on the pet’s age and records. Under the Bureau of Animal Industry’s current rules, a puppy or kitten cannot be entered for the clearance before it is 120 days old. For an adult with current vaccinations, the shortest wait it sets is 7 days between parasite treatment and the application, and its pet import page, read October 29, 2026, then gives 11 working days for processing it. From January 1, 2027 a rabies titer test comes first, as the planning timeline explains.
How does Pet Travel Advisors help with a move to the Philippines?
Each part can be booked separately: flights, the travel crate, the paperwork on both sides from the clearance application to the APHIS endorsement, check-in with the airline at the departure airport, and pickup in the Philippines with delivery to the new address. Some owners take door-to-door relocation, and others only the flight or only the documents.
Ready to start?
Book door-to-door pet relocation, or only the parts you need.