How Much Does It Cost to Ship a Pet from the USA to Belgium?

The endorsement sits in the $101 band because the United States is a listed country for EU entry and no rabies titer test is required. APHIS does not count rabies vaccinations toward the number of tests on a certificate, so the vaccination on its own does not push the fee into a higher band. Where a test is required the same schedule charges $160 for the first animal and $10 for each additional animal. The fee is per certificate rather than per pet, so two animals on one certificate costs far less than two separate certificates.

The Federal Agency for the Safety of the Food Chain publishes the list of places where a pet arriving from outside the EU can be checked in. For dogs, cats and every pet except birds there are seven: Brussels Airport, Brussels South Charleroi Airport, Antwerp International Airport, Liege Airport, Ostend Bruges International Airport, the Port of Zeebrugge, and Brussel-Zuid, also written Bruxelles-Midi, which is a railway station rather than an airport.

For pet birds the list narrows to two, Brussels Airport and Liege Airport, which is worth knowing before anyone plans a bird move through Antwerp or Charleroi.

For a flown pet from the United States the practical answer is usually Brussels Airport. The point of the list is that Belgium leaves room to move when a schedule falls apart, which most member states do not. Sweden designates two airports for the whole country and Norway one.

The EU replaced its non-commercial pet movement rules in 2026. The framework in force is Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2026/131, with the country lists in Implementing Regulation (EU) 2026/636 and the document models in Implementing Regulation (EU) 2026/705, both applying from 22 April 2026. The animal health certificate model is Part 1 of Annex III to 2026/705. A certificate on the old Annex IV model still counts as compliant if it was issued before 1 October 2026, and only until a transitional period ends on 31 March 2027. From the United States that window has closed in practice: APHIS says the new non-commercial certificates took effect on 1 October 2026 and that old ones already in process could be endorsed only up to 30 September 2026, so a certificate endorsed now is on the new model. Once your pet has been checked at the point of entry, the same certificate covers onward movement inside the EU for six months, or until the rabies vaccination expires if that comes first.

A pet moving without its owner, the case set out further down, travels on the EU’s commercial certificate instead, and APHIS dates its new model from 17 October 2026, with old ones already in process endorsable up to 16 October 2026. None of this changes what the move costs. What it changes is which form your accredited veterinarian completes and which form the APHIS endorsement office will accept. APHIS gives a non-commercial certificate 30 days from the day your accredited veterinarian issues it, and USDA has to endorse it within 10 days of your pet’s arrival in the EU. On a Belgian move we confirm which certificate applies with the endorsing office before the vet appointment is set, because a rejected form means a new appointment, a second endorsement fee and a missed flight.

Your vet sets their own fees. The examination and the certificate paperwork are priced by your clinic and vary between practices. Ground transport at either end depends on the distance. Both are inside the all-inclusive, door to door range at the top of this page, and the quote for your pet prices each one.

One thing the table cannot show. These figures assume the pet travels with its owner, or with a person the owner designates who travels no later than 5 days after the owner, the two cases APHIS puts on the non-commercial certificate. Where that is not the case the EU treats the move under its commercial entry rules instead, which bring a registered establishment of origin, a registered destination, a registered transporter and clearance at a border control post rather than a point of entry. That is a different job at a different price, so tell us your own travel dates early and we will tell you which one you are in.

Crate size is the single biggest lever, because it drives chargeable weight. Direct routings cost more per kilogram than they look but remove transfer handling, and Brussels is one of the European airports where a nonstop from the US east coast is realistic. Season matters too: summer heat embargoes narrow the booking window and winter cold rules do the same.

Two pets on one certificate share the USDA endorsement, while each extra pet adds its own crate and freight, up to the EU maximum of five animals in a non-commercial movement. Breed rules are set nationally and separately from the EU entry conditions, and in Belgium some of them are regional rather than federal, so tell us the breed and the destination region when you ask for a quote.

Freight calculated from the American Airlines Cargo published live animal tariff. Endorsement fees from the USDA APHIS Veterinary Services user fee schedule. EU entry conditions from the European Commission page on bringing a pet into the EU from a non-EU country, the listing that exempts the United States from the rabies titer test, and the Commission list of travelers’ points of entry. Belgian points of entry from the list the Federal Agency for the Safety of the Food Chain publishes and the European Commission links to. Certificate changeover dates from the USDA APHIS country page for Belgium, read 1 October 2026, and from Article 6 of Implementing Regulation (EU) 2026/705. Government fees change, so every figure here is tied to the authority that publishes it. Verified September 2026.

Send us the route, the breed and roughly when you want to travel. Request a quote and we will reply with an itemized plan, a timeline and clear next steps. For entry rules and the full paperwork timeline, see our guide to pet shipping requirements for Belgium, or compare other routes on the pet shipping cost calculator.