How Much Does It Cost to Ship a Pet from the USA to Greece?
All-inclusive, door to door, for one pet: a move from the United States to Greece runs about $3,600 to $7,000, with our service, the flight, the crate, the vet work, the USDA endorsement, arrival handling and delivery to your door included. Crate size, which is what the airline charges on, sets where a move lands in the range, and a second pet costs extra. Greece follows the standard EU entry pattern: microchip first, rabies vaccination, a 21 day wait, then the EU animal health certificate endorsed by USDA APHIS. The Greek question is almost always the same one, and it is about islands. Figures verified September 2026.
Airline freight, and why the crate decides it
Airlines price live animals on chargeable weight: whichever is greater, the actual weight or a volume figure worked out from the crate. For pets the volume figure almost always wins, which is why crate size drives the flight cost more than the animal does. The volumetric divisor is the industry standard 166 cubic inches per pound. The rates come from the American Airlines Cargo published live animal tariff, the tariff these estimates are calculated against. Checked September 2026.
| Crate size | Approx. dimensions | Chargeable weight | Freight |
|---|---|---|---|
| Small (cat or toy dog) (size 100) | 21 x 16 x 15 in | 14 kg | $690 |
| Medium (size 200) | 28 x 20.5 x 21.5 in | 34 kg | $1,066 |
| Large (size 400) | 36 x 25 x 27 in | 66 kg | $1,960 |
| Giant (size 700) | 48 x 32 x 35 in | 147 kg | $2,977 |
These are our own calculation from the published rate and divisor, for a direct booking. A connecting routing, or a carrier that quotes rather than publishes, will differ. Athens takes seasonal nonstops from a few US cities and connects through a European hub the rest of the year, so the same crate can price differently in February and in June.
Whichever carrier takes the booking sets its own hold conditions, crate rules and pet charges, and those vary more between airlines than the fares do. Our list of the airlines that carry pets internationally covers which carriers accept live animals out of the US, and our comparison of US airline pet policies puts the big carriers side by side. The freight mechanics on this page come from American Airlines Cargo, whose conditions are set out in full in our guide to the American Airlines pet policy.
The rest of the bill
| Cost | Amount | Who charges it |
|---|---|---|
| USDA export endorsement | $101 per certificate | USDA APHIS |
| IATA crate | $65 to $378 depending on size | Retailer |
| Microchip and rabies vaccination | Set by your clinic | Your vet |
| EU animal health certificate | Set by your clinic | Your vet |
| Airline live animal processing | $150 per air waybill | Airline |
| Import permit | None | Not applicable |
| Rabies titer test | Not required from the USA | Not applicable |
| Quarantine | None for a compliant pet | Not applicable |
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.
Which Greek islands can clear a pet, and which cannot
A pet arriving in Greece from outside the EU has to be checked at a designated entry point. On the mainland that means Athens International at Spata or Thessaloniki Macedonia airport, the ports of Piraeus and Thessaloniki, or one of the land and rail crossings at Evzoni, Eidomeni, Kakavia, Peplos, Ormenio, Promachonas and Neos Kafkasos.
Greece also designates a fixed list of island entry points: Rhodes, Kos, Kalimnos, Mitilini on Lesbos, Mirina on Limnos, Chios, Samos, Ermoupolis on Syros, Argostoli on Kefalonia, Iraklio and Chania on Crete, and Corfu. Santorini and Mykonos are not on that list. An animal cannot be cleared into Greece at either of them, so a move to Santorini is an Athens or Iraklio arrival with a domestic leg afterwards, and that leg has to be planned around the ferry or the airline that will actually take a crate.
The certificate model changed, and there are two dates
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 Greek 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.
What the tables leave out
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.
What moves the price
Crate size is the single biggest lever, because it drives chargeable weight. On a Greek move the second lever is the domestic leg, since an island address means an onward flight or ferry after the entry check and not every operator carries animals in summer. Season matters more here than on most EU routes: summer heat embargoes narrow the booking window at exactly the time of year the route is busiest.
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, so tell us the breed when you ask for a quote.
Figures and sources
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. Greek entry points and the island list from the document the Commission publishes for Greece, which also records that each post must hold isolation space for animals refused entry and must have an ISO 11784 or 11785 microchip reader. Certificate changeover dates from the USDA APHIS country page for Greece, 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.
Want this priced for your pet and dates?
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 Greece, or compare other routes on the pet shipping cost calculator.
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