Moving a dog into, out of or around India
Every corridor on this site was written with a dog in mind. What changes from one move to the next is the country at the other end, the airline, and sometimes the shape of his nose.
The thing to know first
A snub-nosed breed. A Pug or a Shih Tzu can be refused by the airline that's cheapest or quickest, so the breed is the first thing we ask after your date.
01 · Leaving India
The AQCS export check, plus whatever the new country asks.
We check The breed list and the minimum age differ by airline. We check this for your route before anything is booked.
- To leave India, the pet goes to the AQCS quarantine office with the papers, by appointment, 7 days before the flight. AQCS asks for a fit to fly certificate from a local registered vet, the microchip certificate, the vaccination record, the owner's passport and ticket, two photographs, and whatever the new country asks for, like a permit or a titre. The export certificate is valid for 10 days.AQCS, requirements for export of pets out of India, checked 5 Oct 2026
- For the USA, a dog that's been in India follows the CDC's high risk country route: the chip before the vaccine that counts, a titre, CDC forms and a booked place at a registered facility at the arrival airport.US CDC, dogs from high risk countries, checked 1 Sep 2026
- Canada takes a personal pet dog from India with a current rabies vaccination certificate, and there's no quarantine for pet dogs. Commercial dogs from high risk rabies countries, India included, have been barred since 28 September 2022.CFIA, importing dogs into Canada (commercial dogs from high risk rabies countries), checked 5 Oct 2026
- Emirates SkyCargo doesn't carry snub-nosed dog breeds or their crosses, from Pugs and Bulldogs to Shih Tzus and Boxers, except under set conditions in its winter season, November to April. It asks for dogs to be at least 15 weeks old, and up to 27 weeks from a high risk country.Emirates SkyCargo, Emirates Pets leaflet, checked 5 Oct 2026
02 · Coming into India
The baggage rule or a DGFT licence, then the Advance NOC.
- Up to two pets, dogs or cats, can come in as baggage with an owner who's moving residence to India after at least two years of continuous stay abroad. Anyone else needs a DGFT import licence first, and DGFT says to start about two months ahead because its committee meets once a month.DGFT, FAQ on import of pets, checked 5 Oct 2026
- Since the AQCS SOP of 10 August 2026, the Advance NOC for a dog or cat coming in under the baggage rules is applied for on CBIC's ATITHI 2.0 portal, at least 7 days before boarding. Airlines don't lift a pet without it.AQCS, SOP for import of pet dogs through ATITHI 2.0 (10 Aug 2026), checked 5 Oct 2026
- DGFT doesn't allow dogs for breeding or other commercial purposes, and newborn puppies under 7 months aren't allowed.DGFT, FAQ on import of pets, checked 5 Oct 2026
- No rabies titre test is needed to bring a dog into India. A dog that fails the arrival check goes to 15 days of quarantine, with testing at the owner's cost.AQCS, SOP for import of pet dogs through ATITHI 2.0 (10 Aug 2026), checked 5 Oct 2026
03 · Within India
No border, so it comes down to the airline and the crate.
We check Airline rules on breeds, weights and the hot months change. We check this for your route before anything is booked.
- Air India carries dogs and cats on domestic flights: in the cabin up to 10 kg with the soft carrier, as checked baggage up to 32 kg in a hard IATA crate, and as cargo above that.Air India, travelling with pets, checked 5 Oct 2026
- Akasa Air's conditions of carriage define pets as domesticated cats and dogs, and nothing else. Since May 2024 the cabin limit is 10 kg including the container.Akasa Air, conditions of carriage ("Pets" means domesticated cats and dogs), checked 5 Oct 2026
- IndiGo's own pages say it doesn't carry pets, apart from guide dogs.IndiGo, baggage policy, checked 5 Oct 2026
- Inside India, the Transport of Animals Rules want a qualified vet's certificate that a dog or cat is fit to travel by rail, road, sea or air, and the carrier has to refuse the animal without one.AWBI, Transport of Animals Rules, 1978, checked 5 Oct 2026
The longer version.
A dog's move starts with a chip and a rabies vaccine in the right order, then whatever the new country adds: a titre and a wait for the UK and Europe, CDC forms and a booked facility for the USA, a quarantine place for Singapore. We read those rules off each authority's own page, and the corridor pages carry the detail.
The airline matters as much as the border. Emirates won't carry snub-nosed breeds like Pugs, Shih Tzus and Boxers outside its winter window, and some carriers won't take them in the hold at all. So the breed shapes the route before we look at a single fare.
Coming home to India is a different file. It's the baggage rule or a DGFT licence first, then an Advance NOC on ATITHI 2.0. And city to city inside India, it's mostly about which airline will say yes for your sector and month.
We don't sedate. We crate train at home, in the room he already knows, so the crate is the one familiar thing on a strange day.
Moving a dog?
Tell us where from, where to and roughly when. The message is written for you.
Hi, I'd like to move my dog.
Where every fact on this page comes from
- AQCS, requirements for export of pets out of IndiaChecked 5 Oct 2026
- US CDC, dogs from high risk countriesChecked 1 Sep 2026
- CFIA, importing dogs into Canada (commercial dogs from high risk rabies countries)Checked 5 Oct 2026
- Emirates SkyCargo, Emirates Pets leafletChecked 5 Oct 2026
- DGFT, FAQ on import of petsChecked 5 Oct 2026
- AQCS, SOP for import of pet dogs through ATITHI 2.0 (10 Aug 2026)Checked 5 Oct 2026
- Air India, travelling with petsChecked 5 Oct 2026
- Akasa Air, conditions of carriage ("Pets" means domesticated cats and dogs)Checked 5 Oct 2026
- IndiGo, baggage policyChecked 5 Oct 2026
- AWBI, Transport of Animals Rules, 1978Checked 5 Oct 2026