Flying with a Dog from Canada to the United States
7 min readSources checked
Airline and government rules change. Check your airline's current rules before you travel.
Quick answer
Every dog entering the United States needs its own CDC Dog Import Form receipt. Where the dog has been during the six months before entry decides which CDC process applies, and leaving from Canada does not by itself put the dog on the simpler route.
United States entry for a dog is a sequence of separate permissions, and the CDC form is only the first. This guide covers the form, the travel history that decides which CDC process applies, the microchip requirement, what the airline decides for itself, and the agencies whose requirements the CDC form does not satisfy.
Scope: United States entry requirements for a dog departing Canada, plus airline preparation and Canadian screening. Entry to the United States is one decision; the airline, USDA, the destination state and the return to Canada are others.
Part of: Flying with a Pet
What changes by airline
- Which CDC route applies, based on the countries the dog has been in
- Whether the airline accepts the dog in the cabin, as baggage or as cargo on that route and date
- Carrier or kennel dimensions, fees and check-in times
- Seasonal temperature restrictions
- What the destination state or USDA requires on top of CDC entry
Official rules: United States
United States: the CDC Dog Import Form
Every dog entering the United States needs its own CDC Dog Import Form receipt. The form is free, a separate form is required for each dog, and it is completed online. After you confirm the email address you receive a receipt that can be printed or shown on a phone.
If the dog has been only in dog-rabies-free or low-risk countries during the previous six months, the basic CDC requirements are straightforward: the dog must appear healthy, be at least six months old, and have a microchip readable by a universal scanner.
Official rules: United States
United States: three separate rules that each mention six months
These are three different requirements that happen to share a number. Treating them as one rule is how people arrive at the border with the wrong document.
First, an age requirement: the dog must be at least six months old at entry.
Second, a travel-history question: the countries the dog has been in during the six months before entry determine which CDC entry route applies. That is about where the dog has been, not how old it is.
Third, a validity period: a CDC Dog Import Form receipt can remain valid for six months, but only while the conditions stated on it continue to be met. CDC describes the receipt as valid for multiple entries over that period as long as the dog does not visit a high-risk country and the country of departure does not change.
Worth knowing: check the expiration date and the departure country named on the receipt before every trip, rather than assuming an old screenshot still works.
General advice: applies wherever you fly
Start with the dog's recent travel history
Make a list of every country the dog has been in during the six months before entry, including transit that involved entering a country. CDC publishes a current list of countries considered high risk for dog rabies, and a country that is not on that list is treated as dog-rabies-free or low risk for this process.
A flight leaving Canada does not by itself put the dog on the simpler route. A dog that visited a high-risk country during those six months falls under a different process even if it has lived in Canada since returning.
Official rules: United States and Canada
If the dog has been in a high-risk country
Stop and use the CDC Dog Importation Navigator. Vaccination history, where the vaccine was given, the supporting forms and the permitted port of entry can all change the route.
The Canadian Food Inspection Agency currently warns that a dog in Canada that has been in a high-risk country during the previous six months may not be eligible to enter the United States directly from Canada in some circumstances. The dog may need to wait six months in Canada, or travel directly from the high-risk country under the applicable CDC process. This is not something to resolve at airport check-in.
Official rules: United States
CDC entry is not the only requirement
CDC entry compliance does not replace USDA or destination-state requirements. Check those separately before travel.
The agencies ask different questions, and satisfying one does not answer another. Give yourself time to find out what the destination state expects, because a state requirement can involve a veterinary certificate issued within a fixed window.
General advice: applies wherever you fly
Check the microchip before anything else
The dog must have a microchip that a universal scanner can detect. Ask the veterinarian to scan it before travel and confirm that the number in the dog's records matches the number you will use on every form. A chip that exists but cannot be read does not satisfy the requirement.
Keep the registration contact details current. The import rule and the registry are different things, but correct registry information is what helps reunite you with the dog if it is lost.
General advice: applies wherever you fly
The airline decides separately
CDC permission does not reserve a place on the aircraft. Contact the operating airline before buying the ticket and confirm whether the dog may travel in the cabin, the baggage compartment or cargo on that exact route and date. Airlines set their own carrier or kennel dimensions, fees, age rules, seasonal temperature restrictions and check-in times.
A codeshare can create a dead end. If another airline operates one segment, ask that carrier directly, and do not accept the first airline's summary of a partner's policy.
If the dog will travel in the cabin, make sure it can stand, turn around and lie down in the accepted carrier. If it will travel outside the cabin, ask the veterinarian and the airline about fitness for the journey, kennel preparation and weather restrictions. Do not sedate a dog for air travel without specific veterinary direction.
Official rules: Canada
Canada: at the screening checkpoint
At a Canadian CATSA checkpoint a cabin pet comes out of the carrier while the empty carrier is screened. Ask for a private room before opening it if the dog is anxious or at risk of escaping.
Carry the CDC receipt, the airline confirmation, the microchip information and any veterinary documents the airline or the dog's risk category requires. Save copies offline so a poor signal is not the reason you cannot present them.
Official rules: United States and Canada
At arrival, and the trip home
On arrival the dog must appear healthy. An animal that appears ill can be subject to further review even when the documents are complete.
United States admission says nothing about the return. Check the CFIA import requirements for coming back to Canada before you leave. The dog's age, origin and vaccination record can affect what Canada requires, and the airline may ask for documents beyond the border minimum.
General advice: applies wherever you fly
Checklist
Checklist
- List every country the dog has been in during the previous six months
- Check the current CDC high-risk-country list
- Complete one CDC Dog Import Form for each dog
- Confirm the receipt is current and names the right departure country
- Confirm the dog is at least six months old at entry
- Have the microchip scanned and verify its number
- Check USDA and destination-state requirements separately
- Reserve the dog with every operating airline
- Check carrier, kennel, fee, temperature and check-in rules
- Save all documents offline and carry printed backups
- Request private CATSA screening if opening the carrier is risky
- Check Canada's requirements for the return trip
General advice: applies wherever you fly
Next step
Write out the dog's six-month travel history before completing any form. It decides which CDC route applies, and everything else follows from that.
Official sources
Rules and amounts change. Before you rely on anything marked as an official rule, check the source. These are the official pages we used.
- Dog Import Form and Instructions · Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
- Dogs from Dog-Rabies-Free or Low-Risk Countries · Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
- High-Risk Countries for Dog Rabies · Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
- Dog Importation Navigator · Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
- Dogs Travelling to the United States · Canadian Food Inspection Agency
- Flying with Animals and Pets · Canadian Air Transport Security Authority (CATSA)
Next step
Flying with a PetRelated guides
- Airline Pet Policies: What to Check Before You BookCabin, checked and cargo pet travel, service and emotional support animals, and destination entry rules: what varies, and where to confirm it.
- Flying to Toronto with a Pet: Canada's Entry Rules for Dogs and CatsWhat Canada requires for pet dogs and cats arriving by air, and what to confirm with your airline before booking a flight to Toronto.
- Flying with a Cat in the CabinReserving the cat's place, the two tests a carrier has to pass, what happens at a Canadian checkpoint, and why cabin acceptance and border permission are separate.