An Important Update for Guide Dog Users Traveling Internationally: CDC Relaxes Restrictions for Dogs Entering the United States from High-Risk-for-Rabies Countries if Dogs Have Received Rabies Immunization in the USA
On December 1, 2021, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention(CDC) announced revisions to rules regarding bringing dogs into the United States from countries at high risk for rabies. The rule change removes the previously announced requirement for a CDC Dog Import Permit, which since July of 2021 and until December 1, was required for any dog entering the United States from countries which have been determined to be at high risk for rabies. This change, which exempts dogs whose owners can verify their dogs’ having been immunized against rabies by a licensed veterinarian in the United States, represents good news for any guide and service dog handlers who plan to travel internationally with their dogs, since they will no longer have to comply with the time-consuming and somewhat burdensome process of obtaining a CDC Dog Import permit even before they embark on travel outside the USA with their dogs. If your guide dog has a current U.S.-issued rabies vaccination certificate signed by a licensed veterinarian; if your dog has been microchipped; if you can provide the printed certification of your dog’s rabies-protected status, — The rabies tag dangling from your dog’s collar is not acceptable proof! – and, this is important too, if you and your dog enter the United States through one of the 18 United States airports equipped with a CDC quarantine station, then you should be able to bring your guide dog into the USA without any difficulty.
If, for any reason, you cannot provide the certification, if your dog received their rabies vaccination in a country other than the United States, if you cannot produce the required paperwork, if your dog has not been microchipped or the chip cannot be read, if the rabies certification has expired, or if your plane is arriving at an airport that is not included on the list of 18 acceptable ports of entry, then you will be separated from your guide dog, and the dog will be returned to the country from which you departed (no matter how long or short your stay in that country was, and no matter how many connecting flights you took on your return trip from the country of departure), at your expense!
These are the 18 United States airports through which you and your dog will be permitted to return to the USA from international travel:
Anchorage (ANC)
Atlanta (ATL)
Boston (BOS)
Chicago (ORD)
Dallas (DFW)
Detroit (DTW)
Honolulu (HNL)
Houston (IAH)
Los Angeles (LAX)
Miami (MIA)
Minneapolis (MSP)
New York (JFK)
Newark (EWR)
Philadelphia (PHL)
San Francisco (SFO)
San Juan (SJU)
Seattle (SEA)
Washington DC (IAD).
Be sure to keep this list of approved ports of entry in mind when you make your international travel reservations.
GDUI recommends that you discuss the requirements for microchipping and up-to-date printed certification of your dog’s protected status against rabies with your veterinarian as soon as you begin planning for your trip abroad. If you are traveling to one of the countries at high risk of rabies, your dog must be microchipped before you leave the United States. Check with your school and/or with your veterinarian, to assure that your dog was chipped and that the chip is still readable. Carry a record of the chip number along with the other paperwork that you will be required to present when you and your dog return to the United States. You will also, of course, need to be aware of and comply with any U. S. Department of Agriculture requirements or those of your destination country that apply to traveling internationally with your guide dog. Visit this link for further information:
We are pleased that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has removed what many guide dog users found to be overly burdensome requirements for obtaining a special CDC Dog Import Permit to bring dogs into the USA. After all, as blind and visually impaired people who depend on our dogs for independence and safe travel, we are highly committed to maintaining our dogs’ health and wellness and safety from the first minute we grab onto that harness handle and from then on, throughout our dogs’ lives.
If, for some reason – for example, if your dog received their rabies immunization in a country different from the USA, or your dog was never microchipped, or the chip is no longer readable – you cannot comply with the requirements to bring your dog into the United States, you will still need to obtain a CDC Dog Import permit to bring your guide dog with you into the country, visit this link for detailed instructions and further information: https://www.cdc.gov/importation/bringing-an-animal-into-the-united-states/dogs.html
We encourage all guide dog users who plan to travel internationally with their dogs to maintain an awareness of CDC regulations that can impact your travel plans. Visit this page for the latest regulations: https://www.cdc.gov/importation/bringing-an-animal-into-the-united-states/dogs.html
We share concern for all of our health and safety with the CDC, and we wish you and your guide dogs safe travels.