The USDA is currently not recommending international pet travel due to significant delays in the travel certificate endorsement process. This includes service and emotional support animals.  Per the USDA, these delays are directly related to recent and significant reductions in their workforce.

Getting information about international requirements for traveling with pets is also very difficult right now.  Traveling to one or more of the nearly 200 countries can be complicated with countries, states, cities, and various other jurisdictions having their own rules.  The USDA previously helped keep track of all of this.  Their current USDA pet travel helpline currently has a message indicating voicemails and emails will not be returned. The USDA pet travel website has not been updated since 1/19/2025 and no longer represents up-to-date information regarding pet travel.

Health certificates require travel within so many days of examination.  It can be 5 days or 30 (with the most common being around 10 days).  The largest delays from the USDA are for certificates where an endorsed, hard-copy is required.  These not only face delays from the USDA but also lose a few days while mailing (overnight there and back).  It may be possible to still drive the certificate to a USDA office for endorsement, but it is unclear if these are open and appropriately staffed as they have been in the past.  While we used to have several offices in Florida, the USDA now says the closest office where endorsements can be obtained is in Raleigh, NC.  That makes the drive a bit impractical, to say the least.

We are able to submit certificates electronically for some travel destinations.  This can help expedite things too.  Yet, not all destinations recognize an electronically-endorsed certificate.  Additionally, we’ve had recent experience showing that this method is also facing serious delays with the certificates arriving VERY close to the time of travel.

Just to rub salt in the wound, the USDA is not refunding or waiving fees for certificates returned so late as to be useless or invalid.  Since these fees have to be paid at the time of submission, a pet owner must risk their money with the hope the certificate is returned by the USDA in time.  Bellalago Veterinary Hospital also cannot get your money refunded from the USDA – even for electronic submissions through us.  Of course, any examinations, diagnostics, treatments, vaccines, etc. which had to be performed prior to travel are also non-refundable.

We believe the desire to travel with a pet is held by all political persuasions, so we do not believe we’re taking any political sides with this message.  We recommend pet owners contacting their Congresspeople to encourage them to adequately staff and fund the USDA to provide this important function - especially for service animals!  We hope the USDA will be able to fulfill their Congressionally-mandated mission again soon.  In the meantime, we’ll do all we can to help get your pet’s travel certificate completed and endorsed, but we want pet owners to know the very real possibility it might not go the way it should normally.  For the time being, maybe traveling with your pet in the contiguous 48 states is best!  At least in that case, we don’t need to wait on the USDA’s endorsement!