USA to Belgium
Pet Shipping from the USA to Belgium
We provide international pet transport from the USA to Belgium, planned around the EU’s entry rules, the season and your move date.
Book door-to-door pet relocation, or only the parts you need.
- Airline booking
- The travel crate
- The export and import paperwork
- Check-in at your US airport
- Pickup in Belgium with delivery to your new address
Belgium at a glance
Full requirementsBelgium’s health service sets the rabies vaccination at 12 weeks at the earliest and at least 21 days before departure, and the European Commission keeps younger animals out of the EU from outside it, so a pet travels to Belgium at 15 weeks at the earliest.
- Microchip
- ISO 11784 and 11785, fitted before the rabies vaccination, or a legible tattoo applied before July 3, 2011
- Rabies vaccination
- From 12 weeks, after the chip; a first shot needs 21 days, a booster with no lapse none
- Rabies titer
- Not asked of pets from the United States, an Annex II country under Implementing Regulation 2026/636
- Health certificate
- Endorsed by USDA within 10 days of arrival in the EU
- Minimum age
- 15 weeks
Pet Shipping from the USA to Belgium
A pet goes to Belgium on the EU’s sequence, first the microchip, the rabies vaccination after it and the EU animal health certificate last, checked at the point of entry. For a plain overview of international moves first, start with our international pet relocation page, and for a pet coming the other way, into the United States, see our US import guide.
Which route does a pet take into Belgium?
A pet from the United States has to come in through one of the travelers’ points of entry Belgium has designated, where officials check its documents and identity, as the European Commission’s list sets out for every EU country. The airline and the routing are chosen around those points, your pet’s size and the season.
Route details: USA to Belgium
- Route
- USA to Belgium
- Arrival airports
- A travelers’ point of entry Belgium designates (EC list). Arriving by air, you go straight to Customs, which checks the pet (FASFC)
- How the pet flies
- With you, or a person you authorize within 5 days of your trip; up to 5 pets. Anything else follows the commercial rules (FASFC)
- Advance notice
- With its owner: Customs on landing, FASFC says. Commercial: a border control post given one working day’s notice (EC)
- Health certificate
- EU certificate from a USDA-accredited vet, valid 30 days (APHIS); USDA ink-signs it within 10 days of arrival in the EU
- Quarantine on arrival
- Customs checks the pet on landing. One that fails the rules may be isolated at home or quarantined, sent back or put down (FASFC)
- Time to get ready
- At least 21 days: chip, then rabies shot at 12 weeks or older, then 21 days; the EU lists the USA as needing no titer test
From official sources, read October 29, 2026: European Commission, Travellers’ points of entry; European Commission, Bringing a pet into the EU from a non-EU country; FASFC, Travelling to Belgium; FASFC, Type of movement: commercial or non-commercial movements of pet animals?; USDA APHIS, Pet Travel From the United States to Belgium; FPS Public Health, Everything you need to know about travelling with your pets; European Commission, Entry into the EU; European Commission, Listing of territories and non-EU countries.
What are the entry requirements for pets going to Belgium?
The short answer
Belgium applies the EU’s entry rules to a pet from the United States, a listed country: microchip identification, a rabies vaccination given once the chip is in, and an EU animal health certificate, which APHIS says USDA endorses within 10 days of the pet’s arrival in the EU.
Which pets can enter Belgium?
A pet from the United States can enter Belgium once it is identified by a microchip; Belgium’s health service accepts a tattoo instead only if it was applied before July 3, 2011 and is still clearly legible. More than five animals at once moves the trip onto commercial rules.
What vet work and documents does a pet need for Belgium?
Your pet needs a microchip fitted before the rabies vaccination, ISO 11784 and 11785 compliant or read with a scanner you bring, a rabies vaccination that has had 21 days to take effect if it is a first shot, and the EU animal health certificate, issued by a USDA-accredited veterinarian, valid for 30 days, and endorsed by USDA within 10 days of your pet’s arrival in the EU. The pet travels with you, or with a person you designate who travels no later than 5 days after you. Before travel, microchip numbers, dates, names and signatures are checked against each other. Once in Belgium, a dog or cat staying more than 6 months has to be registered in the DogID or CatID database within 8 days of arrival, and Belgium’s food safety agency, FASFC, read October 29, 2026, says your vet can help with it.
| Requirement | Belgium, from the United States |
|---|---|
| Microchip | ISO 11784 and 11785, fitted before the rabies vaccination, or a legible tattoo applied before July 3, 2011 |
| Rabies vaccination | From 12 weeks, after the chip; a first shot needs 21 days, a booster with no lapse none |
| Rabies titer | Not asked of pets from the United States, an Annex II country under Implementing Regulation 2026/636 |
| Health certificate | Endorsed by USDA within 10 days of arrival in the EU |
| Minimum age | 15 weeks |
The export side follows USDA APHIS guidance for US to Belgium travel and the EU entry rules the European Commission’s pages on moving pets. Belgium’s own conditions come from its health service’s page on traveling with pets, last updated September 18, 2025.
Planning Timeline for Pet Shipping to Belgium
A straightforward Belgium move takes about a month to six weeks once the chip and the rabies shot are current; a shot that has to be redone adds three weeks while its 21-day wait runs again. The certificate comes last: USDA endorses it within 10 days of your pet’s arrival in the EU, so the endorsement and the flight are booked together.
For a line by line breakdown of what this move costs, from freight to the USDA endorsement fee, see our USA to Belgium pet shipping cost page.
Rule change
The EU Rewrote These Rules in 2026
None of this changes what Belgium asks of your pet. It changes which form your accredited veterinarian completes and which form the APHIS endorsement office will accept, so we confirm the version in force before the vet appointment is booked. APHIS dates the new non-commercial certificate from 1 October 2026 and the new commercial one from 17 October 2026.
Read the full regulation history
Regulation (EU) No 576/2013 and its companion 577/2013 set the rules for moving a pet into the EU until 21 April 2026. Recital 1 of the act now in force records that 576/2013 was repealed in 2021 but that Article 277 of Regulation (EU) 2016/429 kept it applying to non-commercial pet movements until that date. 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.
Two consequences matter to a move booked now. The animal health certificate model is now Part 1 of Annex III to 2026/705, and a certificate on the older Annex IV model counts as compliant only if it was issued before 1 October 2026, and then only for a transitional period ending 31 March 2027. And once your pet has been checked at the point of entry, the same certificate covers onward movement inside the EU for up to six months, or until the rabies vaccination expires if that comes sooner.
Every Pet Travels
Differently
Different destinations, different routes, different challenges.
Because timelines, airline rules, and the EU’s entry requirements can vary, we build a plan that fits your pet and your move date.
Destination-Focused Planning
We use Belgium’s official EU import guidance as the baseline, then turn it into a simple checklist and timeline you can follow.
Smart Routing and Logistics
We help choose practical routes, travel windows, and handoff procedures so your pet’s trip is safer and more predictable.
Personalized Support
Pet Travel Advisors assigns a move coordinator who keeps you updated and checks details before travel so nothing important is missed.
Questions about moving a pet to Belgium
Request a QuoteWhat does it cost to ship a pet from the USA to Belgium?
It depends on your pet’s size and crate, the airline, the season and which parts of the move you book. Our full cost breakdown for this route lists the government fees with the authority that publishes each, and a quote gives the figure for your move.
What crate does my pet need to fly to Belgium?
The airline sets the crate rules, building on IATA’s container standard, and your pet has to be able to stand, turn round and lie down in it. Our crate size calculator works out IATA’s minimum inside size from four measurements of your pet.
How can Pet Travel Advisors help with a USA to Belgium move?
With any part of it, or all of it: the airline booking, the travel crate, the USDA paperwork, check-in at the departure airport, and pickup at the Belgian airport with delivery to the new address. Learn more about our services or contact us.
Ready to start?
Book door-to-door pet relocation, or only the parts you need.