Pet Shipping to Hawaii
We provide pet transport to Hawaii, planned around its import 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 import paperwork
- Check-in at your US airport
- Pickup in Hawaii with delivery to your new address
Hawaii at a glance
Full requirementsHawaii’s Animal Industry Division says a dog or cat that meets the pre-arrival and post-arrival requirements may qualify for the 5 Day Or Less program, with direct release at Daniel K. Inouye International Airport after inspection, while one that does not meet them all is held for up to 120 days.
- Microchip
- Electronic microchip, US or ISO standard, implanted no later than the FAVN blood draw
- Rabies vaccinations
- At least two in your pet’s lifetime, given more than 30 days apart. The most recent one more than 30 days before arrival and still inside the booster interval on its label
- FAVN titer test
- At an approved laboratory (Auburn University, Kansas State, the University of Missouri, or the DOD lab for DoD beneficiaries). Result must be 0.5 IU/ml or higher
- Waiting period
- 30 days, counted from the day after the laboratory receives the sample, and that day has to fall no more than 36 months before arrival
- Fees
- Set by the state, and listed beside every other line of the move on our USA to Hawaii cost page, so that no figure here can go stale while that one is right
Pet Shipping to Hawaii
Order and timing decide this move. Checklist 1 puts the electronic microchip in before the FAVN blood is drawn, not before the vaccinations.
Moving a pet out of Hawaii instead? Our pet transport from Honolulu page covers flights from HNL and the neighbor islands.
Which route does a pet take into Hawaii?
For Honolulu, Checklist 1 says no permit is required to fly into Daniel K. Inouye International Airport, and Advisory A on the animal quarantine information page, read on October 29, 2026, adds that none is issued. For Kona, Kahului and Lihue, that advisory says a Neighbor Island Inspection Permit must be shown to the airline before boarding, and that it will not be issued until an approved private veterinary facility on that island confirms it will carry out the inspection on arrival. Those owners send their documents 30 days or more ahead rather than 10. We book the flights around whichever path your address needs, and we arrange the ground legs at both ends.
The clock on arrival day belongs to the state rather than the airline. Hawaii’s Advisory B, read on October 29, 2026, gives inspection hours at Daniel K. Inouye International Airport as 8:30 in the morning to 4:30 in the afternoon, every day of the week including holidays (Checklist 1 has them opening at 8:00), and asks owners to have the flight on the ground by 3:30 because the airline can take an hour to bring an animal across to the holding facility. A pet that gets there later is kept overnight and released the following morning, and the advisory adds a charge for one not collected by ten. We book against those hours before anything else about the trip is fixed.
Route details: bringing a pet to Hawaii
- Route
- US mainland to Hawaii
- Arrival airports
- Honolulu (HNL); Kona (KOA), Kahului (OGG) or Lihue (LIH) only with a Neighbor Island Inspection Permit, HDOA says
- How the pet flies
- Where it rides is each airline’s call, HDOA says; in Honolulu the airline takes it, cabin pets too, to the airport quarantine facility
- Advance notice
- HDOA must receive the papers 10 days or more before a Honolulu arrival; 30 days or more, with a permit, for Kona, Kahului or Lihue
- Health certificate
- Original in English, done within 14 days of arrival, with a vet’s tick treatment and HDOA’s screwworm line; USDA APHIS does not endorse it
- Quarantine on arrival
- Every step met: Direct Airport Release in Honolulu or 5 Day Or Less. Otherwise up to 120 days, or out of state at the owner’s cost
- Rabies titer
- FAVN of 0.5 IU/ml or more at Auburn, Kansas State, Missouri or DOD; the day after the lab gets it falls 30 days to 36 months before arrival
- Time to get ready
- At least 4 months: HDOA’s figure for an adult pet that has had one rabies shot
Work out your pet’s dates for this route
From official sources, read October 29, 2026: Hawaii Department of Agriculture and Biosecurity, Animal Quarantine Branch, Animal Quarantine Information Page; Hawaii Department of Agriculture, Checklist 1 for Direct Airport Release & 5 Day Or Less Program, PDF; Hawaii Department of Agriculture, Checklist 2 for Requesting Direct Airport Release at Kona, Kahului and Lihue Airports, PDF; Hawaii Department of Agriculture and Biosecurity, FAQ for Animal Quarantine; Hawaii Rabies Quarantine Information Brochure, PDF; Hawaii Department of Agriculture and Biosecurity, FAQ for Five-Day-or-Less Program; USDA APHIS, Frequently Asked Questions About Traveling With Your Pet; USDA APHIS, Take a Pet From One U.S. State or Territory to Another; Hawaii Rabies Quarantine Branch, Summary for Veterinarians AQS-39, PDF; Hawaii Department of Agriculture and Biosecurity, Animal Quarantine Branch.
What are the entry requirements for pets going to Hawaii?
The short answer
Hawaii’s requirements come in two parts: the vet preparation, which is a microchip, two or more rabies vaccinations and a passing FAVN titer test followed by a waiting period, and a document package that has to reach the Animal Quarantine Station 10 or more days before the pet lands.
Import Eligibility for Pets
The two outcomes have names, and Hawaii uses them precisely. A dog or cat that satisfies every pre-arrival step qualifies for the 5 Day Or Less program, and direct release at the airport is the provision inside it for an animal whose paperwork and inspection are both clean on the day. Where a step is missing, Checklist 1 says the pet is denied direct release and held until the requirement is met, up to 120 days, or sent out of the state at the owner’s expense.
Planning the wider move? Our guide to relocating to Hawaii with pets covers settling in after release.
Before scheduling vet steps or flights, we confirm what applies to your pet with the Animal Quarantine Station itself, so nothing in your plan rests on a summary. Two eligibility questions are worth asking early. The information page, read on September 18, 2026, says non-domestic dogs and cats and hybrids such as wolf crosses, Dingoes, Bengals and Savannahs are prohibited under Hawaii’s plant quarantine law, which is a different branch from the rabies program. The same page says a puppy or kitten born today will be roughly six months old by the time the preparations are finished, while the quarantine branch page puts the minimum for a newborn at ten months. Where two readings differ we ask the station rather than pick one.
What vet work and documents does a pet need for Hawaii?
The sequence: an electronic microchip, US or ISO standard, and at least two rabies vaccinations in your pet’s lifetime given more than 30 days apart, the most recent still inside the booster interval printed on its label. That spacing is Checklist 1’s. For a pet starting from no vaccinations, the Rabies Quarantine Branch’s summary for veterinarians, AQS-39, asks for one month (30 days) or more between the two, and we follow the checklist. Then the FAVN rabies titer test at an approved laboratory (Auburn University, Kansas State, the University of Missouri or the DOD lab) with a result of 0.5 IU/ml or higher, and after it the wait, which Checklist 1 starts the day after the laboratory receives the sample. The information page, read on October 29, 2026, opens the DOD lab only to DoD beneficiaries authorized for treatment at DoD medical treatment facilities.
Finally, the document package has to reach the Animal Quarantine Station 10 days or more before your pet lands, which is also what separates the lower airport fee from the higher one. We track every one of these dates for you.
| Requirement | Hawaii, from the US mainland |
|---|---|
| Microchip | Electronic microchip, US or ISO standard, implanted no later than the FAVN blood draw |
| Rabies vaccinations | At least two in your pet’s lifetime, given more than 30 days apart. The most recent one more than 30 days before arrival and still inside the booster interval on its label |
| FAVN titer test | At an approved laboratory (Auburn University, Kansas State, the University of Missouri, or the DOD lab for DoD beneficiaries). Result must be 0.5 IU/ml or higher |
| Waiting period | 30 days, counted from the day after the laboratory receives the sample, and that day has to fall no more than 36 months before arrival |
| Fees | Set by the state, and listed beside every other line of the move on our USA to Hawaii cost page, so that no figure here can go stale while that one is right |
We keep your checklist aligned with the published rules, working from the animal quarantine information page and Checklist 1, both read on September 18, 2026. Hawaii asks for the Dog and Cat Import Form AQS-279, proof of both rabies vaccinations signed in ink by your veterinarian, and a health certificate in English done within 14 days of arrival, as the original rather than a photocopy. Checklist 1 also asks for a tick treatment inside that same 14 days, using a long acting product labeled to kill them and naming Revolution as one it will not accept, with its name and the date written onto that certificate.
One line on that certificate is new this year. The information page, read on September 18, 2026, says every animal needing one for import into Hawaii has to carry a statement that it was inspected and found free of evidence of New World Screwworm infestation, and it dates the first detection in the United States to June 3, 2026. Your veterinarian writes the line. We check that it is there before the package is sent.
Planning Timeline for Pet Shipping to Hawaii
Hawaii publishes its own minimum, and that is the number to plan against. The quarantine branch page, read on September 18, 2026, says an adult pet that has already had one rabies vaccination takes four months or more to qualify. For a newborn puppy or kitten the same page says ten. Those are floors rather than estimates. If your pet already holds a passing FAVN result from an earlier move and the day after the sample reached the laboratory is still inside 36 months, what is left is the document deadline, the health certificate and tick treatment described above, and making sure no vaccination has lapsed.
Planning the budget? See what shipping a pet from the USA to Hawaii costs, fee by fee.
Every Pet Travels
Differently
Different destinations, different routes, different challenges.
Destination-Focused Planning
We work from Checklist 1, which is the state’s own numbered guide to Direct Airport Release and the 5 Day Or Less program, and turn it into dates you can put in a calendar.
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 Hawaii
Request a QuoteHow much does it cost to move a pet to Hawaii?
The state’s own fees are published and exact, and this site keeps them on one page rather than two, so that a change at the quarantine station cannot leave a stale number sitting here. On top of them come the flight, the crate, the FAVN laboratory fee, and your veterinarian’s charges.
Every quote is built for your pet and route. The main components: the FAVN lab work, the program fees of Hawaii’s Department of Agriculture and Biosecurity, airline transport from the mainland, the crate, and door to door service on both ends. We price the full journey up front, program fees included.
For the full fee table with every state charge and its source, see our cost to ship a pet from the USA to Hawaii.
Does my pet have to quarantine in Hawaii?
Hawaii’s law puts every arriving dog and cat into its rabies program, and the preparation decides how long the stay is. Where every pre-arrival step is complete, the provision for direct release applies: the animal is inspected and released at the airport, on the day it lands if it reaches the holding facility inside Hawaii’s Advisory B inspection hours, or the next morning if it gets there later. Checklist 1 gives two outcomes for a pet that misses one: holding until the requirement is met, which can run to 120 days, or transport out of the state at the owner’s cost.
What are the most common reasons pets miss same day release?
Four repeat offenders: the titer blood draw done too close to travel, so the 30 day wait is not finished on the day the pet lands; documents reaching the quarantine station later than the 10 day cut off; two rabies shots given 30 days apart or less, which Checklist 1 does not accept; and a microchip that cannot be read on arrival, which Checklist 1 says disqualifies a pet from both direct release and the short program. Our sequencing exists to prevent all four.
How can Pet Travel Advisors help with a Hawaii move?
One coordinator owns your file: vet scheduling in the right order, the FAVN test and its 30 day clock, the document package to the Animal Quarantine Station, the crate, the flight, and a Honolulu arrival timed to the inspection hours, plus inter island connections when home is beyond Oahu.
Ready to start?
Book door-to-door pet relocation, or only the parts you need.