USA to Mexico
Pet Shipping from the USA to Mexico
We provide international pet transport from the USA to Mexico, 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 export and import paperwork
- Check-in at your US airport
- Pickup in Mexico with delivery to your new address
Mexico at a glance
Full requirementsAPHIS says that from August 3, 2026, Mexico requires New World screwworm documents for pet dogs and pet birds, so a dog now travels with an NWS Inspection Certificate signed by a USDA-accredited veterinarian.
- Screwworm certificate
- Dogs only. Signed by hand by a USDA-accredited vet no more than 5 days before entry, with no APHIS endorsement
- Health certificate
- Not needed for a pet arriving from the United States, nor a vaccination record, SENASICA says
- Carrier
- Clean, with no bedding, pads, newspaper, toys or treats, and food for the arrival day only; officials spray it at the inspection
- Cats
- Exempt from the screwworm certificate
Pet Shipping from the USA to Mexico
SENASICA, Mexico’s agricultural health service, inspects every arriving dog and cat at its office in the port, airport or border crossing where the pet comes in, and issues the pet’s import certificate there. If you would like a simple overview of international moves first, start with our guide to international pet shipping destinations. Bringing a pet the other way, into the United States? See our US import guide.
Which route does a pet take into Mexico?
By air, by road or by sea, through whichever port, airport or border crossing the trip ends at, since SENASICA keeps an office at each one. For a pet shipped as cargo, SENASICA advises confirming the requirements with the airline and considering a customs broker to release the animal. The team books the flight and checks your pet in at the departure airport.
Route details: USA to Mexico
- Route
- USA to Mexico
- Arrival airports
- Any airport, seaport or land border: SENASICA says its offices that issue the pet’s import certificate are at every point of entry
- How the pet flies
- With the owner, or as documented cargo: SENASICA says check the airline’s rules and consider a customs agent to release the pet
- Import certificate
- SENASICA’s zoosanitary import certificate (CZI), requested at and issued by its office when the pet arrives
- Health certificate
- Dogs: NWS inspection certificate signed by a USDA-accredited vet within 5 days before entry, no APHIS endorsement. Cats: none
- On arrival
- SENASICA inspects the pet at its office; with ticks, it is held until they are confirmed not exotic to Mexico or under a specific control program, APHIS says
- From August 3, 2026
- Mexico requires the NWS inspection certificate for pet dogs from the USA, APHIS says; cats are exempt
Work out your pet’s dates for this route
From official sources, read October 29, 2026: SENASICA, Requisitos y procedimientos para viajar a México con tu mascota; SENASICA, Inspección en aeropuertos; USDA APHIS, Pet Travel from the United States to Mexico; USDA APHIS, Instructions and NWS Inspection Certificate for Pet Dogs Moving from the United States to Mexico.
What are the entry requirements for pets going to Mexico?
The short answer
Mexico checks every pet at the inspection office when it arrives, and for a dog it adds the screwworm certificate, required since August 3, 2026. APHIS says a cat no longer needs a health certificate to enter.
Which pets can enter Mexico?
Dogs, cats, pet birds and chinchillas each have requirements of their own on APHIS’s Mexico page. The same page says Mexico refuses ferrets from any US state because of New World screwworm, and has refused non-research rabbits, pet rabbits included, since April 23, 2010, after rabbit hemorrhagic disease was reported in Minnesota. A bird needs a health certificate endorsed by APHIS plus a screwworm addendum, and Mexico turns away birds from states where highly pathogenic avian influenza has reached commercial poultry, though some counties free of it may still qualify.
At the inspection office, SENASICA staff check that the animal shows no sign of infectious or contagious disease, carries no external parasites and has no fresh or healing wounds. Ticks are sampled for diagnosis, and APHIS says the pet stays at the office “until it is confirmed that the specimens are not exotic to Mexico or subject to a specific control program,” with any costs falling to the importer. Ready to start? Request a quote.
What vet work and documents does a pet need for Mexico?
For a dog, an NWS Inspection Certificate for Pet Dogs. Your USDA-accredited vet examines the dog for screwworm, completes the form and signs it by hand in ink of a different color from the print, because APHIS’s instructions accept no digital signature. Border officials check the name and accreditation number against the USDA’s own records, and the original travels with the dog. It needs no APHIS endorsement, and adding a cat to it makes the form invalid.
A cat needs neither this form nor a health certificate, APHIS says. SENASICA’s page on entering Mexico with a pet, dated August 4, 2026, adds that a pet from the United States does not have to present a health certificate or a vaccination record, and APHIS’s instructions call the microchip optional on the dog form.
| Requirement | Mexico, from the United States |
|---|---|
| Screwworm certificate | Dogs only. Signed by hand by a USDA-accredited vet no more than 5 days before entry, with no APHIS endorsement |
| Health certificate | Not needed for a pet arriving from the United States, nor a vaccination record, SENASICA says |
| Carrier | Clean, with no bedding, pads, newspaper, toys or treats, and food for the arrival day only; officials spray it at the inspection |
| Cats | Exempt from the screwworm certificate |
Read on October 29, 2026: APHIS’s Mexico page, last modified October 27, 2026, with its instructions and form for the dog screwworm certificate, and SENASICA’s requirements for entering Mexico with a pet, dated August 4, 2026, in Spanish.
Planning Timeline for Pet Shipping to Mexico
Book the vet visit for the screwworm form late. APHIS counts the window back from the day the dog enters Mexico: its example is a dog entering on the 6th, whose form cannot be completed before the 2nd, and a date outside the window can mean the dog is refused or held at the border until the form is validated. SENASICA’s page counts it back from the trip instead, so when a drive to the border takes days, the vet date to book is one that meets both counts. The inspection and the import certificate both happen on arrival, SENASICA says, so the rest of the calendar follows the flight.
Planning the budget? See what shipping a pet from the USA to Mexico costs, fee by fee.
Considering Panama as well? Our Panama page covers the five vaccine list and the consular stamp that goes on after the USDA endorsement.
Every Pet Travels
Differently
Different destinations, different routes, different challenges.
Because timelines, airline rules, and Mexico’s entry requirements all affect each other, we build a plan that fits your pet and your move date.
Destination-Focused Planning
We use Mexico's official SENASICA import rules as the baseline, then turn them into a simple checklist 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 Mexico
Request a QuoteWhat does it cost to ship a pet from the USA to Mexico?
A dog or cat moving on this route runs about $2,500 to $6,000, all-inclusive and door to door for one pet. Crate size, which is what the airline charges on, and the season set where a move lands in that range, and a second pet costs extra.
Costs depend on your pet’s size and crate, the route and airline, and whether the move is door to door. The fastest way to get a real number is a quote based on your origin city and travel date. Request a quote here.
For the itemized breakdown, with every government fee linked to the authority that publishes it, see our full cost breakdown for this route.
How does Pet Travel Advisors help with a move to Mexico?
Pick the parts you want: the flight booked, a travel crate, the paperwork prepared and a dog’s screwworm form reviewed before the border, your pet checked in at the airport, and pickup when it lands in Mexico with delivery to your new address.
Ready to start?
Book door-to-door pet relocation, or only the parts you need.