USA to Poland
Pet Shipping from the USA to Poland
We provide international pet transport from the USA to Poland, 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 Poland with delivery to your new address
Poland at a glance
Full requirementsAPHIS says the new EU non-commercial health certificates took effect on October 1, 2026, and that old ones already in process could be endorsed only up to September 30, 2026, so a certificate endorsed now is on the new model.
- Identification chip
- ISO 11784 and 11785 microchip, implanted before the rabies vaccination. A dose given first does not count
- Age at vaccination
- The animal has to be at least 12 weeks old on the day it is vaccinated against rabies
- Rabies dose
- Validity starts 21 days after the primary course is completed. A booster given before the previous dose lapses is valid immediately
- Antibody titer test
- Not required. The United States is listed in Annex II to Regulation (EU) 2026/636, which exempts it
- Certificate used
- The EU animal health certificate, model set out in Annex III to Regulation (EU) 2026/705, completed by a USDA accredited veterinarian. Poland’s General Veterinary Inspectorate, read October 29, 2026, asks that a certificate presented at a Polish point of entry be in Polish and English
Pet Shipping from the USA to Poland
Poland asks for no tests, so all of the work is in sequence and dates. The chip goes in before the rabies dose, or the dose does not count. The animal has to be at least 12 weeks old on the day it is vaccinated, and 21 days have to pass after that before it can enter. The certificate then lives 10 days, from the day it is issued to the day your pet is checked at the border.
The EU Rewrote These Rules in 2026
Regulation (EU) No 576/2013 and its companion 577/2013 governed moving a pet into the EU until 21 April 2026. The act now in force notes in its first recital that 576/2013 was formally repealed in 2021, and that Article 277 of Regulation (EU) 2016/429 kept it in effect for non-commercial pet movements until that date. The framework in force is Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2026/131, with two implementing regulations adopted on 20 March 2026 and applying from 22 April 2026: 2026/636, which carries the country lists, and 2026/705, which carries the document models.
Two things follow that matter to a move booked now. The certificate model changed on 1 October 2026, with old model certificates issued before that date accepted until 31 March 2027. And once your pet has been checked at the point of entry, the same certificate now covers onward travel inside the Union for up to six months, ending sooner if the rabies vaccination expires first.
APHIS’s Poland page, last modified September 2, 2026, now gives the same six months from the day of entry into the EU, as long as the rabies vaccination stays valid. Four months was the figure under the old rules. We plan to the regulation, and we say which source each date comes from.
Route details: USA to Poland
- Route
- USA to Poland
- Arrival airports
- With the owner: one of 12 airports on Poland’s list, e.g. Warszawa-Okęcie, Kraków-Balice, Gdańsk, Katowice. Unaccompanied: a border control post
- How the pet flies
- With the owner or a person they authorize, the owner traveling within 5 days either side; up to 5 pets. Unaccompanied: commercial rules (GIW)
- Advance notice
- Unaccompanied: notify the border vet ahead with CHED-A in TRACES, one working day (EC). With the owner: contact the officers on arrival
- Health certificate
- EU model from a USDA-accredited vet; USDA endorses it in ink within 10 days of EU arrival (APHIS). In Polish and English (GIW)
- Quarantine on arrival
- Customs (KAS) check papers and identity. A failing pet is sent back, isolated at the owner’s cost, or put down if neither can be done (GIW)
- Time to get ready
- At least 21 days: chip, then rabies shot at 12 weeks or older, then 21 days; no titer from the USA; Poland admits no unvaccinated young pets
From official sources, read October 29, 2026: GIW, Przejścia graniczne i sankcje; Rozporządzenie Ministra Rolnictwa i Rozwoju Wsi z dnia 29 lipca 2022 r., list of travellers’ points of entry, annex point 3; European Commission, Travellers’ points of entry, Poland list; European Commission, Bringing a pet into the EU from a non-EU country; GIW, Przemieszczanie niehandlowe z krajów trzecich do UE; GIW, Psy, koty, fretki; Główny Inspektorat Weterynarii, Psy, koty, fretki; European Commission, Dogs, cats and ferrets: FAQs; USDA APHIS, Pet Travel From the United States to Poland; European Commission, Entry into the EU; GIW, Świadectwo zdrowia; GIW, Szczepienie przeciwko wściekliźnie; European Commission, Listing of territories and non-EU countries.
What Happens at the Polish Border
Which Pets Can Go
Poland’s veterinary inspectorate describes no quarantine period for a dog or cat that meets the conditions. What Poland runs is a documentary and identity check at the point of entry: the officer reads the certificate, checks the chip against it, and your pet continues with you.
That puts the whole weight on the certificate. It has to be on the right model, still inside its 10 days, and consistent with the chip number and the vaccination record, because it is read after you land, not before you fly. Its last page is a declaration, completed and signed by the owner or a designated person, and APHIS asks that it stay with the pet and the certificate.
Before scheduling vet steps or flights, we confirm what applies to your pet against the two 2026 implementing regulations and the guidance published by Poland’s General Veterinary Inspectorate, so nothing in your plan rests on the repealed rules.
What vet work and documents does a pet need for Poland?
| What Poland checks | Poland, from the USA |
|---|---|
| Identification chip | ISO 11784 and 11785 microchip, implanted before the rabies vaccination. A dose given first does not count |
| Age at vaccination | The animal has to be at least 12 weeks old on the day it is vaccinated against rabies |
| Rabies dose | Validity starts 21 days after the primary course is completed. A booster given before the previous dose lapses is valid immediately |
| Antibody titer test | Not required. The United States is listed in Annex II to Regulation (EU) 2026/636, which exempts it |
| Certificate used | The EU animal health certificate, model set out in Annex III to Regulation (EU) 2026/705, completed by a USDA accredited veterinarian. Poland’s General Veterinary Inspectorate, read October 29, 2026, asks that a certificate presented at a Polish point of entry be in Polish and English |
| USDA endorsement | Required. APHIS asks that endorsement happen within 10 days of your pet arriving in the EU |
| Life of the certificate | 10 days, from the date of issue by the official veterinarian to the documentary and identity checks at the point of entry. APHIS counts 30 days from the accredited veterinarian’s signature, so the endorsement is the date that matters |
| Traveling on inside the EU | Six months from those checks, or until the rabies vaccination expires, whichever comes first |
| New certificate model | Required from 1 October 2026. Certificates issued on the previous model before that date are accepted until 31 March 2027. APHIS dates the new commercial certificate, for a pet moving without its owner, from 17 October 2026 |
| Animals per person | Five or fewer for a non-commercial move. More than five needs proof of a competition, exhibition or sporting event, with every animal over six months old |
| Owner travel window | Your pet travels with you, or with a person you authorize, and your own trip falls within 5 days before or after your pet’s, as the European Commission and Poland’s General Veterinary Inspectorate put it, both read October 29, 2026. Otherwise the move becomes commercial |
| Tapeworm treatment | Not for Poland. APHIS requires it only for dogs going to Finland, Malta, Ireland including Northern Ireland, and Norway |
| Where you may land | A travelers’ point of entry designated by Poland, where documentary and identity checks are carried out |
| Quarantine | None for a pet that meets the conditions |
| Animals too young to qualify | Poland applies no derogation for unvaccinated young animals, so the age floor is real. See the timeline below |
| Realistic lead time | About 3 to 6 weeks when the rabies vaccination is already in date, set by the veterinary appointments and the USDA endorsement |
Planning Timeline for Pet Shipping to Poland
Plan on roughly 3 to 6 weeks for a pet whose rabies vaccination is already in date. Almost none of that is waiting. It is a veterinary appointment for the examination and the certificate, then the USDA endorsement, then a flight that has to depart and arrive inside the certificate’s ten days.
If this is your pet’s first rabies vaccination, add 21 days before it can enter, and check the age first. The animal has to be at least 12 weeks old on the day it is vaccinated, so the earliest a puppy or kitten can legally land in Poland is around 15 weeks. Poland does not operate the derogation some member states use for younger animals: its veterinary inspectorate states plainly that Polish rules do not permit young dogs, cats or ferrets to be brought in without a valid rabies vaccination.
Planning the budget: See our breakdown of what pet shipping costs, fee by fee. Moving elsewhere in the EU: we also cover Germany and Ireland.
You can price the route on our pet shipping cost calculator, and our USDA health certificate guide covers the endorsement step. Moving to Norway instead? It sits on its own paperwork and adds a tapeworm rule, and our Norway page explains both.
For a line by line breakdown of what this move costs, from freight to the USDA endorsement fee, see our USA to Poland pet shipping cost page.
Every Pet Travels
Differently
Different destinations, different routes, different challenges.
Because the European rules behind this route were rewritten in 2026, we work from the regulation in force rather than a summary written before it changed.
Destination-Focused Planning
We work from the 2026 European regulations and the USDA endorsement process, then turn them into a checklist and a dated timeline you can follow.
Smart Routing and Logistics
We choose routes that land at a point of entry designated for animals, and confirm the connection works for your pet before anything is booked.
Personalized Support
Pet Travel Advisors assigns a move coordinator who counts the certificate's ten days backwards from your flight and holds the endorsement slot that fits inside them.
Questions about moving a pet to Poland
Request a QuoteDoes my pet need a rabies titer test for Poland?
No. The rabies antibody titration test applies to animals coming from countries that are not on the European Commission’s lists. The United States is listed in Annex II to Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2026/636, and animals traveling from a listed country are exempt. That is what keeps this route short: there is no three month wait for a blood result, which is the single biggest difference between Poland and a destination like Turkey or Indonesia.
How long is the EU health certificate valid?
Ten days at the border. The Commission runs them from the date the official veterinarian issues the certificate to the documentary and identity checks at the point of entry in Poland, and APHIS asks that USDA endorse it within 10 days of your pet arriving in the EU. APHIS counts the certificate as valid for 30 days from the day your accredited veterinarian issues it, so the endorsement date is the one your flight has to fit around. It is why the certificate is one of the last things prepared rather than one of the first.
Can I travel on to other EU countries afterwards?
Yes. Once your pet has passed the checks at the point of entry, the same certificate covers non-commercial movement within the Union for six months from the date of those checks, or until the rabies vaccination expires, whichever comes first. Six months is what the current regulation says, and it is what the European Commission and member state authorities publish.
Can I bring a puppy or kitten to Poland?
Not a very young one. Rabies vaccination cannot be given before the animal is 12 weeks old, and the vaccination is not valid for travel until 21 days after the course is completed, which puts the earliest realistic entry at about 15 weeks. Some EU countries operate a derogation that lets younger, unvaccinated animals in under conditions. Poland does not: its General Veterinary Inspectorate states that Polish rules do not allow young dogs, cats or ferrets to be brought into Poland without a valid rabies vaccination. Plan the litter’s travel date around the vaccination date, not the other way round.
How many pets can I take to Poland?
Five or fewer traveling with you counts as a non-commercial movement, which is the simple route. Above five it becomes a commercial movement with different paperwork, unless you can show the animals are going to a registered competition, exhibition or sporting event and each one is more than six months old.
How much does it cost to move a pet from the USA to Poland?
The government side is small and knowable: your accredited veterinarian’s charges for the examination, the vaccination if one is due, and the microchip if your pet does not have one, plus the USDA endorsement fee. There is no laboratory fee on this route because there is no titer test. The larger numbers are the airfare and the crate, and both depend on your pet’s size, the season and the routing. Our team quotes the whole thing line by line before you commit to anything.
How does Pet Travel Advisors handle a USA to Poland move?
We confirm which rules apply to your pet under the 2026 regulations, check the chip and vaccination order before anything else is booked, and build the calendar backwards from your flight so the certificate and the USDA endorsement land inside the ten day window. Then we choose a routing that arrives at a designated point of entry, prepare the crate and the airline paperwork, and tell you exactly what happens at the checks when you land. One coordinator stays with the move throughout.
Ready to start?
Book door-to-door pet relocation, or only the parts you need.