How Much Does It Cost to Ship a Pet from the USA to Poland?

The endorsement sits in the $101 band because the United States is a listed country for EU entry and no rabies titer test is required. APHIS does not count rabies vaccinations toward the number of tests on a certificate, so the vaccination on its own does not push the fee into a higher band. Where a test is required the same schedule charges $160 for the first animal and $10 for each additional animal. The fee is per certificate rather than per pet, so two animals on one certificate costs far less than two separate certificates.

Every pet arriving in the EU from a third country has to pass through a designated point of entry, which the EU calls a travelers’ point of entry, where the competent authority checks the paperwork and reads the microchip. In most member states that means one or two airports for the whole country. Poland designates twelve: Warsaw Chopin, Warsaw Modlin, Krakow Balice, Gdansk Rebiechowo, Katowice Pyrzowice, Wroclaw Strachowice, Poznan Lawica, Rzeszow Jasionka, Szczecin Goleniow, Lodz Lublinek, Lublin Swidnik and Bydgoszcz, alongside road and rail crossings on the eastern border.

That is a cost fact more than a paperwork one. A move to Krakow or Gdansk does not have to land in Warsaw and then travel onward by road, which takes a ground leg and several hours out of the animal’s day. Sweden, by comparison, designates two airports for the entire country.

The EU replaced its non-commercial pet movement rules in 2026. 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. The animal health certificate model is Part 1 of Annex III to 2026/705. A certificate on the old Annex IV model still counts as compliant if it was issued before 1 October 2026, and only until a transitional period ends on 31 March 2027. From the United States that window has closed in practice: APHIS says the new non-commercial certificates took effect on 1 October 2026 and that old ones already in process could be endorsed only up to 30 September 2026, so a certificate endorsed now is on the new model. Once your pet has been checked at the point of entry, the same certificate covers onward movement inside the EU for six months, or until the rabies vaccination expires if that comes first.

A pet moving without its owner, the case set out further down, travels on the EU’s commercial certificate instead, and APHIS dates its new model from 17 October 2026, with old ones already in process endorsable up to 16 October 2026. None of this changes what the move costs. What it changes is which form your accredited veterinarian completes and which form the APHIS endorsement office will accept. APHIS gives a non-commercial certificate 30 days from the day your accredited veterinarian issues it, and USDA has to endorse it within 10 days of your pet’s arrival in the EU. On a Polish move we confirm which certificate applies with the endorsing office before the vet appointment is set, because a rejected form means a new appointment, a second endorsement fee and a missed flight.

Your vet sets their own fees. The examination and the certificate paperwork are priced by your clinic and vary between practices. Ground transport at either end depends on the distance. Both are inside the all-inclusive, door to door range at the top of this page, and the quote for your pet prices each one.

One thing the table cannot show. These figures assume the pet travels with its owner, or with a person the owner designates who travels no later than 5 days after the owner, the two cases APHIS puts on the non-commercial certificate. Where that is not the case the EU treats the move under its commercial entry rules instead, which bring a registered establishment of origin, a registered destination, a registered transporter and clearance at a border control post rather than a point of entry. That is a different job at a different price, so tell us your own travel dates early and we will tell you which one you are in.

Crate size is the single biggest lever, because it drives chargeable weight. Direct routings cost more per kilogram than they look but remove transfer handling, which on a Polish move usually comes down to choosing between a hub connection and a longer day for the animal. Season matters too: summer heat embargoes narrow the booking window and winter cold rules do the same. Two pets on one certificate share the USDA endorsement, while each extra pet adds its own crate and freight, up to the EU maximum of five animals in a non-commercial movement. Breed rules are set nationally and separately from the EU entry conditions, so tell us the breed when you ask for a quote.

Freight calculated from the American Airlines Cargo published live animal tariff. Endorsement fees from the USDA APHIS Veterinary Services user fee schedule. EU entry conditions from the European Commission page on bringing a pet into the EU from a non-EU country, the listing that exempts the United States from the rabies titer test, and the Commission list of travelers’ points of entry. Polish points of entry from the list the Commission publishes for Poland, an appendix to the Ordinance of the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development of 1 February 2016. Certificate changeover dates from the USDA APHIS country page for Poland, read 1 October 2026, and from Article 6 of Implementing Regulation (EU) 2026/705. Government fees change, so every figure here is tied to the authority that publishes it. Verified September 2026.

Send us the route, the breed and roughly when you want to travel. Request a quote and we will reply with an itemized plan, a timeline and clear next steps. For entry rules and the full paperwork timeline, see our guide to pet shipping requirements for Poland, or compare other routes on the pet shipping cost calculator.