Bringing your dog to the US from Thailand
Thailand is high risk for the CDC. The DLD titer laboratory, the Thai export papers, the arrival airport and the import permit for the return to Thailand.
Thailand on the CDC list
Thailand is on the CDC list of high-risk countries for dog rabies. Any dog that has been there during the last 6 months follows the high-risk rules, even for a short stay.
If your dog has also been in another country in the last 6 months, that country counts too.
What your dog needs
If your dog was vaccinated in the US
With the USDA-endorsed Certification of US-Issued Rabies Vaccination:
- CDC Dog Import Form receiptFree on cdc.gov. Show the receipt to the airline and at the border, on paper or on your phone.
- At least 6 months old on arrivalYounger dogs cannot enter the US, whatever their papers.
- A microchipAny brand, as long as a universal scanner can read it. Ask your vet to check it.
- Healthy on arrivalA dog that looks sick can be refused boarding or entry.
- A clear photo of your dogFace and body visible, .jpg or .png, up to 10 MB. Under 1 year old: taken within 15 days before arrival.
- Certification of US-Issued Rabies VaccinationFilled in by a USDA-accredited vet and endorsed by USDA before the dog left the US. Carry 3 copies.
If your dog was vaccinated outside the US
The most demanding pathway:
- CDC Dog Import Form receiptFree on cdc.gov. Show the receipt to the airline and at the border, on paper or on your phone.
- At least 6 months old on arrivalYounger dogs cannot enter the US, whatever their papers.
- A microchipAny brand, as long as a universal scanner can read it. Ask your vet to check it.
- Healthy on arrivalA dog that looks sick can be refused boarding or entry.
- A clear photo of your dogFace and body visible, .jpg or .png, up to 10 MB. Under 1 year old: taken within 15 days before arrival.
- Certification of Foreign Rabies Vaccination and MicrochipEndorsed by an official government vet of the country you leave, no more than 30 days before travel.
- Documents in EnglishOr with a certified English translation.
- Rabies titer test from a CDC-approved labRecommendedA blood test showing at least 0.5 IU/mL. Without it, your dog spends 28 days in quarantine at the facility.
- Booking at a CDC-registered animal care facilityThe facility examines your dog and gives a US rabies booster on arrival, at your cost.
- Direct flight to the facility’s airportNo connecting domestic flight before the facility has cleared your dog. No land crossing.
A dog that is not vaccinated against rabies cannot enter the US from Thailand.
Where your dog can arrive
Dogs vaccinated outside the US must land at one of these 8 airports, each with a CDC-registered animal care facility: ATL, DFW, IAD, JFK, LAX, MIA, PHL, SEA. US-vaccinated dogs with their certification can use any airport.
Local information
In short
- Thailand is on the CDC high-risk list. A dog that has been in Thailand in the last 6 months follows the high-risk rules, even a US dog on a trip.
- The CDC approved list includes one laboratory in Thailand, at the Department of Livestock Development.
- A dog vaccinated in Thailand must fly directly into a US airport with a CDC-registered animal care facility.
- To bring a dog back, Thailand asks for an import permit requested in advance by email.
Before you leave Thailand
Check the microchip date first. For a dog vaccinated outside the US, the CDC requires the chip to be implanted before the rabies vaccination. If your dog was vaccinated first, it needs a new vaccination after the chip, and every date that follows moves with it.
The CDC then asks for the Certification of Foreign Rabies Vaccination and Microchip, completed by your vet and endorsed by an official government veterinarian no more than 30 days before travel. In Thailand, animal health certification is run by the Department of Livestock Development (DLD), which operates Animal Quarantine Stations at the main airports. Ask your vet which DLD office endorses the certification and what appointment it needs. We could not confirm the local endorsement steps from public sources, so check with the Animal Quarantine Station at your departure airport.
A dog vaccinated in the US that has the Certification of US-Issued Rabies Vaccination, endorsed by USDA before it left the US, follows the US-vaccinated path and does not need a titer test or an animal care facility. See US-vaccinated dogs.
Getting a titer test from Thailand
The CDC list of approved laboratories includes one in Thailand, the National Institute of Animal Health, Department of Livestock Development. Ask your vet whether it accepts private samples, what it charges and how long the report takes, before you plan the date of the blood draw. If it cannot take your sample, another CDC-approved laboratory in a different country is acceptable, but the serum then has to travel.
The blood must be drawn at least 30 days after the rabies vaccination and at least 28 days before arrival in the US, with a result of at least 0.5 IU/mL. Without a valid titer, your dog faces a 28-day quarantine at the animal care facility. See the rabies titer test.
Flights to the US
A foreign-vaccinated dog from Thailand must fly directly into one of the US airports with a CDC-registered animal care facility, with a reservation there, and cannot take a domestic connection inside the US before the facility clears it. Bangkok is the main international airport, but nonstop flights to the US are limited, so check what your airline offers today. Most routes connect in Asia, the Gulf or Europe.
Choose the connection carefully. Your neighbors Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Malaysia, Vietnam and Indonesia are on the CDC high-risk list, and so are India, China (excluding Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan) and the Gulf states Qatar, Kuwait, Oman and the United Arab Emirates. Keep your dog airside and with the airline in a transit airport: clearing customs counts as having been there. See layovers and connections.
The CDC receipt for a high-risk dog covers one entry, on the date and at the airport you declared. If the flight changes, the form must be done again.
Coming back to Thailand
According to the Royal Thai Consulate-General in Chicago, which relays the DLD rules for dogs arriving from the US:
- apply for an import permit by email to the Animal Quarantine Station of your arrival airport (Suvarnabhumi, Phuket or Chiang Mai) at least 7 business days before departure; review takes about 3 to 7 business days and the permit is valid for 60 days;
- the dog needs rabies, distemper, hepatitis, parvovirus and leptospirosis vaccinations given at least 21 days before departure, and a microchip;
- an international health certificate issued by a USDA-accredited vet and endorsed by USDA APHIS Veterinary Services, valid for 10 days after endorsement. The station accepts original ink-stamped paper only;
- pets must be at least 4 months old; the consulate states there is no breed restriction;
- on arrival, you bring the dog and the originals to the Animal Quarantine Station, pay the entry fee of 500 baht per animal in cash, and get the station’s forms. A dog without signs of illness is normally not quarantined, but the officer can detain any animal.
The DLD page lists the requirements for importing dogs and cats and may be more recent than the consulate’s page, so compare the two before you travel.
Questions travelers ask
Does my dog need a titer test from Thailand for the US?
Yes, if it was vaccinated outside the US and has been in Thailand in the look-back window. Without a valid titer, the dog faces a quarantine at a CDC-registered animal care facility on arrival. Thailand has one laboratory on the CDC approved list, run by the Department of Livestock Development.
Is Thailand a high-risk country for the CDC?
Yes. Thailand is on the CDC list of high-risk countries for dog rabies. A dog that was there, even for a short holiday or on a layover where it cleared customs, follows the high-risk rules.
What do I need to bring my dog back to Thailand?
According to the Thai consulate in Chicago, an import permit from the Animal Quarantine Station of your arrival airport, applied for by email at least 7 business days before departure, plus an international health certificate issued by a USDA-accredited vet and endorsed by USDA, valid for 10 days. The dog needs vaccinations given at least 21 days before departure.
Is there a quarantine for dogs entering Thailand?
Dogs with complete papers and no signs of illness are normally not quarantined, but the quarantine officer can detain any animal. Check with the Animal Quarantine Station before you travel.
Ready to fill in the form?
Do it yourself, for free
The official CDC Dog Import Form is free. Use this page and fill it in on cdc.gov.
Or let us do it
We check your documents, file the form and send you the receipt. Our fee covers this service only.
Sources: CDC: Bringing a dog into the United States (opens in a new tab), CDC: High-risk countries for dog rabies (opens in a new tab), CDC: US-vaccinated dogs from high-risk countries (opens in a new tab), CDC: Foreign-vaccinated dogs from high-risk countries (opens in a new tab), CDC: Approved rabies serology laboratories (opens in a new tab), CDC: Registered animal care facilities (opens in a new tab), Royal Thai Consulate-General, Chicago: Bringing pets to Thailand (opens in a new tab), Department of Livestock Development: Requirements for importation of dogs and cats into Thailand (opens in a new tab)