Bringing a dog or cat to Russia
Relatively easy. Up to 2 dogs/cats travelling with their owner need no permit and no quarantine, only a pet passport or certificate showing rabies vaccination and a vet exam within 14 days before departure. A microchip and titer are not generally required.
Which rules apply to you
Russia sorts arriving pets by where they travel from. Find your group, then follow its steps.
| Arriving from | Titer test | Wait after sample | Permit | Quarantine |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| All countries – up to 2 accompanied petsAny origin, for up to 2 dogs/cats for personal use travelling with their owner. Rules follow EAEU Commission Decision No. 317 (ch. 15 and 40), so the same rules apply across the EAEU. | No | — | No | Only if rules not met |
| More than 2 pets or unaccompaniedMore than 2 dogs/cats, or pets travelling without their owner. | No | — | Yes | Only if rules not met |
Step by step
Vaccinate
Give rabies vaccine at least 20 days before departure, and it must have been given within the last 12 months. Dogs also need distemper, hepatitis, parvovirus, adenovirus and leptospirosis; cats need panleukopenia.
Get the vet exam stamp
Have the pet examined by your country's competent veterinary authority within 14 days before departure. The mark goes in the international pet passport.
Use the right document
For up to 2 accompanied pets, the international veterinary passport serves as the certificate. Without a passport, or for unvaccinated puppies/kittens under 3 months, use veterinary certificate Form No. 15.
Enter at a vet-controlled checkpoint
Enter through a border checkpoint with veterinary control and present the pet and documents.
No quarantine for up to 2 personal dogs/cats with correct documents
Get a Rosselkhoznadzor permit
Apply via the Argus system. A Form No. 1 permit covers up to 5 animals for non-commercial keeping and is issued for one year.
Certificate Form No. 15
Use veterinary certificate Form No. 15 instead of the passport, and follow the pre-export quarantine conditions.
Pre-export quarantine in the country of residence is required for animals outside the 2-pet personal allowance
Good to know
- Cats
- Rabies plus panleukopenia; otherwise the same as dogs.
- How many pets
- 2 dogs/cats per person without a permit. Up to 5 with an annual Form No. 1 permit; more under standard import permits.
- Parasite treatment
- Not required by Rosselkhoznadzor rules
- Arrival
- Border checkpoints with veterinary control only; the list is on fsvps.gov.ru (punkty-propuska).
- No microchip is required: Rosselkhoznadzor states that unidentified animals may be imported for home keeping. A chip is still recommended and is needed for return to many countries.
- Russia has a government list of potentially dangerous dog breeds (Decree No. 974 of 2019) that restricts how such dogs are kept and walked, not their import.
- CITES species need CITES permits.
What we could not confirm
- The dangerous-breed decree (No. 974/2019) was not checked on an official page. Its effect on import is assumed to be none.
- The 20-day minimum after vaccination is from the FSVPS page. Some EAEU texts say 30 days, so confirm for first vaccinations.
Sources
Checked against official sources on 2026-10-28. Rules change: confirm with Rosselkhoznadzor (Federal Service for Veterinary and Phytosanitary Surveillance, FSVPS) before booking.