Preparing from scratch takes about 4 weeks, wherever you fly from.
Democratic Republic of the Congo sets its own requirements for bringing in dogs and cats. From any departure country your pet needs microchip, rabies vaccination, additional vaccination and veterinary health certificate. The rules are the same for dogs and cats.
Order matters more than the list: the microchip goes in before the rabies vaccination, or the vaccination does not count. 2 carriers in our directory fly direct to Democratic Republic of the Congo, and their pet conditions differ.
Free, no signup: timings, documents and airlines for your pet
2 airlines in our directory fly direct to and from Democratic Republic of the Congo. Their conditions differ — the cabin weight limit, whether they carry pets in the hold, the fee and breed restrictions — so it is worth choosing the carrier before buying the ticket.
| Airline | Cabin | Hold | Cabin fee | Direct flights |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ethiopian Airlines no snub-nosed breeds in the hold · no snub-nosed breeds in the cabin |
✓ up to 8 kg | ✓ up to 45 kg | — | from 3 cities in 3 countries |
| Kenya Airways | no pets | ✓ up to 150 kg | — | from 2 cities in 2 countries |
Showing the 2 carriers serving the most cities out of 2 with direct flights. Schedules: AeroDataBox, AirLabs, Travelpayouts; pet conditions come from our airline directory.
The limits people find out about last: how many animals one person may bring, the minimum age and which breeds are turned away at the border.
These are the country's rules. Airlines refuse some breeds on their own — their limits are in the carrier table above.
The full list of documents and procedures for entering Democratic Republic of the Congo. Every item carries its official source and last-checked date, and is marked as always required or required only from some departure countries.
Although not required, pets should be identified with a 15-digit pet microchip which is compliant with International Standards Organization standard 11784 or Annex A of ISO standard 11785 prior to entering the Democratic Republic of the Con
All cats and dogs must be vaccinated for rabies between 30 days and 12 months prior to entering the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Dogs only. Dogs must be vaccinated against distemper, hepatitis, leptospirosis, and parvovirus.
A licensed veterinarian in the origination country must complete the health certificate within 10 days of entry. A government veterinarian must either issue the certificate or endorse the certificate after issuance by a licensed veterinaria
The order matters more than the list: a step done too early has to be repeated. The intervals come from the same rule fields the engine uses for the earliest departure date.
Steps marked “depends on origin” are not needed by everyone — see the table above or check your own route.
The requirements are the same whichever country you fly from — this country draws no distinction between departure countries. Below is the same engine answer on six examples, counted from zero: no microchip and no vaccination yet, preparation starting today.
| From | Microchip | Rabies jab | Other vaccines | Health certificate | Earliest departurepreparing from scratch | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 🇬🇧 United Kingdom | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | October 24, 2026 | Plan → |
| 🇫🇷 France | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | October 24, 2026 | Plan → |
| 🇹🇷 Turkey | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | October 24, 2026 | Plan → |
| 🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | October 24, 2026 | Plan → |
| 🇨🇳 China | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | October 24, 2026 | Plan → |
| 🇺🇸 United States | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | October 24, 2026 | Plan → |
If the microchip and vaccination are already done, the wait is shorter: the clock runs from the vaccination date, not from today. Breed, weight and connections change the answer too — check your own route with the form above.
The country's rules place no restriction on the arrival airport. Below are airports with direct flights; marked where we have documented the arrival procedure.
From any country: microchip, rabies vaccination, additional vaccination, veterinary health certificate.
No, a titre test is not required for entry.
The country's rules list no breed bans. Individual airlines have their own restrictions — see the carrier table.
For example: Ethiopian Airlines. The full list with conditions is in the table above.