What is a pet health passport?
A pet health passport keeps your pet's records in one place to share with kennels and groomers. How it differs from an EU pet passport or export papers.
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A pet health passport is one place that holds your pet's health records: vaccinations, medications, allergies, microchip number and vet details. You keep it, and you share it with the people who look after your pet, like a boarding kennel, daycare, groomer or pet sitter. It is not an official travel document, and it does not replace the certificates your vet issues.
The name causes confusion, because "pet passport" means three different things depending on who you ask.
What are the three kinds of "pet passport"?
| Pet health passport | EU pet passport | Australian export paperwork | |
|---|---|---|---|
| What it is | Your own copy of your pet's records, in one place | An official identification document in a set EU format | An export permit and health certificate for leaving Australia |
| Who issues it | You keep it (on paper or in an app) | An authorised vet | The Department of Agriculture, after a check by its certifying vet |
| What it is for | Boarding, daycare, grooming, sitters, vet visits | Travel between EU countries | Taking a cat or dog out of Australia |
| Can an Australian get one? | Yes | Only through an authorised vet in the EU | Yes, when you export a pet |
What is an EU pet passport?
It is an official document for dogs, cats and ferrets travelling within the European Union. The EU's Your Europe site describes it as an identification document that follows an EU standard model and is mandatory for travel between EU countries. An authorised vet issues it, and it records the pet's microchip, health records such as rabies vaccination, and the owner's and vet's details.
Pets arriving in the EU from outside it, including from Australia, travel on an EU animal health certificate instead. Your Europe says it must be issued by an official state vet in the country of departure no more than 10 days before the pet arrives.
Does Australia use pet passports?
Not for bringing pets in. The Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry says plainly that Australia does not accept pet passports for importing cats and dogs.
Taking a pet out of Australia means meeting the destination country's rules and the department's export requirements. The department issues an export permit and health certificate only once it is satisfied the animal has been prepared for the importing country. The department also warns that a cat or dog loses its Australian health status as soon as it leaves, and that a pet not prepared before leaving must wait 180 days before it can return. If you are travelling overseas with your pet, start with the department, not an app.
So what is a pet health passport for?
Everyday pet admin. Every kennel, cattery, daycare and groomer asks for much the same things:
- Vaccinations: the vaccine, date given and date due. Most boarding kennels want a C5, and catteries an F3.
- Medications: names, doses and times.
- Allergies and conditions that affect care.
- Feeding instructions.
- Microchip number.
- Vet and emergency contacts.
Without one place to keep them, these live in old emails, a drawer and a camera roll. A pet health passport puts them together, with the original certificate attached, so you can send the same records to every venue instead of hunting for them each time.
Is a pet health passport an official record?
No. Your vet's records and certificates are the source. A pet health passport is your copy of them, organised and easy to share. Each kennel or groomer still decides what it accepts, and some will still ask to see the original certificate at check-in.
How do I start one?
You can keep a folder with copies of every certificate. Or use an app.
Tend Pass is a free pet health passport for dog and cat owners in Australia. You photograph a vaccination certificate, Tend reads the vaccine names and dates, and you confirm anything it is unsure about before it is saved. You then share your pet's records by link or QR code, choose what each venue sees, and turn a link off when you are done. If the venue uses Tend Connect, the records drop straight into the booking.
Getting ready for a stay? Read what a boarding kennel needs, how long before boarding your dog should be vaccinated and what a cattery needs.
Sources
- European Union, Your Europe: Travelling with pets and other animals in the EU
- Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry, Cats and dogs: frequently asked questions
- Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry, Exporting companion and other live animals
- Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry, Cats and dogs returning to Australia
*General guidance, not veterinary or legal advice. For travel, always follow the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry and the destination country's rules.*