Adoption · Travel rules

Bringing your cat home safely

Every cat that leaves Corfu needs the right paperwork to enter its new country. The exact requirements depend on where the cat is travelling to. Below is an overview for the EU and the UK — but please read it alongside the note just below, because these rules change and the official authorities always have the final word.

Please treat this as a guide, not the final word

Animal-travel rules for the EU and changed in 2024–2026 and can change again. We coordinate the paperwork for every adoption individually, and the border authorities of the destination country decide what is required. Always confirm the current rules with your vet and the official sources before travel — never book anything before we’ve confirmed the route with you.

The basics

What every cat needs

Wherever the journey ends, these four things are the foundation. Everything country-specific builds on top of them.

An ISO microchip

A standard 15-digit ISO chip, implanted before the rabies vaccination. The order matters — a vaccine given before the chip doesn’t count for travel.

A valid rabies vaccination

Given by an authorised vet after the chip, with a waiting period before travel (commonly 21 days for the EU). Boosters must stay up to date.

The right travel document

An EU pet passport for travel within the EU, or an Animal Health Certificate (AHC) for journeys to the UK and other non-EU destinations.

Enough time to plan

Some steps have fixed waiting periods, so a journey can take several weeks to a few months to prepare. We start early and never rush a cat onto a plane.

By destination

Where is the cat travelling?

🇪🇺

Within the EU

Most straightforward

What’s needed

  • ISO microchip, implanted before the rabies vaccination.
  • Valid rabies vaccination, with the usual 21-day wait before travel.
  • An EU pet passport issued by an authorised vet, recording the chip, the rabies vaccination and the owner details.
  • A written declaration that the movement is non-commercial (we handle this as the rescue).

Good to know

  • As Greece is in the EU, cats travelling to another EU country have the simplest route.
  • A few countries (for example Ireland, Malta, Finland, Norway) may ask for extra steps — we check this per destination.
  • From April 2026 the EU tightened how documents are checked at the border, so accurate paperwork matters more than ever.
Official source: European Commission — pet travel
🇬🇧

United Kingdom

A few extra steps

What’s needed

  • ISO microchip, implanted before the rabies vaccination.
  • Valid rabies vaccination with the required waiting period.
  • An Animal Health Certificate (AHC) issued by an official vet in Greece, within 10 days of entering the UK. (An EU pet passport is not accepted for entry into the UK.)
  • Good news for cats: no tapeworm treatment is required (that rule applies to dogs).

Good to know

  • The chip must have been scanned and recorded at the time of the rabies vaccination, or the AHC can’t be issued.
  • The 10-day AHC window means timing has to be planned carefully around the travel date.
  • Entry must be through an approved route/carrier — we confirm this for each journey.
Official source: GOV.UK — bringing a pet to Great Britain
Questions?

We’ll guide you through it

Every adoption is different, and we prepare the paperwork and the journey together with you, step by step. If you’re thinking about adopting and want to understand what travel to your country would involve, just ask — we’re happy to explain.

Contact us