At a time when clarity over Brexit, and how we will be able to trade with and travel to our EU neighbours, seems fanciful there is now certainty over the movement of cats, dogs and ferrets in and out of the UK and the Isle of Man.

New arrangements will apply from 2300 hours on Thursday 31 December 2020, when the UK and the Isle of Man become ‘Part Two listed third countries’ for pet travel into the EU and Northern Ireland (NI).

If you are transporting non-commercially (i.e. you are going on holiday) you need to know the following:

1. Pet passports are no longer valid for travel to the EU or NI from 1^st January 2021.
2. If you want to take your cat, dog or ferret to the EU or NI from Great Britain or the Isle of Man you will need an Animal Health Certificate (AHC) from your vet which is valid for one trip for up to four months. You will need to visit your vet no more than ten days before travel to the EU or NI to get an AHC.
3. Your cat, dog or ferret (which must be more than 12 weeks old) must have been vaccinated against rabies, and this vaccination needs to take place 21 days before you travel.
4. If you are travelling to NI, Eire, Finland, Norway or Malta your pet will also need treatment against tapeworm between one and five days before arriving in any one of these countries.
5. If you are travelling from the EU to the UK or the Isle of Man you will need a pet passport or AHC, and you will have to use a designated point of entry.
6. If you are travelling from NI to the UK or Isle of Man you will not need a pet passport or AHC as we are in the same customs union, but you will need a passport or certificate to return to NI.
7. And if you are planning to use the Eurotunnel, bear in mind that there is now a rule that a maximum of three dogs can travel in any one vehicle for non-commercial purposes.

Your pet may be put into quarantine for up to four months if you do not follow these rules – or refused entry if you travelled by sea.

But, happily, there are currently no official requirements for cats, dogs or ferrets travelling between the Isle of Man, the UK (excluding NI) and the Channel Islands. We’re very lucky on the Isle of Man to have sea travel arrangements that enable a pet owner to accompany their pet in transit, either in a designated pet lounge or in a pet cabin. Being alongside your pet when you travel is, for the majority of animals, the least stressful way to get from A to B.