How To Bring Your Dog To Japan From Other Country

In this blog, we will break down step by step how to bring a dog into Japan and our experience with the entire process. Please advise that the content Tofu shared should only be used as a guideline, it is your responsibility to check on the most updated requirements.

UPDATE: As of December 2024, the applications are now processed through their portal. All the info is the same as described below. To sign up for the portal, please email them first (email address is listed below)

Background info:

We traveled to Tokyo, Japan from Frankfurt. Germany in July 2023.

Tofu is a 4.5 kg (Maltese breed) service animal.

The airline we flew with was Lufthansa airline.

Japan only recognized the following types of service animals: Guide dogs, hearing dogs, and mobility dogs. All other types of service dogs are considered pets.

The official website where all the info is https://www.maff.go.jp/aqs/english/animal/dog/import-other.html

To go to Japan with your dog, you will need at least 180 days for preparation.

The import procedures vary depending on the export country or region of the dogs and cats.

(source: https://www.maff.go.jp/aqs/english/animal/dog/import-other.html)

The process can be broken down into this flow chart:

(source: https://www.maff.go.jp/aqs/english/animal/dog/import-other.html)

To import dogs and cats from Non-designated regions, they must meet import requirements such as microchip implanting, at least two times rabies vaccinations, rabies antibody test, a 180-day waiting period, and advance notification.

After the dog had 2 rabies vaccinations, you need to get a rabies antibody test. To get one, you can request to get it done from your vet and the test must be sent to one of the designated laboratories. List of the designated laboratories is here. Antibody titer against rabies must be equal to or greater than 0.5 IU/ml.

After you have done the rabies antibody test(it should look something like this in the photo), you wait for at least 180 days. Meanwhile, you should reach out to Japanese officials about your application for importing a dog into the country. You can do this by email.

To contact the Narita airport branch, email is: aqs.nrtr2@maff.go.jp

To contact the Haneda Airport branch, the email is: aqs.hnd@maff.go.jp

You can write to them in English.

From the email, they will ask you the following:

1. When is your intended date of entry? (You don’t need to decide now the date can be changed later on)

2. They will request you send them a copy of the rabies antibody test certificate

3. Fill out the “Application for import inspection form” (they will provide you this form via email)

4. Form AC (they will provide you with this form via email)

Please note that:

Applicants must notify Animal Quarantine Service at the expected port of entry not less than 40 days before arrival in Japan. ("advance notice") This means that even you have waited 180 days or more, you still need to notify them of your travel date at least 40 days prior to your arrival. You can submit the notification form by mail, fax, or e-mail.

Since the application for the import inspection form and form AC are mostly about personal information, we will not be able to share our forms online. But the form asks about the handler’s information, the pet’s vaccination name and date/expiry date, microchip number, and more. The questions are straight forward and there are also directions on how to fill them out on their official website.

After all the documents are cleared by the government, 10 days before your flight you need to get a clinical inspection by the veterinarian and obtain a certificate issued by the government agency. At first, we were unsure of who and where to go for the government-issued certificate. You may need to call your local government and ask about that. What we did was we explained our situation to our local vet, and they gave us the number and email of the government veterinarian office in our town. After contacting them they offered us an appointment to come in.

Government Veterinarian Office appointment

For us, the appointment was inside a government building. The veterinarian scanned Tofu’s microchip, double-checked it if they are correct, and visually check his health and well-being. They requested the following documents for this appointment: the rabies titer certificate, Form AC, vaccination records, and microchip certificate. (Please double-check the requirements with your government veterinarian). After the government veterinarian fills out form AC, please send the photo of the form via email to the Japanese government. They are happy to double-check if the form is all good. This is super important because we didn’t know we forgot to fill out one vaccination and they are very strict on the form. One little mistake may result in your pet not being able to import into Japan. Please get the "all-clear" before you travel. Another important tip is that since you can have this form done 10 days prior to your travel date, you should get the government veterinarian appointment as far as your travel date as possible so you have some time to make corrections if you need.

After arriving in Japan:

Depending on the airport and terminal, they will send you directions on where to go after you got off the plane. Upon arrival, we first got off the plane, went through customs, picked up the luggage, went to the Animal Quarantine Service Counter for the inspection, and then exited the airport. Tofu was with me the entire time, they didn’t take him away from me. Upon inspection, you will be asked to present the forms. They will also scan the pet’s microchip. Note: the dog must be inside the carrier bag (zipped up) during the entire inspection. The inspection for us took about 30 minutes as we were the only one traveling with animals at that time. After that, we exited the airport and reunited with our family.

Taking a dog to Japan can be very stressful: the paperwork, process, and the risk of your animal being denied entry.... was very scary for me. But all of this is possible if you double or triple-check everything with the Japanese government, and make sure all the documents are present and in their original form.

In the next blog, we will talk about our experience in Japan with a dog, stay tuned!

Thanks for reading:)

-Tofu and Tiffany