Bringing your dog or cat to Thailand

Short answer: Thailand lets your pet in with an import permit, vaccines given at least 21 days before you fly and an endorsed health certificate, but Australia won't let it fly straight back, so plan the return before you leave.

The short version

You need an import permit from Thailand's Department of Livestock Development (DLD), arranged through the Animal Quarantine Station at your arrival airport [1][4].
Dogs need rabies, distemper, hepatitis, parvovirus and leptospirosis vaccines. Cats need rabies and feline panleukopenia. Give them at least 21 days before departure [1][2][3].
On the Australian side, lodge a Notice of Intention to Export at least 10 working days before you fly, then get a government vet to endorse the paperwork [5].
Thailand isn't an approved country for cats and dogs coming into Australia. To bring your pet home, it has to move to an approved country first and do the full preparation there [6].
Ask your vet about a rabies blood test (RNATT) before you leave Australia. It keeps your options open later [7].

Two trips, very different rules

Australia is rabies-free, so Australian pets are low risk for Thailand. The reverse is not true. Rabies is present in Thailand, and Australia's biosecurity rules treat it accordingly.

	Australia to Thailand	Thailand back to Australia
Lead time	About two to three months	Many months, often a year or more
Key permit	DLD import permit, applied for 7 to 60 days before departure [4]	Australian import permit, but only from an approved country [6]
Rabies	Vaccination at least 21 days before departure [1][2]	Vaccination plus RNATT, valid for 12 months from the blood draw [7]
On arrival	Inspection at the airport Animal Quarantine Station; quarantine at the officer's discretion or as your permit says [1][3]	Post-entry quarantine at Mickleham, Victoria
Who decides	DLD, Thailand	Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry (DAFF)

If the return sounds too hard, think about whether your pet should come at all.

Thailand's entry rules

Thailand's rules come from the DLD and are printed on your import permit. The permit is what officers check, so read it carefully when it arrives. The conditions DAFF has on file come from a 2021 Thai permit and may have changed [1][2].

Vaccines and tests

Dogs: rabies, distemper, hepatitis, parvovirus and leptospirosis, each at least 21 days before departure. For leptospirosis, the conditions on file accept either the vaccine at least 21 days before departure or a negative test within 30 days before departure [1]. The Thai consulate in Sydney lists both the vaccine and the negative test [3], so check what your permit says.
Cats: rabies and feline panleukopenia, at least 21 days before departure [2][3].
First rabies shot: your pet must be at least 12 weeks old, and you wait 21 days after a first rabies vaccination before applying for the permit. Boosters don't need the wait [4].
Minimum age: the Sydney consulate says pets must be at least four months old [3].

The import permit

The permit used to be needed mainly for pets travelling as cargo without their owners. Current Thai government instructions treat it as standard for dogs, cats and rabbits [3][4]. Based on the Thai government's January 2025 instructions [4]:

email the application to the Animal Quarantine Station at the airport where you'll land (Suvarnabhumi and Don Mueang each have their own)
apply between 7 and 60 days before departure
allow 5 to 7 Thai business days for processing
the permit is valid for 60 days after it's issued
include the microchip number, which must match the vaccination certificates and health records, plus a microchip implantation certificate
expect a fee of 500 baht per animal on arrival.

The Sydney consulate also refers to the DLD's Form R.1/1 [3]. Those January 2025 instructions were written for travellers from the US, so confirm the process for Australian departures with the Royal Thai Embassy in Canberra or the Consulate-General in Sydney before you apply.

Breed rules

The Sydney consulate's page, last updated in 2022, says Pit Bull Terriers and American Staffordshire Terriers are prohibited [3]. The 2025 instructions say no breeds are banned, though airlines have their own limits [4]. If you own a bull breed, get written confirmation before you book anything.

Arriving at Suvarnabhumi

After immigration, you take your pet to the Animal Quarantine Station. It runs 24 hours, but the consulate recommends arriving between 8.30 am and 4 pm on a weekday that isn't a Thai public holiday [3]. Bring the original passport, the vaccination record, the original endorsed health certificate and a printed copy of your permit [1][4].

The consulate says healthy pets aren't quarantined, but an officer can detain any animal [3]. The 2021 permit conditions DAFF holds go further, with at least 30 days in approved premises after arrival and any tests or treatments at your cost [1][2]. That gap is exactly why you check your own permit. Pets that don't comply can be sent back or destroyed without compensation [2].

Getting out of Australia

Every cat and dog leaving Australia goes through DAFF's export process, even when it flies with its owner [5].

Check Thailand's requirements in MICoR, DAFF's importing-country database, and against your Thai permit [1][5].
See a registered vet early. Microchip check, the Thai vaccines and an RNATT if you're doing one. Most Australian pets have never had a rabies shot, so start here.
Apply for the Thai import permit within the 7 to 60 day window [4].
Lodge the Notice of Intention to Export with the DAFF regional office in your state at least 10 working days before departure, with your documents attached. There's an assessment fee [5].
Final vet exam within 72 hours of departure. You and your vet sign the pre-export declaration [5].
Government vet appointment. A DAFF certifying officer checks everything, endorses the health certificate and issues the export permit. Your pet must leave Australia within 72 hours of the permit being issued [5].
Keep every record for at least two years [5]. You'll need them later to prove your pet is of Australian origin.

Flights and crates

Pets usually fly as manifested cargo, not in the cabin. Not every airline between Australia and Bangkok carries animals, and those that do have their own crate, breed and temperature rules. Snub-nosed breeds such as pugs and Persian cats face extra limits. Use an IATA-standard crate your pet has slept in for weeks, and your vet has to check it before export [5].

Life with a pet in Bangkok

Bangkok is more pet-friendly than its traffic suggests, but you'll need to look harder for housing.

Condos. Many condo buildings ban pets outright, and the rule comes from the building's juristic office, not your landlord. Get a "pets allowed" clause in the lease and check the building rules too. See our renting guide.
Houses. Townhouses and houses in compounds, often further out along Sukhumvit, in Bang Na or near the international schools in the north, are easier with a dog.
Vets. There are private clinics and 24-hour animal hospitals across the expat areas. The university teaching hospitals, such as Chulalongkorn University's Small Animal Hospital and Kasetsart University's Veterinary Teaching Hospital, handle specialist cases.
Keep rabies shots current. It protects your pet, and an unbroken vaccination history matters for the trip home [7].
Heat and mosquitoes. Walk dogs early and late, watch paws on hot footpaths, and ask your vet about heartworm and tick prevention year-round.

For recommendations on vets, groomers and buildings that genuinely allow dogs, join Cooee Thailand, our Facebook group for Australians in Thailand.

The hard part: bringing your pet home

Thailand isn't on DAFF's lists of approved countries, so your pet can't fly straight from Bangkok to Melbourne [6]. DAFF says that if you're exporting from a country that isn't listed, you'll need to move your animal to a Group 2 or 3 country. Since 1 March 2023, the old route of simply passing through an approved country is no longer available [6]. In practice, your pet has to live in an approved country and complete that country's full preparation before coming home.

Two things soften the blow:

Australian origin counts. Pets that left Australia with export certification showing their microchip number may be eligible for the shorter 10-day stay at Mickleham. The certificate goes with the import permit application [7].
A valid RNATT saves time. DAFF recommends a rabies vaccination and RNATT before your pet leaves Australia if it may go to a non-approved country. A pass (0.5 IU/ml or more) lasts 12 months from the blood draw. If you keep the vaccinations and RNAT valid the whole time your pet is away, you avoid a fresh 180-day wait [7].

Our full guide to bringing your pet home to Australia covers import permits, Mickleham and the 2026 government fees.

A simple timeline

Three months out: vet visit, microchip check, rabies and other vaccines, ask about the RNATT.
Two months out: blood test if you're doing one. Find an airline that takes pets on your route.
Seven to sixty days out: apply for the Thai import permit, at least 21 days after any first rabies shot [4].
Two to three weeks out: lodge the Notice of Intention to Export with DAFF [5].
Within 72 hours of the flight: final vet exam, government endorsement and export permit [5].
Arrival day: Animal Quarantine Station at Suvarnabhumi, ideally on a weekday during office hours [3].

Bringing your dog or cat from Australia to Thailand: the permit, the jabs and the way home