# one more crazy question about my dog



## ked (Jul 21, 2009)

we were told by an airline that we would have to pay an import tax on our dog! i didnt understand this and the person was unable to answer my question as to why? has anyone heard of this?


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## Fatbrit (May 8, 2008)

ked said:


> we were told by an airline that we would have to pay an import tax on our dog! i didnt understand this and the person was unable to answer my question as to why? has anyone heard of this?


Airline staff make stuff up all the time. A long shift and a vivid imagination combined with inattentiveness during the relevant training session I would think.


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## raissazhou02 (Jul 3, 2009)

I didn't hear of this so far,maybe it will be this rule and i think it is reasonable, i hit pet dogs.


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## coolbadger (Sep 17, 2008)

ked said:


> we were told by an airline that we would have to pay an import tax on our dog! i didnt understand this and the person was unable to answer my question as to why? has anyone heard of this?


Sounds quite ridiculous to me Ked!

I have spoken with Virgin Atlantic, Delta and British Airways about our dog and none of them ever mentioned this. We were intending to travel on the Queen Mary II cruise liner and they did not mention it either.

Virgin Atlantic actually complete the customs clearance at Boston's Logan Aiirport for you and they would be unable to do this if there was import tax to pay.

I think Fatbrit was right. You spoke to an agent who had not been paying attention!


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## twostep (Apr 3, 2008)

I never heard of that! If you plan to take your dog back to the UK please have him chipped.


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## ked (Jul 21, 2009)

yeah i thought the same it was KLM that i spoke to. when i talked to delta they didnt say anything of such. i just couldnt believe it, import tax on our dog hahahaha!!! wonder who they would tax that by weight? 

oh yeah i live in holland and is moving to america, but our dog is already chipped but i think we might have to re-chip him in america, will have to check with my vet there in the states.

thanks for all the help you guys are the greatest, and will probably will have some more questions.


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## Bevdeforges (Nov 16, 2007)

The only possible thing I could think of with an import tax on a dog might be if you have some fancy breed of dog and you're importing him for breeding purposes. But that's just a guess.

As to the chipping in the US - there are two different standards of chips used in the US. One is identical to the European standard. The other isn't. The problem comes if your dog goes missing and the shelter or other place that picks him up has only the chip reader for the "other" format. They'll consider him unidentified, which can be a problem.

It used to be standard practice in the US to require dogs to wear collars with id tags, showing that the dog was registered. Rather than having him re-chipped, you may want to see if that is still the norm in the area where you'll be living.
Cheers,
Bev


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## twostep (Apr 3, 2008)

Bevdeforges said:


> The only possible thing I could think of with an import tax on a dog might be if you have some fancy breed of dog and you're importing him for breeding purposes. But that's just a guess.
> 
> As to the chipping in the US - there are two different standards of chips used in the US. One is identical to the European standard. The other isn't. The problem comes if your dog goes missing and the shelter or other place that picks him up has only the chip reader for the "other" format. They'll consider him unidentified, which can be a problem.
> 
> ...


Bev - to get the dog back he has to be chipped in the first place.


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## Bevdeforges (Nov 16, 2007)

twostep said:


> Bev - to get the dog back he has to be chipped in the first place.


To get the dog back into the US? I don't think they require chipping there (at least not yet). 

I'm not sure what the recommendation is on having both kinds of chips in the same dog, but I'd investigate that before having the dog re-chipped in the US. If the OP is planning on taking the dog back to Europe, there's not much point in having the "wrong" kind of chip in any event.
Cheers,
Bev


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## coolbadger (Sep 17, 2008)

Bevdeforges said:


> To get the dog back into the US? I don't think they require chipping there (at least not yet).
> 
> I'm not sure what the recommendation is on having both kinds of chips in the same dog, but I'd investigate that before having the dog re-chipped in the US. If the OP is planning on taking the dog back to Europe, there's not much point in having the "wrong" kind of chip in any event.
> Cheers,
> Bev


Hi Bev

Chipping IS a requirement to take a dog into the USA. This has to be listed on the Pet Passport.

Sorry I forgot to mention earlier that in the UK the microchip is a requirement before the Pet Passport is issued.


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## Bevdeforges (Nov 16, 2007)

But the pet passport is a European document, isn't it? The CDC site on importing animals to the US doesn't say anything about chipping the animals. They just need a health certificate and rabies vaccination.
Cheers,
Bev


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## coolbadger (Sep 17, 2008)

Bevdeforges said:


> But the pet passport is a European document, isn't it? The CDC site on importing animals to the US doesn't say anything about chipping the animals. They just need a health certificate and rabies vaccination.
> Cheers,
> Bev


Yes it IS a European document and so is my UK passport. But both are recognised by the US. 

The chip is a requirement to GET a pet passport in the first place.

Incidentally:

_For a one-way trip to the USA you will need to obtain an Export Health Certificate from your local vet within 10 days of your pet’s flight – this is simply a ‘fit to fly letter’ and must be on the vets letter headed paper. Alternatively, if you have a pet passport you can get it stamped in the relevant place and use this as the Export Health Certificate. We recommend that your pet has an up to date rabies vaccination but it is not a requirement of entry.(Virgin atlantic)_

Also some POE require Tick and Flea, others do not. Some require Rabies, others do not.

The Pet Passport is a pretty good catch-all for the many a varying requirements of US immigration in various places.

Just a tip, try getting a doggie haircut in Florida without a Rabies Jab.

By the way Bev, where is the vet supposed to document the Rabies Jab if the owner does not have a Pet Passport? 

And without a chip the Rabies Jab could apply to any dog. 

How do they identify the dog, Paw Prints perhaps?

Like with all of these things, better safe than sorry. Especially when sorry is six months quarantine.


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## Bevdeforges (Nov 16, 2007)

Coolbadger, I'm not disagreeing with you - the European pet passport is a great little document and extremely handy for recording all the relevant jabs and health exams. 

But the US doesn't require chipping or the European pet passport for admitting a pet. In fact, if someone has their pet chipped in the US, they run the risk of having the "other" kind of chip inserted, which does them no good at all on return to Europe. (And there is no guarantee that the officials at the POE will necessarily have the proper chip reading equipment anyhow.)

At least we're all agreed that there should be no import fee for a pet.
Cheers,
Bev


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## coolbadger (Sep 17, 2008)

Bevdeforges said:


> Coolbadger, I'm not disagreeing with you - the European pet passport is a great little document and extremely handy for recording all the relevant jabs and health exams.
> 
> But the US doesn't require chipping or the European pet passport for admitting a pet. In fact, if someone has their pet chipped in the US, they run the risk of having the "other" kind of chip inserted, which does them no good at all on return to Europe. (And there is no guarantee that the officials at the POE will necessarily have the proper chip reading equipment anyhow.)
> 
> ...


Oh just ignore me Bev

I am already getting cranky at the thought of our dog enduring a 14 hour trip. 

I should steer clear of pet-postings on the forum!


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## ked (Jul 21, 2009)

i totally understand what what you are saying i dread my dog flying 9.5 hours. but to top that off my dog being an american bulldog can not fly between may to september and i have to pay to fly him by an air conditioned cargo, so i am not happy.

thank you so much for so much info, his doggy passport will come handy. and we are going to get him done for fleas and ticks and of course the american rabies. the vet is also going to give us a letter of good health just to make sure things go smoothly.

many thanks!


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## AmandaL (Feb 20, 2009)

We recently brought our 2 cats to California from the UK (check out Virgin - were GREAT with the animals), and yes there is an import duty when you bring domestic animals into the States. Fee is minimal and covers the administration costs of the customs paperwork. I *think* it was about $15 per animal in our case..


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## Fatbrit (May 8, 2008)

AmandaL said:


> We recently brought our 2 cats to California from the UK (check out Virgin - were GREAT with the animals), and yes there is an import duty when you bring domestic animals into the States. Fee is minimal and covers the administration costs of the customs paperwork. I *think* it was about $15 per animal in our case..


Thanks for the fresh info.


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