Pet Transport from Canada to Egypt

The hardest part of this move is a stamp. Egypt never joined the Apostille Convention, so a Canadian pet health certificate must be authenticated by Global Affairs Canada and then legalised by the …

Get your free quote →

8-12

Weeks lead time needed

Start this early minimum

None

Quarantine on arrival

High

Route complexity

Airlines on this route

Lead time needed

8-12 weeks

Quarantine

None

Route complexity

High

Airlines

3 carriers on this route

Start my quote

In short: Preparing to move a pet from Canada to Egypt typically takes around 8-12 weeks. There is no routine quarantine on arrival for compliant pets. A rabies titre test is not required.

Regulations checked August 2026

Prepared and reviewed by Pet Transport Global Editorial Team

Step by step

The Canada to Egypt import process

Rabies no sooner than 30 days before entry; boosters current.

Rabies and companion vaccinations up to date

Responsible: Your veterinarian

Weeks ahead; pay online at least 3 days before the appointment.

Book the CFIA endorsement appointment

Responsible: You + CFIA district office

Allow around 4 weeks for Global Affairs authentication plus Egyptian embassy legalisation.

Start the legalisation chain paperwork

Responsible: You (or a legalisation service)

Early; cabin and hold slots per flight are limited, and brachycephalic breeds are refused.

Book EgyptAir cabin, hold or cargo space

Responsible: You + EgyptAir (cargo via licensed agent)

Inside the final 10 days before the flight.

Vet issues the health certificate; CFIA endorses

Responsible: Licensed vet + CFIA official veterinarian

Compliant pets released after inspection at Cairo International.

Fly Toronto to Cairo; GOVS vet inspection on arrival

Responsible: You + Egyptian veterinary services (GOVS)

Requirements

Egypt entry requirements

Every item below must be in place before your pet can enter. We verify and track each one.

Microchip

Required (ISO 11784/11785).

Rabies vaccination

Required, given no sooner than 30 days before entry and within the vaccine's validity (treat as within 11-12 months). Dogs also need distemper, hepatitis, parvovirus and parainfluenza; cats need rhinotracheitis, calicivirus and panleukopenia.

Rabies titre test

Not required from Canada, a rabies-controlled country. Titre requirements apply only to high-rabies-risk origins.

Quarantine

No routine quarantine for compliant pets. A pet showing signs of communicable disease can be examined or held up to 15 days at the traveller's expense.

Import permit

Not required for pets entering Egypt with their owner.

Health certificate

Required. Licensed-vet certificate issued within 10 days of the flight, CFIA-endorsed, then authenticated by Global Affairs Canada and legalised by the Egyptian embassy or consulate.

Leaving Canada

Export requirements

Export permit

Export certificate issued by a licensed veterinarian and endorsed by an official CFIA veterinarian before departure. Appointment only, no walk-ins; online payment must be completed at least 3 days before the appointment, credit card only.

Veterinary inspection

Vet exam and certificate typically 75-200 CAD; CFIA endorsement processing runs 2-5 business days, slower in summer and December.

Government endorsement

For Egypt, the endorsed certificate then needs two-step legalisation: Global Affairs Canada authentication followed by the Egyptian Embassy in Ottawa or Consulate in Montreal, because Egypt is not in the Apostille Convention. Allow around 4 weeks.

Costs

What this route typically costs

Vet exam and certificate: 75-200 CAD; CFIA endorsement roughly 20-40 CAD per certificate

Two-step legalisation (Global Affairs + Egyptian embassy): fees vary by document; legalisation services charge on top

EgyptAir pet fee on Canada routes: 150 percent of the standard excess baggage rate for the sector

Full professional door-to-door moves from Canada typically run 3,000-10,000+ CAD for dogs

IATA crate sized within EgyptAir's 23kg hold limit if not flying cargo

Critical points

Egypt is not a member of the Apostille Convention. The health certificate needs Global Affairs Canada authentication AND Egyptian embassy legalisation, a chain that can take four weeks. This, not the vet work, is the pacing item.

The 10-day certificate validity and the 4-week legalisation chain conflict head-on: legalise the vaccination and supporting documents early, and confirm with the embassy exactly which papers need the full chain.

EgyptAir has suspended hold carriage for pets on itineraries transiting Cairo; the effect on the nonstop terminating in Cairo is unclear, so confirm hold acceptance with the airline before relying on it.

Airlines

Approved carriers on this route

Airline	Notes	Type
EgyptAir	The only nonstop carrier, Toronto to Cairo 5 times weekly (about 10h25m). Cabin for pets up to 8kg including carrier; hold limit 23kg including crate; cargo via a licensed agent. Banned: Pit Bulls, all Pugs, all Bulldogs, and Exotic, Himalayan, Persian and Burmese cats in cabin. Pet fees on Canada routes run at 150 percent of the standard excess baggage rate.	Cabin and Cargo
Lufthansa	One-stop via Frankfurt from Toronto or Montreal. Small pets in cabin to 8kg; Lufthansa Cargo for larger animals with its Frankfurt animal lounge. Brachycephalic breeds excluded from cargo.	Cabin and Cargo
Air Canada + partner	No Air Canada service to Cairo; used for the domestic or transatlantic leg with a partner completing the routing. Confirm through-acceptance of the pet before booking split itineraries.	Cabin and Cargo

The paperwork chain, in the right order

Work the chain backwards from the flight. Egypt wants a licensed-vet health certificate issued within 10 days of arrival, endorsed by a CFIA official veterinarian, then authenticated and legalised. CFIA endorsement is appointment-only with online payment at least three days beforehand, and processing takes two to five business days, stretching in summer and December.

The 10-day certificate window and the multi-week legalisation chain cannot both contain the same document comfortably, so split the work: put the vaccination records and supporting documents through legalisation early, and confirm with the Egyptian embassy exactly which papers need the full chain versus which travel as-is with the endorsed certificate. A commercial legalisation service in Ottawa shortens the queue for a fee.

Vaccination-wise, Egypt wants rabies given no sooner than 30 days before entry, plus the standard companion vaccines: distemper, hepatitis, parvovirus and parainfluenza for dogs, the feline trio for cats.

EgyptAir's nonstop, and its fine print

EgyptAir flies Toronto to Cairo nonstop five times weekly, around ten and a half hours. Pets up to 8kg including carrier ride in the cabin; the hold takes animals to 23kg including crate; anything bigger goes as cargo through a licensed agent. The banned list is long: Pit Bulls, all Pugs, all Bulldogs, and Exotic, Himalayan, Persian and Burmese cats for the cabin. On Canada and US routes the pet fee runs at 150 percent of the standard excess baggage rate, higher than EgyptAir charges elsewhere.

One live caution: EgyptAir has suspended hold carriage of pets on itineraries that transit Cairo, and its effect on the nonstop that terminates in Cairo is not clearly published. Confirm hold acceptance directly with the airline before building your plan around it, or book Lufthansa via Frankfurt as the fallback, which adds a stop but brings Frankfurt’s animal facilities and predictable rules.

On arrival, a Ministry of Agriculture (GOVS) vet may inspect at Cairo International. Compliant pets are released; only animals showing signs of illness face examination or a hold of up to 15 days.

FAQ

Common questions about this route

Egypt is not in the Hague Apostille Convention, so Canadian documents cannot be apostilled. Instead the certificate chain runs through Global Affairs Canada authentication and then legalisation at the Egyptian Embassy in Ottawa or Consulate in Montreal. Allow around four weeks and start well before the health certificate itself is issued.

EgyptAir flies Toronto to Cairo nonstop five times weekly and carries pets in cabin (to 8kg with carrier), hold (to 23kg with crate) and cargo via licensed agents, subject to a long banned-breed list. There is currently no Montreal to Cairo nonstop. Note EgyptAir’s suspension of hold pets on Cairo-transit itineraries and confirm acceptance for the nonstop before booking.

Neither, for a compliant pet arriving with its owner. No import permit is needed, and there is no routine quarantine: a GOVS vet may inspect at Cairo airport, and only an animal showing signs of communicable disease can be held, up to 15 days at the owner’s expense.

A licensed vet issues the certificate, then an official CFIA veterinarian endorses it at a booked appointment. There are no walk-ins, online payment must be made at least three days before the appointment by credit card, and processing takes two to five business days, longer at peak times. Endorsement fees are modest; the vet work itself typically costs 75 to 200 CAD.

Not from Canada. Egypt reserves titre testing for pets from high-rabies-risk countries, and Canada is rabies-controlled. Your dog needs the rabies vaccination given no sooner than 30 days before entry, the companion vaccines, the microchip and the legalised health certificate.

Airline guides

EgyptAir
Lufthansa
Air Canada + partner

Breed guides

Check breed-specific airline rules and country bans.

Browse all breed guides →

Move your pet
to Egypt.

Get a free, fully itemised quote for this route. We map the complete preparation timeline and costs. No commitment required.

Get my free quote