RU
Russia
✈️
US
United States
Pet Transport from Russia to the United States
14-20 weeks
Typical preparation
None
Quarantine on arrival
Very High
Route complexity
✓ Managed
Full door-to-door service
In short:
Preparing to move a pet from Russia to United States
typically takes around 14-20 weeks.
There is no routine quarantine on arrival for compliant pets.
A rabies titre test is required, which adds a fixed waiting period, so start early.
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Overview
Getting a pet from Russia to United States is a step by step process, and each stage has its own timing. Plan for approximately 14-20 weeks. This is a rigorous route with little room to compress the schedule. Compliant pets are not held in quarantine on arrival.
This route requires a rabies titre test with a set waiting period, so do not leave it late. Start with the step by step process below and build your plan from there.
Step by step
The Russia to United States process
1
Start of planning, 4-5 months before travel.
Confirm the ISO microchip is implanted, then give the primary rabies vaccination no earlier than 12 weeks of age.
Responsible: Your vet in Russia
2
Roughly 3.5-4 months before travel.
Draw blood for the rabies titre test at least 30 days after vaccination, submit to a CDC-approved laboratory.
Responsible: Your vet and the approved laboratory
3
As soon as travel dates are fixed, ideally 2-3 months ahead given limited facility slots.
Confirm the blood draw date sits at least 28 days before the planned entry date. Book a reservation at one of the six CDC-registered animal care facilities, matched to the arrival airport.
Responsible: You or a pet transport agent
4
Shortly before travel, matched to the confirmed arrival date.
Complete the CDC Dog Import Form online, upload the required photo and microchip number, and print the single-entry receipt.
Responsible: You
5
Within 5 days of your flight.
Apply for Rosselkhoznadzor Veterinary Certificate Form No. 1 via eCert.
Responsible: State Veterinary Service, via Rosselkhoznadzor eCert
6
Day of departure.
Exchange for International Veterinary Certificate Form No. 5a at the airport on departure day.
Responsible: Rosselkhoznadzor Territorial Administration officer
7
6-8 weeks out, earlier if a reservation deadline forces it.
Book the two-leg cargo routing via Istanbul, Dubai or Doha, ending at the CDC-approved airport matching your facility reservation.
Responsible: You or an IPATA-registered relocation agent
8
Day of arrival.
Arrive at the CDC-registered facility for the mandatory exam, and revaccination if the titre was not valid.
Responsible: CDC-registered animal care facility
Checklist
United States of America: entry requirements
| Requirement | Detail |
|---|---|
| Microchip | A universal-scanner-readable ISO microchip is mandatory and must be implanted before the rabies vaccination, or the vaccination does not count toward entry. Source: CDC, cdc.gov/importation/dogs, page updated 15 April 2026. |
| Rabies vaccination | Current rabies vaccination, given after the microchip. Because it was administered in Russia rather than the US, the dog falls under CDC's foreign-vaccinated pathway, which is stricter than the pathway for a dog revaccinated on US soil. |
| Rabies titre test | Required. Russia sits on the CDC's list of countries considered high risk for dog rabies, so a rabies serology titre is mandatory, not optional. Blood must be drawn at least 30 days after the primary vaccination and at least 28 days before the dog enters the US, tested at a CDC-approved laboratory, with a passing result of 0.5 IU/ml or higher. A passing result stays valid for the dog's life as long as the vaccination never lapses. Source: CDC, foreign-vaccinated high-risk country guidance, updated 22 July 2024. |
| Quarantine | None for a dog arriving with a valid titre. Without one, the reservation must instead cover a 28-day quarantine at the same CDC-registered facility, at the owner's cost. |
Leaving Russia
Export requirements
| Requirement | Detail |
|---|---|
| Export permit | No advance export permit for a standard personal move of up to 2 pets. Rosselkhoznadzor clears the animal at the airport on the day of departure rather than issuing a pre-travel licence. |
| Health certificate | Veterinary Certificate Form No. 1 (Customs Union Form 1), issued by the State Veterinary Service of your place of residence within 5 days of travel, applied for through the Rosselkhoznadzor eCert system (ecert.vetrf.ru). At the airport, a Rosselkhoznadzor Territorial Administration officer exchanges it for International Veterinary Certificate Form No. 5a on departure day. |
Costs
What this route typically costs
| 1 | Rabies titre test at a CDC-approved laboratory: USD 150-300 |
| 2 | Rosselkhoznadzor certification: Form No. 5a itself is issued free at the airport; regional State Veterinary Service fees for Form No. 1 vary by clinic |
| 3 | CDC-registered animal care facility exam, and revaccination if needed: typically USD 150-400, paid directly to the private facility, published pricing varies by location |
| 4 | 28-day quarantine at the facility if no valid titre: a substantially higher cost, most owners avoid this by planning the titre test properly |
| 5 | IATA-compliant travel crate: USD 100-300 |
| 6 | Live-animal cargo fees for two separate legs (Moscow-Istanbul, Moscow-Dubai or Moscow-Doha, then onward to a CDC-approved US airport): USD 2,500-5,000, more than a single-leg route because of the double handling |
| 7 | IPATA-registered agent fee to coordinate the transfer and the CDC facility reservation: USD 500-1,500 |
| 8 | Total typical range: USD 3,500-7,500 |
Critical points
Read before you book
⚠ Russia is on the CDC's current list of countries considered high risk for dog rabies (cdc.gov, page updated 15 April 2026). That triggers the full foreign-vaccinated pathway: titre test, CDC Dog Import Form, and a mandatory reservation at one of only six CDC-registered animal care facility airports nationwide. There is no shortcut, and an owner who assumes a standard health certificate is enough will be refused entry.
⚠ There have been no direct flights between Moscow and any US city since 2 March 2022, when the FAA and US Department of Transportation blocked Russian aircraft from all US airspace, and Russia reciprocated. This is a separate US order from the EU and UK sanctions covering the same period, though it stems from the same response to the invasion of Ukraine. Russia asked Washington to lift the restriction on Aeroflot as recently as April 2025 according to The Moscow Times, and further Istanbul-hosted talks in 2026 have not restored the route.
⚠ Because only six US airports have a CDC-registered facility, your flight routing and your facility reservation have to be planned together, not separately. A Dubai or Doha connection landing at an airport without a facility simply will not work, whatever the airline's pet policy says.
⚠ This CDC high-risk process applies to dogs. Cats are not covered by the same rule and face a far lighter US entry process, so confirm which species you are moving before assuming the whole pathway above applies.
Carriers
Airlines on this route
Turkish Airlines
No carrier flies Moscow to the US directly. The common routing is Moscow to Istanbul, still operated by Russian and Turkish carriers since Turkey has joined neither the US nor the reciprocal Russian airspace ban, followed by a separate Istanbul to New York JFK, Washington Dulles or Los Angeles booking on Turkish Airlines. All three are CDC-approved arrival airports. Two distinct live-animal bookings are needed, not one through-ticket.
Emirates
A Dubai routing: Moscow to Dubai, then Emirates SkyCargo onward to JFK, Los Angeles, Washington Dulles or Miami, all CDC-approved. Adds flight time against Istanbul and is subject to Emirates SkyCargo's Gulf summer heat embargoes on live cargo, so build in extra buffer for a summer booking.
Qatar Airways
A Doha routing: Moscow to Doha, then Qatar Airways onward to Atlanta, JFK, Washington Dulles, Philadelphia or Miami. A third hub option worth comparing on price and cargo cut-off times against Istanbul and Dubai, particularly because the final leg still has to land at one of the six CDC-approved airports.
United States import rules, explained
United States takes biosecurity seriously, and the requirements reflect that. The paperwork is exacting, so accuracy matters as much as timing.
Practical tips for this move
Check the airline’s crate size and labelling rules early. An undersized or wrongly labelled crate is a frequent reason pets are refused at check-in.
Ask about temperature embargoes for your travel window. Summer and winter cargo restrictions can rule out certain routes and dates entirely.
Book the titre test laboratory well ahead. Approved labs have limited slots and the sample takes time to process, so this is not something to leave to the final weeks.
Microchip before you vaccinate. The microchip must be in place before the rabies shot for the vaccination to count, and getting this order wrong is the most common and costly mistake.
FAQ
Common questions
Yes. Russia appears on the CDC’s current list of countries considered high risk for dog rabies, checked on cdc.gov’s importation pages, updated 15 April 2026. That triggers the foreign-vaccinated pathway: a rabies titre test at a CDC-approved laboratory, a CDC Dog Import Form, and a mandatory reservation at a CDC-registered animal care facility on arrival.
No. There have been no direct commercial flights between Moscow and any US city since 2 March 2022, when the FAA and US Department of Transportation blocked Russian aircraft from US airspace and Russia closed its airspace in response. Every move currently runs through a third country, most commonly Istanbul, Dubai or Doha.
Only six: Atlanta, JFK New York, Washington Dulles, Los Angeles, Philadelphia and Miami. Each has the only CDC-registered animal care facility your dog’s reservation can be booked against, and your final flight leg has to land there, not at a nearby alternative.
No. The CDC’s high-risk country rules, including the titre test and the facility reservation, apply specifically to dogs. Cats face a considerably lighter US entry process, so confirm the species before assuming the pathway described here applies to your move.
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