Saudi Arabia

✈️

Turkey

Pet Transport from Saudi Arabia to Turkey

Sourced facts for this journey

8 Oct 2026

Independently checked

✓ Managed

Full door-to-door service

Get a free quote →

Turkey makes you wait 90 days from the result of a first rabies titre test before your pet travels. The sending country's authority must issue the health certificate 2 days before travel. Turkish Airlines lists Riyadh to Istanbul flights, and a pet can fly in the cabin if pet and carrier weigh 8 kg or less.

Key facts: Saudi Arabia to Turkey

Export permit: Pets travelling with their owners can get an exit-and-return permit on the Anaam platform, with a return period not exceeding 60 days. Applies to resident dogs and cats leaving and returning with travellers.
Pets Importing procedures, checked 2 October 2026
Quarantine: Compliant animals are not quarantined. Animals that do not meet the regulation are returned to the origin country or, where possible, held in quarantine for as long as needed to establish compliance. (Regulation on animal health conditions for non-commercial movements of pets, Official Gazette 28133 of 5 December 2011.)
Ev ve Süs Hayvanlarının Ticari Olmayan Hareketlerinde Uygulanacak Hayvan Sağlığı Şartlarına Dair Yönetmelik (5 December 2011), checked 2 October 2026
Rabies titre test: A rabies antibody titre test is required at least 30 days after rabies vaccination, at an accredited (EU-approved) laboratory, with a result above 0.5 IU.
Kedi-Köpek-Gelincik Seyahati, checked 2 October 2026

Taken from official government pages, last checked 2 October 2026. Rules change, so open the linked page again before you book.

Start your journey

Get Your Free Quote

Enter your pet's details and route

Quotes are tailored to your specific journey.

Moving from *

Moving to *

Pet type *

Breed

Approx. weight (kg)

Preferred travel date

Your name *

Email *

Phone *

Additional details

No obligation. Your details are kept private and only used to arrange your pet's move.

Official rules on this page checked 2 October 2026

Prepared by Marcus Webb, Senior Pet Relocation Consultant

What does Saudi Arabia require for Turkey before the flight?

The Istanbul Airport veterinary border control page says the rabies titre test is done at least 30 days after the rabies vaccination.
Istanbul Airport Veterinary Border Control Point: travelling with cats and dogs, checked 8 October 2026
For a first titre test, the page says to wait 90 days from the date of the test result.
Istanbul Airport Veterinary Border Control Point: travelling with cats and dogs, checked 8 October 2026
The page says the veterinary health certificate must be issued by the competent authority of the sending country.
Istanbul Airport Veterinary Border Control Point: travelling with cats and dogs, checked 8 October 2026
The page gives the timing for the veterinary health certificate as 2 days before travel.
Istanbul Airport Veterinary Border Control Point: travelling with cats and dogs, checked 8 October 2026

Which airlines take pets from Saudi Arabia to Turkey?

Turkish Airlines' own Riyadh to Istanbul page invites travellers to book a flight on that route.
Turkish Airlines: flights from Riyadh to Istanbul, checked 8 October 2026
Turkish Airlines says a pet can travel in the cabin provided the total weight of the animal and its carrier does not exceed 8 kg.
Turkish Airlines: traveling with pets, all terms and conditions, checked 8 October 2026
Turkish Airlines sends a pet whose cage or carrier is bigger than 75 cm high, 75 cm wide and 125 cm long through Turkish Cargo.
Turkish Airlines: traveling with pets, all terms and conditions, checked 8 October 2026

Where does the journey connect and land?

The page says that under customs rules one passenger may travel with at most 2 animals.
Istanbul Airport Veterinary Border Control Point: travelling with cats and dogs, checked 8 October 2026
The Agriculture Ministry's Istanbul Airport Veterinary Border Control Point publishes the conditions for cats and dogs travelling with passengers.
Istanbul Airport Veterinary Border Control Point: travelling with cats and dogs, checked 8 October 2026

Where can the rabies blood test be done?

The page says the titre test must be done at an accredited laboratory.
Istanbul Airport Veterinary Border Control Point: travelling with cats and dogs, checked 8 October 2026

Which Turkey rules depend on a pet coming from Saudi Arabia?

None of the Turkey rules we have verified names Saudi Arabia on its own.

The rules that apply to every pet entering Turkey, whatever the origin, are listed with their official sources in our Turkey guide.

What does Saudi Arabia require before your pet leaves?

Export permit: Pets travelling with their owners can get an exit-and-return permit on the Anaam platform, with a return period not exceeding 60 days. Applies to resident dogs and cats leaving and returning with travellers.
Pets Importing procedures, checked 2 October 2026
Export permit: MEWA news item (2019): owners taking pets abroad must obtain an export permit from the General Directorate of Agricultural Affairs for the region of the exit port, bringing all veterinary certificates well before travel. Applies to dogs and cats leaving Saudi Arabia.
Live animal import licence electronically, completed in 3 days (news), checked 2 October 2026
Export health certificate: MEWA's Conditions for exporting pets (undated): apply through the Anaam platform with the importing country's permit and health requirements and a veterinary health certificate from a Ministry-accredited clinic, approved by the Ministry branch or office where the pet is located, stating the animal was clinically and laboratory examined and found free of disease, especially rabies and toxoplasmosis. The export permission is valid 30 days. Applies to dogs and cats leaving Saudi Arabia.
Conditions for exporting pets, checked 2 October 2026
Other conditions: Per the USDA APHIS-hosted unofficial translation of the Saudi requirements (April 2021): the rabies vaccination's validity is checked when entry and return permits are issued. MEWA's Naama pet entry and exit permit guide (no text layer, read visually) sets the condition that the remaining period of the rabies vaccination is not less than six months. Applies to dogs and cats leaving Saudi Arabia.
Revised Saudi Pets Imports Requirements April 2021 Unofficial Translation, checked 2 October 2026

FAQ

Common questions

For a first titre test, Turkey's Istanbul Airport border control page says to wait 90 days from the date of the result. The test itself comes at least 30 days after the rabies vaccination, at an accredited laboratory.

Turkey's page says the certificate must be issued by the sending country's competent authority, 2 days before travel. On the Saudi side, the rules call for a veterinary health certificate from a Ministry-accredited clinic, approved by the Ministry branch or office where the pet is located.

Turkish Airlines says a pet can travel in the cabin provided the total weight of the animal and its carrier does not exceed 8 kg. A cage or carrier bigger than 75 cm high, 75 cm wide and 125 cm long can go through Turkish Cargo.

Turkey's page says that under customs rules one passenger may travel with at most 2 animals.

The Agriculture Ministry's Istanbul Airport Veterinary Border Control Point publishes the entry conditions for cats and dogs travelling with passengers.

Ready to book
Saudi Arabia to Turkey?