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Are Spot and Fluffy Fit to Fly?

Allow at least six weeks (and quite a bit of money) for all the admin, check-ups and red tape, including:

• Obtaining an import certificate for SA.
• Obtaining an air kennel or having one made up. It is recommended that you have these delivered to your home a week or so before departure so that the animals can get used to them and they are in a vaguely familiar 'place' when the journey starts.
• Obtaining an export certificate for the UK.
• Micro chipping, and vaccinating pets for rabies.
• Obtaining a Fit to Fly certificate for the airline (when you need your vet to approve this depends on the airline - it seems to be between five and 10 days prior to departure).
• Writing a declaration that the animals had lived in the UK for the previous six months, which the vet at customs (or is it immigration?) requires.

Using agents to handle the export and import clearance saves a lot of time and trouble, but be warned that you still need to read all the documents and do a bit of chasing yourself.

Also read our articles on:

• Import pets to SA
• Export pets from the UK