FAQ

An Animal Health Certificate (AHC) is an official veterinary document required for dogs, cats and ferrets travelling from the UK to the EU for non-commercial reasons. The certificate is issued by Official Veterinarians and must be done within 10 days of your trip.  

To obtain an AHC, your pet must be microchipped and have a valid rabies vaccination given at least 21 days beforehand. We will need proof of the rabies vaccination (which is explained in the next FAQ) and microchip number. To request an AHC from us please Book AHC here. 

As an online business, we do all preparation and checks before the appointment. This includes receiving and reviewing the rabies vaccination evidence. Clinical notes from the vet practice where your pet’s rabies vaccination was administered will typically contain all the information required to prepare an AHC.

Please ensure to contact the relevant vet practice to request for your pet’s clinical notes to be sent directly to us. It is the pet owner’s responsibility to arrange this, and the vet practice will require the owner’s consent before releasing the records. We cannot accept clinical notes sent by pet owners due to the risk of fraud.

If your pet has received a rabies vaccine in the EU and this has been recorded in a valid EU pet passport, this may be used as evidence for an AHC. Ensure to send clear images/scans of the following pages:

-owner details,

-pet details,

-pet identification/ marking of animal and

-rabies vaccination pages.

Passport number must be visible in each image.

You would also need to bring the EU passport to the appointment. IF you only have scans of the passport and no longer have possession of the physical pet passport, these scans are not sufficient evidence as the vet needs to see the original evidence used to prepare the AHC.

If the rabies vaccine was administered in Great Britain and then transcribed into an EU pet passport by an EU vet:

Please ask the relevant GB vet practice to send clinical notes directly to us. It is best practice to receive evidence from the vet practice where the vaccine was given. Additionally, we have seen many cases where this has been done incorrectly. 

We do not accept evidence directly from owners except in exceptional circumstances (due to attempted fraud), in which case the following evidence is possible suitable:

* Existing EU pet passport (see above)

* Certified rabies certificate: The vet’s full name, signature, and practice stamp must be visible on the document for rabies and microchip records to be certified. A validated document bears the vet’s personal name, signature, and stamp. The records can therefore be authenticated with the vet’s credentials clearly indicated.

Please note we CANNOT not accept vaccination cards or receipts/invoices as evidence for an AHC.

One of the reasons we set up this business is to offer cheap Animal Health Certificates to pet owners across the country. As we specialise in providing AHCs our processes are optimised to allow us to issue the cheapest Animal Health Certificates possible.

The most up to date prices can be found on our Home page - https://vethomecerts.co.uk/

Our prices are £99 for a standard AHC with each additional pet £30. (One area in central london standard AHC is £110 (seen on map and prices page)).
We also offer collection point discounts at some of our collection points. For our standard AHCs we have had to received all the required questionnaires and evidence, with enough time to review these documents more than 7 days ahead of your appointment slot. 

For Urgent AHCs - where we receive the required information and payment within 7 days of your appointment slot - £199 plus £30 for each additional pet. 

For Repeat AHCs, where we have issued the previous Animal Health Certificate, we offer these at £89. You can still benefit from collection point discounts and additional pets are only £25 each. To be eligible for a Repeat AHC, The same Vet working within the Vet Home Certs network needs to have issued the previous AHC with the repeat AHC having the same Owner, Pet and Language as previous AHC. This includes the same valid rabies vaccination as used in the previously issued AHC.

To get an AHC, first fill out our initial request AHC form which will ask you for some basic details. 

We'll follow up with a more detailed form tailored to your needs  (If you have your information with you this will take less than 5 mins). Once we sort out the details and payment, then we will confirm the appointment slot with you. This will need to be booked at least 21 days after your pet's first rabies vaccine and within 10 days of travel. Once you are happy you send us the balance via UK bank transfer and we will make the AHC for you.

It's best to plan ahead – we suggest booking your AHC at least 3 weeks before you travel. This gives us enough time to gather all the necessary documents and prepare your certificate. Left it late? Our Urgent service can help if you’re within 7 days of travel.

We tend to only arrange appointments within 2 months before your travel date so that we can be as sure as possible about the appointment time we offer.

The owner and pet(s) listed on the AHC must attend the appointment in order for the AHC to be issued. The owner must sign the declaration of non commercial movement, and the microchip of the pet(s) must be scanned and verified for the AHC to be issued. 

If the pet is travelling to the EU with an authorised person, the authorised person may attend the appointment with the pet if the owner is unable to attend. This is only possible when the AHC is prepared for the pet to travel with an authorised person and the owner will travel to the EU within 5 days of the pet. 

It is not possible for somebody else to sign the AHC on behalf of the owner unless the pet is travelling with an authroised person and the owner will travel to the EU within 5 days of the pet. 

After you have submitted your pet's details and we have received evidence of your pet's rabies vaccination, an appointment will be arranged. If your address is located within a home delivery area, your AHC may be issued during a home visit appointment. Payment for the AHC is required in advance to confirm the booking.

During this visit, our vet will scan your pet's microchip, witness you signing the declaration, and provide the completed AHC. This typically takes 10 minutes.

Once you have submitted all information and we have received evidence of your pet's rabies vaccination, an appointment will be arranged. A popular appointment option is to meet one of the vets at a collection point. Payment for the AHC is required in advance to confirm the booking.

During the appointment, your pet's microchip will be scanned and the vet will witness the owner signing the AHC. The AHC is issued during the appointment which typically lasts up to 10 minutes. 

Preparation: We handle all the paperwork and preparation in advance. By the time you meet our Official Veterinarian, there’s only the final signatures and details to complete.

Meeting Points: Instead of traditional consult room visits, we utilise convenient collection points for our appointments. These locations are typically outside, such as car parks or easily accessible public areas. This method not only saves time but also reduces stress for both you and your pet.

Stay in Your Car: For the safety and comfort of your pets, we ask that you keep them in your car until the vet speaks with you and provides further instructions.

Using what3words for Precision: To ensure that you can find our vets easily and without confusion, we use what3words. This navigation system divides the world into three-meter squares, each with a unique three-word address. This means even in crowded or vague areas, like near a supermarket, you can find the exact location of your vet without any guesswork.

Navigation Made Simple: Once you receive the what3words address for your meeting point, simply click on the provided link, select 'Navigate' and then choose 'Google Maps' to get direct directions to your appointment.

Our system is designed to make your experience as smooth and straightforward as possible, ensuring that your pet's health certification is handled efficiently and with great care

See here for the current locations.

We are frequently adding new areas of coverage so please keep checking back here, for the latest locations.

By law we must scan your pet's microchip in person before issuing an AHC, as well as witness the owner signing the declaration so we cannot post them. Your pet must be seen at the home visit/ at the vets set collection point.

As we prepare your AHC paperwork in advance of the visit, payment is required upfront to confirm the appointment.

This helps us ensure everything goes smoothly on the day of your appointment. We only take payment via UK bank transfer.

The time we receive payment determines whether the AHC is classed as standard or urgent. We can only request payment once we have all the required information.

Once the appointment has been confirmed additional or other administrative changes incur a small £30 admin fee. Changes within 2 weeks of visit may not be possible. A change in date is dependent upon the vets availability and needs to be within a few days from the originally arranged appointment. This is because we do all the preparation in advance and this may mean us re-issuing some forms. As we do all the work beforehand - our AHC creation process begins immediately after we receive payment, therefore our standard policy for cancellations is that no refunds will be issued. We only confirm appointments once we have all the required information.

If when you are booking the AHC you are not sure of the arrival date into the EU please email us about this to see if we can arrange something to mitigate issues.

Yes, tapeworm treatment is required 1-5 days before entering Ireland, Northern Ireland, Finland, Norway or Malta: https://www.gov.uk/taking-your-pet-abroad/tapeworm-treatment-for-dogs

If you have an authorised worming treatment with you at the time of your booking we may be able to witness and update the AHC accordingly - we will arrange this prior to the appointment.

Please note typically we ask you to bring the wormer to the appointmetn however the Liverpool based vet - Andrea can supply this wormer for you.

No problem, just let us know in advance. We'll need a signed letter from the registered owner and proof of the traveller's plans.

Up to 5 pets can be listed on the same AHC. Mulitple pets can only be listed on a single AHC is they all share an owner and are travelling together. 

The AHC is valid for EU entry for 10 days from issue. Day 1 is the date of issue (the appointment date), and day 10 is the final day the AHC can be used to enter the EU with the pet (until midnight). 

Once the pet has arrived in the EU, the AHC is valid for onward travel within the EU ( and for the return journey to GB) for 6 months, or until the current rabies vaccinaiton expires. 

Dogs need EU approved tapeworm treatment 24 - 120 before travel back to the GB, witness and signed by a veterinarian:https://www.gov.uk/bring-pet-to-great-britain/tapeworm-treatment-dogs.

Please take note of the travel checklist from the APHA: Travel Checklist

In the UK, most rabies vaccines are valid for 3 years. In the EU, rabies vaccines are usually only valid for 1 year regardless of brand. However please always check directly with the vet who administered the rabies vaccine as this depends on the licensing of that specific vaccine.

Yes, pets need to enter through an approved Travellers Point of Entry. Check out the link for detailed information. https://ec.europa.eu/food/animals/pet-movement/eu-legislation/non-commercial-non-eu/tpe_en.

UK-issued pet passports are no longer valid for travel. You need an AHC instead: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/pet-travel-to-europe-from-1-january-2021

Our focus is solely on providing Animal Health Certificates. For other vet services, like vaccinations, you'll need to contact your regular vets.