TravelGuides

(TGA) - I'm planning to travel with my dog from the UK to France to Belgium and home again the same way. Does anyone know whether this means my dog will need to see a vet in France before going to Belgium and Belgium before coming back to France and France before coming back to the UK? Or just the once in France before coming back to the UK? I can't seem to find the answer on 'official' websites. Thanks.
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I believe the pet passport requirements for both France and Belgium are in fact less strict than they are for the UK, but as you are going straight from one to the other, what you will have got your vet in the UK to do for the trip to France (rabies injection within last 6 months etc) should cover you for Belgium anyway - and presumably also for your return to the UK.
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I looked at the websites available by googling and it seems to be perfectly clear, you (or rather the dog) require microchip, rabies vaccination and a blood test to prove the latter is valid: only if you were staying for several months in France before entering Belgium/returning to the UK might you need to get the blood-test (or if long enough, vaccination) redone, see defra.gov.uk/wildlife-pets/…eucountries.htm (for travelling to FR/BE: main point is to make sure rabies vaccination is done more than 21 days before you leave for FR, which automatically means it will have been done more than 21 days before entering Belgium) and defra.gov.uk/wildlife-pets/…owners.htm (which requires blood test at least 6 months before date or re-entry, so you should be covered by the one done in the UK before you leave).
Of course if you haven't had this done at all and are leaving imminently, you would not be able to meet the condition for returning to the UK and would have to leave dog behind - not for France or Belgium, which require waiting only for 21 days after vaccination, but for the UK, which imposes 6 months (or quarantine on return).
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Thank you. I have taken my dog to France several times so I am happy about the arrangements between the UK and France, it was the France/Belgium/France bit about which I was less clear. But I'm not travelling for a while so have time to find out and be certain. Again, many thanks.
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