Travelling with pets from Punggol starts with the destination’s import rules, then an AVS export licence on the GoBusiness Licensing Portal (S$50, valid 90 days). Plan the return just as carefully: AVS treats a returning pet like a new import, so even a short Malaysia trip means at least 30 days’ quarantine.

Pets are family, and moving them across borders takes more lead time than most trips. If your pet is coming back to Singapore later, start planning months ahead.

This page is part of eduKate Punggol’s When You Need Help in Punggol, our practical guides for life’s occasions, big and small. It covers AVS export and import rules for dogs and cats, quarantine, costs, airline conditions and the places in Singapore you may need to visit.

Quick answer

• Leaving: check the destination’s rules, apply for an AVS export licence on GoBusiness within 90 days of leaving, and get a vet’s health certificate if the destination asks for one.
• Coming back: get a dog or cat licence on PALS first, then an import licence on GoBusiness. It costs S$50 and is valid for 90 days, with no extensions.
• Quarantine depends on the country: none for a fully compliant pet from Australia, New Zealand, Ireland or the UK; possibly at least ten days’ home quarantine from countries such as the USA or Japan; at least 30 days at the Animal Quarantine Centre from everywhere else, including Malaysia.
• Quarantine fees rise on 1 December 2026: $36 a day for a fan room and $44 for air-conditioning, per dog or cat.
• Airline: Singapore Airlines carries only cats and dogs, in the hold, and asks you to contact it at least two weeks before departure.

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Travelling with Pets: Taking a Dog or Cat Overseas

These are AVS’s export steps, in order. Your vet and airline will each have a part to play.

1. Check the destination’s import rules on its government authority’s website: vaccinations, lab tests and the health certificate it wants.
2. Apply for the export licence on the GoBusiness Licensing Portal, within 90 days of leaving. It is valid for 90 days from issue.
3. Get a vet’s health certificate if the destination requires one. A licensed private vet examines your pet. If the destination has its own template, the vet completes it, you apply on GoBusiness, and you drop the originals and your application number into AVS’s drop-off box for endorsement. If there is no template, you apply for a QR-verifiable certificate and print the PDF yourself; it is valid for seven days.
4. Book a pre-export inspection, only if required, through NParks e-services at least five days before departure. Turning up without an appointment incurs an inspection fee.
5. Arrange ground handling through your airline. The airline coordinates with SATS Gateway or dnata. Bring your pet, a copy of the export licence, the original health certificate and any other documents the destination needs.
6. Cancel the dog licence on PALS after your dog has left Singapore.

Where to Go and Who to Call

Where or who	Address or contact	Hours	Good for
Changi Animal & Plant Quarantine Station (CAPQ)	113A Airport Cargo Road, Changi Airfreight Centre, Singapore 819985. Tel 1800 476 1600.	Mon–Tue 9am–5pm; Wed–Fri 9am–8pm; lunch 1pm–2pm. Closed Sat, Sun and public holidays.	Arrival inspections for pets flying in, and pre-export inspections.
Animal Quarantine Centre (AQC)	2 Jalan Lekar, Singapore 698919. Feedback via avs.gov.sg/feedback.	Visiting: Tue and Thu 3pm–5pm; Sat 2pm–5pm. Closed Mon, Wed, Fri, Sun and public holidays.	Quarantine stays, and visiting your pet during one.
AVS document drop-off box	Raffles Building, Level 1 (next to the lift), Singapore Botanic Gardens, 1 Cluny Road, Singapore 259569	24 hours	Original documents for health-certificate endorsement.
GoBusiness Licensing Portal and PALS	Online. PALS is at pals.avs.gov.sg.	Online	Export and import licences (GoBusiness); dog and cat licences (PALS).
SATS Gateway	Terminal 5, 20 Airport Boulevard, Singapore 918141	Via your airline	Pet ground handling for departures.
dnata Singapore	dnata Outbound Terminal, 50 Airport Boulevard, Singapore 819658	Via your airline	Pet ground handling for departures.
AVS Animal Response Centre	1800 476 1600	24 hours	Animal emergencies and injured animals.

Checked October 2026 — confirm on the official page before you go: AVS: exporting dogs and cats, AVS: importing dogs and cats, CAPQ and AQC.

Which Situation Fits You

A quick trip to Johor Bahru with the dog

Please leave the dog at home. AVS says plainly that a pet taken to Malaysia for a short trip is treated as an import from Malaysia on return, so the 30-day quarantine applies. Our guide to pet boarding and pet sitters can help while you are away.

Coming home from Australia, New Zealand, Ireland or the UK

These are AVS’s Schedule I countries. A fully compliant pet needs no rabies vaccination or blood test, and no quarantine.

Coming home from the USA, Canada, Japan, Germany or another Schedule II country

There is no quarantine if your pet arrives less than five days after you and has lived at the same address for over six months. Otherwise, expect at least ten days of home quarantine on a personal licence, or ten days at the AQC on a commercial one. Apply for home quarantine through go.gov.sg/avs-homeq; AVS replies within five working days.

Coming home from anywhere else, including Malaysia

These are Schedule III countries. Your pet spends at least 30 days at the AQC and is vaccinated against rabies on arrival. Book a space on AVS’s Quarantine Management System (QMS) with the vaccination records.

Flying with Singapore Airlines

SIA’s pet page says cats and dogs travel in the temperature-controlled hold, not on Boeing 737 flights. Pets must be at least three months old and not pregnant, and snub-nosed breeds such as Pugs, Shih Tzus, Bulldogs and Persian cats are not accepted. A pet and container over 32 kg must go through a cargo agent. Check in at least two hours before departure. SIA also says personal pets must clear import through an AVS-recognised pet agent, while AVS says owners may apply themselves or use an agent, so ask the airline. We have not checked other airlines.

Moving abroad for good

Start with the export steps above, and see our moving overseas checklist for the rest of the household.

Import Rules, Quarantine and Costs

AVS says returning pets face the same rules as first-time imports. At the time of checking in October 2026, the main rules were:

• Rabies (Schedules II and III): a valid rabies vaccination with a vaccine type AVS accepts, then a blood test at least 28 days later. The sample must be taken at least 90 days, and within 12 months, before export, at a WOAH reference laboratory or an approved laboratory in a Schedule I or II country.
• Microchip and age: an ISO 11784/11785 microchip, with the number on every record. Pets must be at least 12 weeks old at export.
• Arrival: by air at CAPQ, or by land at Tuas Checkpoint. Book the inspection at least five days before arrival; without a booking, AVS charges S$133 per hour or part of an hour.
• Prohibited breeds: Pit Bull types (including the American Staffordshire Terrier and Staffordshire Bull Terrier), Akita, Boerboel, Dogo Argentino, Fila Brasileiro, Neapolitan Mastiff, Tosa, Perro de Presa Canario and their crosses, plus first- to fourth-generation Bengal or Savannah cat crosses.
• HDB flats: AVS says up to two cats or one non-specified dog, and no Specified dogs. Check HDB’s Guidelines on Keeping Pets for allowed breeds.

Costs (AVS): export licence S$50 (two working days) or S$100 express (one working day); health-certificate endorsement S$23, or S$46 express where available; import licence S$50, or S$100 express; home-quarantine smart collar S$29 per animal per day. AQC accommodation per dog or cat per day is $26 (fan) or $35 (air-conditioned) from 1 December 2025, rising to $36 and $44 from 1 December 2026.

Singapore Customs adds that importing a personal pet is subject to GST. Relief for people moving residence is not automatic and is decided case by case.

Neighbour’s Tips

• Start the rabies blood test early. The sample must be taken at least 90 days before your pet leaves for Singapore.
• Time the export licence. It lasts 90 days, so do not apply too soon.
• Avoid weekend arrivals. CAPQ is closed on Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays, and SIA says pets arriving outside its hours are held by SATS, which does not feed or walk them.
• Check the microchip number on every certificate and vaccination record before you leave the vet.
• Visit your pet in quarantine. AQC lets owners bring bedding, toys and their own grooming kit; medicine is allowed only if declared on QMS and prescribed by a vet.
• Book your vet visit in Punggol well ahead. Our guide to vets and pet life in Punggol lists nearby clinics.

If Your Pet Is Unwell or Hurt

For an injured animal or an animal emergency, AVS’s Animal Response Centre is on 1800 476 1600, 24 hours. If your pet falls ill at night before a trip, our guide to emergency and after-hours vets near Punggol lists where to go. Tell your airline straight away if your pet may not be fit to fly.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does my dog need quarantine after a short trip to Malaysia?

Yes. AVS treats it as an import from Malaysia, a Schedule III country, so the 30-day quarantine at the AQC applies.

How long is an AVS export licence valid?

90 days from issue. Apply on GoBusiness within 90 days of leaving.

How much does quarantine cost?

AQC charges per dog or cat per day. From 1 December 2026 it is $36 for a fan room and $44 for an air-conditioned one. Home quarantine uses a smart collar at S$29 per animal per day.

Can my pet fly in the cabin?

SIA’s pet page describes cats and dogs travelling in the hold and does not mention a cabin option. Ask your airline directly.

Do I need a pet agent?

AVS says owners may apply themselves or use an AVS-recognised pet agent, and it keeps a reference list. SIA’s page says an agent is needed for import on its flights, so confirm with your airline.

Can I bring my snub-nosed dog or cat on SIA?

Not as checked baggage. SIA lists breeds such as the Boxer, Pug, Shih Tzu, Bulldog, Cavalier King Charles Spaniel, Persian, Exotic Shorthair, Himalayan and Burmese, and their crosses.

More Help on eduKate Punggol

• Vets and pet life in Punggol: clinics and licensing
• Emergency and after-hours vets near Punggol
• Pet boarding, pet sitters and dog walkers near Punggol
• Moving overseas or coming home: household checklist
• Official: AVS export · AVS import · AVS-recognised pet agents

Safe Travels for Every Member of the Family

Moving a pet across borders takes patience, paperwork and a good vet, but a well-planned trip is far kinder to them than a rushed one. Start early, keep every certificate and licence safe, and your companion will be settled in their new home, or back in Punggol, before you know it.

And if your family is also looking for calm, small-group English, Mathematics or Science, eduKate Punggol teaches classes of three in Punggol. Come find out more: Book a consultation · Chat on WhatsApp

eduKate Punggol
Small-group English, Mathematics and Science
Primary and Secondary
By appointment · +65 8823 1234

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Checked October 2026. Addresses, opening hours, fees and rules change, so please confirm with the official source before you go.