From 1 January 2027, Your Dog Needs a Blood Test Before It Can Fly to the Philippines

On 26 October the Bureau of Animal Industry issued BAI Memorandum Circular No. 60, a new set of rules for bringing dogs and cats into the Philippines. They apply to every import clearance application from 1 January 2027, and they change how a pet move has to be prepared.

The headline is a blood test. From January, every dog and cat needs a rabies neutralising antibody titre test with a result of at least 0.5 IU/ml before the bureau will issue its import clearance. That one requirement moves the start of a pet move back by weeks, and for a young animal by months.

Some of the news is good. The cap of three animals per importer goes, the list of compulsory vaccinations shrinks to one, and a change of airline on a layover no longer needs a new permit. The new rules are on the bureau's new requirements page, the old ones on its page of the rules in force until 31 December 2026.

The titre test: what is new and how it works

Under the current rules the bureau's own FAQ answers the titre question with a plain no. From 1 January the answer is yes, for all dogs and cats entering the Philippines, and the details matter:

• •The threshold is 0.5 IU/ml or higher. A result below that means the animal is revaccinated, and a re-test may be done after 14 days.
• •Only two test methods count: the Fluorescent Antibody Virus Neutralisation test (FAVN) and the Rapid Fluorescent Focus Inhibition Test (RFFIT). An ELISA result is not accepted.
• •The laboratory must be on the lists kept by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention or the European Commission, or be accredited or recognised by the government of the country the animal comes from.
• •Timing of the blood draw: at least 30 days after the first rabies vaccination. If the animal already has a valid rabies vaccination, blood may be drawn at any time.
• •The microchip comes first. The bureau does not insist on a sequence between chip and vaccination, but the chip has to be implanted before the blood test.

Two further points will surprise owners. A titre result is valid for the life of the pet, as long as every rabies booster is given on time. And if a booster is late, even by a single day, the bureau treats the result as invalid and the whole vaccination and testing process starts again. Keep the vaccination dates in a calendar you actually look at.

The test is also required from countries that have declared themselves rabies-free to the World Organisation for Animal Health or have never reported rabies. The bureau gives its reason directly: the high number of rabies cases in the Philippines and the welfare of the animal.

Form 1: one page per animal, completely filled in

The second new element is Form 1, the Certificate of Animal Vaccination, Antibody Titer, and Medication. It carries the importer's and the animal's details, the rabies vaccination, the titre result, the internal and external parasite treatment and the microchip number. Together with an individual photo of the animal, it is what you upload when you apply for the clearance online.

Each animal needs its own Form 1. Two cats, two forms. And the bureau does not accept a half-finished one: a form with only the declaration section signed by your private vet and the endorsement section still open will be refused. Section VI has to be endorsed by a government-accredited veterinarian who is authorised to sign regulatory documents for the national veterinary authority; where a country has no such accreditation scheme, a vet of the national veterinary authority itself signs it. Your own vet can sign both sections only if they hold that accreditation.

Form 1 is not the health certificate. It belongs to the clearance application; the health certificate comes later and is shown on arrival. The importer's name must be the same on the clearance, on Form 1 and on the health certificate.

The import clearance: 60 days, one trip, no extension

The Sanitary and Phytosanitary Import Clearance, the SPSIC, stays the document without which no dog or cat enters the country. From January the bureau sets out its terms like this:

• •Every trip of every animal needs an approved SPSIC before it travels.
• •It is valid for 60 days, up to the "Must Ship Out Date" printed on it. Extensions are prohibited.
• •It covers one shipment only and cannot be transferred to anyone else.
• •Processing takes up to 11 days once the application status changes to "UNDER REVIEW", provided the documents are complete and consistent. Earlier approval is possible when there are fewer applications.

The 60-day window is the constraint to plan around. Apply too early and the clearance runs out before your flight; apply too late and the 11 days eat into your margin.

The health certificate: ten days, counted from the day after

The International Veterinary Health Certificate (IVHC) is issued by the government veterinary authority of the country the animal leaves from, not by the bureau and not by a private practice alone. From January the bureau requires:

• •Issue within 10 days before entering the Philippines. Counting starts the day after issue. The bureau's own example: a certificate issued on 1 January 2027 is valid until 11 January 2027.
• •English, or with an English translation.
• •The original travels with the animal. A digital certificate is accepted only if it can be checked on a verification platform endorsed by the national veterinary authority of the source country.

Ten days is short. It means the endorsement appointment and the flight have to be booked against each other, and a delayed flight can push you outside the window.

What gets easier

No limit on numbers. Until the end of 2026, an importer may bring in a maximum of three animals a year, or the same three animals more than once if their microchips match. From January the bureau sets no limit, as long as every animal meets the documentary and health requirements.

Only rabies is compulsory. The current rules also demand vaccination against distemper, hepatitis, leptospirosis, parainfluenza and parvovirus for dogs, and against panleukopenia for cats. From January only a valid rabies vaccination is required. Other vaccinations may still be given. The rabies rules themselves stay familiar: a licensed vet in the source country, the animal at least 12 weeks old at vaccination, and the vaccination valid on the day of entry. The Philippines continues to accept a three-year rabies vaccination where the source country grants that validity, but the titre test is required regardless.

Layovers. Today a change of airline on the way means a new permit. From January there are no additional requirements for layovers, even with a change of airline, as long as everything else is in order.

What gets stricter besides the test

Age. The minimum age at the time of the clearance application rises from four months to 18 weeks, four and a half months. Pregnant animals remain excluded, and a dog or cat that has given birth may travel only 18 weeks afterwards (today: 12 weeks).

Parasites. Today deworming is required at least seven days before the application and external parasite treatment is optional. From January both internal and external treatment are required. The bureau names no specific product and no waiting period, but the treatment must still be valid during the application and on arrival.

Already approved before 31 December? The transition rule

The bureau answers this one explicitly. If your SPSIC was approved on or before 31 December 2026, you may still ship your dog or cat within its 60-day validity without the titre test and without Form 1. Applications from 1 January 2027 follow the new rules.

So for anyone flying in the first two months of 2027 there is a real choice. An application approved in December falls under the current rules, which means the three-animal cap, the full list of vaccinations, the deworming seven days before applying and the four-month minimum age still apply to it. An application from January needs the titre test. Since the current rules allow 11 working days for processing, a December approval needs a complete application in the first half of December at the latest, and the flight has to fall inside the 60 days printed on the clearance.

Working backwards from your flight

For a puppy or kitten, the new rules set a natural minimum. The first rabies vaccination at 12 weeks, the blood draw at least 30 days later, the clearance application at 18 weeks at the earliest, up to 11 days of processing, and a health certificate in the ten days before arrival. An animal born today cannot realistically land in the Philippines before it is around five months old, and that assumes the titre result comes back above 0.5 IU/ml the first time.

For an adult animal with a valid vaccination, the blood can be drawn at once. The order then looks like this:

• •Microchip checked, rabies vaccination valid, next booster date noted.
• •Titre test at a listed laboratory by FAVN or RFFIT.
• •Parasite treatment, internal and external, timed so it is still valid on arrival.
• •Form 1 completed and endorsed in both sections, one per animal, plus a photo of each animal.
• •SPSIC application online, with the importer's name exactly as on the other documents.
• •Health certificate from the national veterinary authority within the ten days before arrival.
• •Flight inside the clearance's 60 days and the certificate's ten.

On arrival, if the animal travels with you as cabin or checked baggage, have ready the printed approved SPSIC, the original health certificate, the signed Form 1 and a copy of the titre result. If it is released from the airport's cargo terminal, add the air waybill stamped by the airline to show arrival.

Fees on arrival

The bureau collects its fees in cash and in Philippine pesos: PHP 100 for the import clearance, PHP 55 lodgement fee, and inspection fees of PHP 250 per animal for the first two and PHP 300 per animal for each additional one. Carry pesos; a card or foreign cash will not do.

Questions about a specific case go to the bureau's National Veterinary Quarantine Services Division, which the new requirements page names as the contact for importers.

Everything else about the move stays the same

The new circular changes the paperwork, not the rest of the move. The airline still has to accept the animal on your route, snub-nosed breeds still face hold restrictions, and a thick-coated dog still has to get used to Davao's heat. All of that is in our guide to bringing your dog to the Philippines, which covers the flight, the climate and the year-round tick and heartworm question.

The housing question deserves the same early attention: not every building in Davao accepts pets, and the rental market looks different once a dog is part of the search. Vets in the city are competent and affordable, for the same reasons healthcare here is. And once you and the animal are both on the ground, the first thirty days cover the rest of the arrival, from the SIM card to the barangay.

If your pet's timing depends on your own residency route, settle the visa question first and plan the animal's clearance around your arrival date. With the titre test in the sequence, four months before departure is the sensible point to start, and for a young animal earlier still.