Formalities to bring your pet in Kuwait

It's been almost a year so I'm not sure I remember all the details.  You will definitely need shot records with a rabies shot given at least 30 days prior to travel but within the last year.  I can't remember if other vaccines were necessary, as my dogs are always up to date on their shots.  My vet also had to do exams and fill out certificates of health.  Depending where you're coming from, you may also need other forms.  I needed a federal USDA stamp on an aphis-something form my vet had.  The import permit from Kuwait should take 4 days and as long as you have it, there is  no quarantine.  Without the permit, pets are quarantined until you obtain one.  Also, I believe for both the permit and the airline, all the health certificates had to be done within 10 days of arrival in Kuwait.  I tried to obtain the permit on my own at first but had no luck due to being given an invalid fax number.  So, in the end I, used Paws import services and had no problems.  Hope this helps!

Hi Dog_Lover!

Thanks for your contribution

Armand

Hi My husband and I will also be moving to Kuwait in October and bringing our dog. Can you please let me know how it goes for you and if there were any problems. We have a Border Collie and I'm concerned about him getting enough exercise with the heat. I would also like to know if there are any good kennels that someone can recommend. Thanks and I hope everything goes smoothly for you and your dog.

I just helped a friend of mine from the states in getting the required import permit for her dog. 

She used the International Veterinary Hospital (IVH) to obtain the permit.  They charged a fee of 35 KD for processing and obtaining the certificate.

This was the information that they required:

The following information/documents are required in order for us to obtain an Import Permit for you:-

1.      Proposed date of Importation (pets arrival to Kuwait).
2.      Name, address & contact number of the Importer/Owner in Kuwait.
3.      Copy of Passport/Civil ID of the Importer/Owner.
4.      Copy of Vaccination History of the Pet/Vaccination Record.
         (Last Rabies & Canine/Feline Vaccines should be more than 30 days/less than 1 year).
5.      Identification (Microchip Number).
6.      Name of Pet.
7.      Breed.
8.      Age.
9.      Sex.
10.      Color of the Animal.
11.)   Country of Origin
12.)   International Health Certificate from the Country of Origin (not required when obtaining the import permit,
but make sure the original IHC will travel with the pet along with other pet's original documents).

I visited the facility which about 25K south of the sixth ring road to pick up the original permit and it's a very nice facility and the staff there were very pleasant and friendly.

Hope this helps out.

Hi Nomad12!

Thanks for your help

Armand

Hi maxandsen, I had no problems importing my dogs.  Exercise during the summer can be challenging as my female (collie mix) can't take the heat for long.  Luckily, we live seaside so she can get her exercise in the water during the hottest months.  Also, just short walks or outside play seem to wear them out.  I haven't found a great kennel yet.  We've used Animal Care a few times for short trips and the dogs seem to like the people there although they always return missing toys and/or dishes.  Recently, for a longer trip, we boarded them at PAWS as we heard their facilities were nicer.  NEVER again!  My male came home covered in cuts and both were infested with ticks!  The only other challenge we've had is finding apartments that allow large dogs but that may vary depending where you plan to live.  Hope this helps.

Thanks Dog Lover I sent you an email earlier and hope to get together soon.

Hi All,

I just brought our two cats from Poland (in two goes as they were both flying on board).
The whole process was extremely simple and straightforward - in both cases we contacted the International Vet Hospital for the import permit,  they asked for all the above-mentioned by Nomad12. it takes 3 working days to obtain the import permit and it is valid for 30 days. From the Polish side (applies to the whole EU except UK) I had to get an export permit which is issued by local veterinary authorities based on a written statement from any vet saying that a pet is fit to fly. I also had to get a "fit to fly" stamp in our cats' passports which is valid for 72 hrs only (if you have a friendly vet and you know when you are flying, you can get it in advance).
Both times we were using Hala service upon my arrival, so we didn't go for a custom clearance offered by Int'l Vet Hospital, Hala people do that (worked out cheaper n much shorter).
Now, a funny bit is that NO ONE asked me for any of those papers anywhere! first time was flying with Lufthansa from Warsaw via Frankfurt - they couldn't care less, only at the Kuwait airport a Hala girl had to show it, but literally show that she's got it, no one bothered to look in the carrier that it is really a cat and not a dinosaur or smth. 2nd time - Turkish Airlines via Istanbul - same story, didn't show anything to anyone...
good luck :-)

hello everybody, i have a 5 yr old lab in india which i would like to take along to kuwait, would like to know what are the  formalities to move my dog to kuwait along with us ?

Hi preethipacher,

I am also getting ready to move to Kuwait...from USA.  Have a very small breed dog to move over.  Just seeing all the required information above, hopefully we can work on this and exchange information as we find out...our arrival date should be in Mid October. Please keep me posted if you find out current information! Good luck on everything!!

We are moving from Dubai to Kuwait with our three cats next week; we have all the documentation listed above. However we will be coming in on a visit visa. Those who have done this, did you enter on a visit visa? Or did you have your resident permit already? Cats will be coming as excess baggage not cargo. Slightly concerned they might not allow us through on a visit visa. International vet hospital said it "should" be fine but now am worried it might not be. Any help appreciated.

Just in case anyone needs the answer to this question, you can bring pets in as excess baggage on a visit visa, you can't if they travel cargo though. My cats arrived safely and it was quite a painless process:)

Thank you for that UKNOMAD! I did need the answer to that!  I am planning on bringing my small dog as excess baggage, did you have any trouble with crates fitting under the airline seats?  Long flight? etc?

Depends which airline you are coming with and from where, our cats went excess baggage but they weren't allowed in the cabin. We flew Kuwait airways but we only came from Dubai, so was a short flight. We used International Veterinary Hospital who were very good, we had copies of the import licence with us, however the originals were with a representative from International Veterinary Hospital at the airport ready.

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