Everything you Need to Know About Moving Your Pets to Costa Rica - by Lori Anne

by Lori Anne Haskell in Costa Rica

The thought of moving to a foreign country and how to transport your belongings there can be daunting. Even more stressful can be figuring out how to get your pets to a foreign country to live with you.

I moved to Costa Rica in May 2014. Before my move, my husband and I lived in the state of Michigan in the United States with three dogs and two cats. Once we decided to move, we started to do extensive research on how to get our pets to Costa Rica with us in the least stressful way for our pets. The very first thing we checked on was whether pets needed to quarantine when entering the country. Since the answer is no in Costa Rica, we continued our research on what specifically needed to be done to move our pets with us.

In May 2014, we had 3 Chinese Pugs, 1 Persian cat and one tabby cat. Upon reading online, we found out that many airlines refuse to fly snub nose breeds, including Chinese Pugs and Persian cats. This is because it can be dangerous for snub nosed dogs and cats to fly due to potential breathing issues on the plane. So even though certain airlines allowed our pets to fly, we did not want to risk their lives and started to look at alternatives. We looked at charter flights, boats and driving them ourselves.

In the end, we made the decision that I would fly to Costa Rica with our tabby cat, and my husband would drive to Costa Rica with the remainder of the pets, which were all snub nosed. In order to do this, we had to take many steps before our pets would be allowed into Costa Rica. First, we had to have a car that was only in my husband's name and had title free and clear from any loans.

Next, we had to make sure our pets all had certain vaccines required by Costa Rica, as well as all other countries he would be driving through. Then we had to take the animals' proof of vaccinations to the USDA for certification. The closest office to my house in Michigan was about an hour away. Click here to see the form your vet must fill out for each pet. https://www.aphis.usda.gov/aphis/pet-travel/by-country/pettravel-costa-rica. Once you have these documents, they are only valid for 14 days so you need to get them close to your dates of travel.

The required vaccinations for pets entering Costa Rica are: distemper, hepatitis, leptospirosis, parvovirus, and rabies (for animals over four months).

The rabies vaccine must have been applied at least one month before entering Costa Rica. However, some of the other Central American countries have different vaccine requirements. If you are driving your pets to Costa Rica, you must also get the required vaccines for each country you will be driving through. The USDA certificate must be requested by your veterinarian. The certificate must state that the animal is in good health, has no external or internal parasites, and has no infectious or contagious diseases.

If the animal is declared as air cargo, airport health authorities will request a health import permit from the Department of Animal Health of Costa Rica. In that case, prior to travel, you must complete the appropriate form and fax or email it directly to the Directorate of Animal Health of Costa Rica. This document doesn’t have to be apostilled.

Upon arriving in Costa Rica, you must go to the Animal Health Services Division, where, within 48 hours, they will issue the necessary permit to recover the animal, provided that you also provide them with the international health certificate for the transit of domestic animals, completed by your veterinarian in your country of origin.

You will have to pay about US$15 for obtaining this permit, regardless of the number of animals you travel with. Generally, the Directorate of Animal Health Services grants the permit on the same day, but the legal time limit is 48 hours. If you want to declare your animal as air cargo, you may also contact a customs agent in Costa Rica (you must choose it by yourself), who can arrange for this permit to be ready upon your arrival in Costa Rica.

See more information here.

Next, you must check with your airline on the rules for flying with a pet. I was flying with one cat that could fly in the cabin with me. I flew Delta Airlines. My cat had to fit in a well-ventilated pet carrier that fits under the seat in front of me. See rules for Delta Airlines here https://www.delta.com/us/en/pet-travel/overview. I had to pay a fee of $125 extra to carry my pet on the plane. When I got to the airport to check-in, I paid my fee. When going through security, an agent took me to a room in order to check inside the pet carrier since my cat could not be put through the X-ray machines. Arriving in Costa Rica, I had to show the agent at the final x-ray machine my documents for the cat.

For my husband driving with my other 3 dogs and cat, he had to show the USDA documents at the border of each country he drove through. Each country had different requirements for entry, with some countries having fees for the pets to cross into their country. It is best to travel with a friend as each border requires you to stand in a separate line to obtain the pet approval documents. The lines are often long, often in the sun and it can be quite hot for the pets. A friend can assure your pets can be walked, fed, cooled off, etc. while you are waiting in line. Be careful while traveling through each border area as they're claiming to want to help you with the pet approval portion of entering the country, but they sometimes just misdirect you and lie about the fees in order to swindle you. They attempted to do this to my husband but since he had researched extensively, he did not pay any fees that were not required by law. It’s best to check the pet fees online before traveling so that you know what they are and don’t get taken advantage of. Also note that the pet fee in Costa Rica is paid at the bank at the border, which is only open during the week during regular business hours.

Lastly, you really need to research your new country and the dangers of the country to your pet. If you live in a jungle area, there could be wildlife that could harm your pet. For example, the cane toad. If your pet licks this toad, the result could be death. There are also venomous snakes, scorpions, spiders, and more. You need to be much more aware of your surroundings and make sure your pets are protected.

Costa Rica is a very pet-friendly country. Bringing your pet here has some challenges, but overall it is a simple process. Good luck!