Dog or cat to Albania: easy on the way out with a chip and rabies jab, but a titre test for the way back
Your dog or cat can come to Albania with a microchip, a rabies vaccination at least 21 days old and the EU pet passport. Albania probably also asks for a health certificate from an official vet, valid for ten days. A titre test is not needed on the way out. It is for the way back: Albania is not on the EU list. So have the test done in the Netherlands before you leave.
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Your dog or cat can come to Albania, and the way out is simple. The animal needs a microchip, a rabies vaccination at least 21 days old and the EU pet passport. Albania probably also asks for a health certificate from an official vet, valid for ten days. A titre test is not needed on the way out. The tricky part is the way back: Albania is not on the EU list of countries without a blood test requirement. So have the titre test done in the Netherlands before you leave. Then you will not have to wait three months later.
What does Albania ask for?
Albanian customs describes the rules in its passenger handbook. They rest on the law on the veterinary service (law 10465/2011) and a 2012 regulation of the Ministry of Agriculture (Urdhër 353). We could not open that regulation itself. The model certificate Slovenia agreed with Albania, for animals from the EU, completes the picture.
| Requirement | What applies | Timing |
|---|---|---|
| Microchip | the animal is identified with a microchip (or a legible tattoo) | before the rabies vaccination |
| Age | at least 12 weeks at vaccination | |
| Rabies vaccination | given by a vet, recorded in the passport | at least 21 days before entry |
| Passport | the EU pet passport, with the vaccination | |
| Health certificate | from an official vet, following the Slovenian model | valid for ten days until the check on entry |
| Titre test | not needed for an animal from the EU | |
| Number | usually at most five animals |
If something is wrong, customs can refuse the animal, put it in quarantine or send it back. According to the handbook, a young animal under three months without vaccination may only come with a passport, and if it has had no contact with wild animals.
The customs handbook mentions only the passport. The Slovenian model certificate and the US government also mention a health certificate, issued at most ten days before travel. So assume a certificate is needed. Check the NVWA Export Assistant for which certificate exists for Albania, and otherwise email dpp@nvwa.nl.
What do you arrange in the Netherlands?
Make sure your animal is microchipped before it gets the rabies vaccination. According to the NVWA, the vaccination is otherwise not valid. The vet records the chip and vaccination in the EU pet passport.
If a certificate is required, you have it legalised by the NVWA, at the office in Utrecht. Email at least 14 working days in advance. The NVWA says preparation can take "weeks to well over half a year". With the titre test added, that is certainly no exaggeration.
If you email dpp@nvwa.nl, state the species, the country, any stopovers, your departure date, the purpose of the trip and your phone number. The NVWA tries to reply within two working days.
How do you get back into the EU later?
Albania is not on the European Commission's list of countries for which no blood test is needed (annex II to Implementing Regulation 2026/636). Neighbouring countries such as Montenegro, North Macedonia and Serbia are. For the way back, or for a holiday in the EU, your animal therefore needs a titre test: a blood test showing that the rabies vaccination works.
| Rule for the way back | What applies |
|---|---|
| Result | at least 0.5 IU/ml, at an EU-approved laboratory |
| Blood sample | at least 30 days after the first vaccination, or within a valid series |
| Waiting period | at least 90 days between the blood sample and the issue of the animal health certificate |
| Exception to the 90 days | an animal habitually residing in the EU, with a good test before leaving the EU recorded in the passport |
| Valid for as long as | you keep repeating the rabies vaccination on time |
| Certificate for the journey | an EU animal health certificate from an official vet, valid for ten days until the check on entry into the EU |
So have the test done in the Netherlands, at least 30 days after the vaccination and before you leave, and have the result entered in the passport. You lose no time doing so, because the 90 days do not apply on the way out.
The exception to the 90 days was written for an animal living in the EU. An animal moving with you to Albania no longer lives there. Whether the exception still applies is not certain. Count on 90 days of waiting before you travel to the EU with your animal, and ask the NVWA if you want to know exactly.
One more thing to know: according to the NVWA, a rabies jab entered in the EU passport by a vet outside the EU does not count on return. If your animal gets a booster in Albania, it travels back with the animal health certificate from an official vet in Albania.
What else can come along in the move is explained in household goods to Albania. How the return works in general is explained in moving back to the Netherlands.
In Vertrekklaar this is phase 4 of 5 of the journey, step 4.4: the same steps, but for your situation — in your order, tickable, and with the deadlines watched. See the whole journey to Albania or go straight to step 4.4 in the open plan.
What is due when?
Enter your departure date and see day by day what your dog or cat needs for Albania, from microchip to certificate.
What this rests on
The facts in this article come from these official pages. Rules change. When in doubt, go by the source, not this article.
- Dogana, the Albanian customs — passenger handbook, with the microchip, the passport, the rabies vaccination of 21 days and at most five animals — dogana.gov.al
- Slovenian government (UVHVVR) — the bilateral model health certificate for dogs and cats from the EU to Albania, valid for ten days — gov.si
- USDA APHIS, the US government — pets to Albania, with the certificate within ten days before travel and no titre test for animals from the EU — aphis.usda.gov
- NVWA — taking your dog or cat to a country outside the EU, with the microchip before the vaccination, the blood test for the return journey and the Export Assistant — nvwa.nl
- European Commission — the non-EU countries without a blood test requirement (Implementing Regulation 2026/636, annex II); Albania is not among them — food.ec.europa.eu
- European Commission — bringing a pet from a non-EU country, with the titre test, the 30 and 90 days and the animal health certificate — food.ec.europa.eu
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