Your dog or cat to Sint Eustatius: 21 days after the jab, 15 weeks old and a seat in a small aircraft

Yes, your dog or cat may come along to Sint Eustatius, and the requirements are the same as for Bonaire, because they apply to the whole Caribbean Netherlands. Customs Caribbean Netherlands asks two things: a valid health certificate, signed by an official or accredited vet, and a rabies vaccination given at least 21 days before departure. Because that vaccination is not valid for an animal younger than twelve weeks, a dog or cat is at least fifteen weeks old on arrival. A titre test appears nowhere in the requirements. What makes it different on Statia is the journey: there is no direct flight from the Netherlands, so your pet changes on Sint Maarten to a small aircraft or a ferry, and there its own rules, weights and fees apply.

What exactly does the Caribbean Netherlands require?

The basis is the Small Animals Import Decree BES. It prohibits the import of dogs, cats and other small animals without a valid health certificate, requires for dogs and cats on top of that a valid proof of rabies vaccination, and stipulates that an animal that does not meet the conditions goes into quarantine immediately. Customs translates that into practice: vaccination at least 21 days before departure, animal at least fifteen weeks old, and the owner or a companion authorised by the owner travels along.

One ban is rarely relevant for Dutch citizens, but good to know if you travel via South America: dogs and cats from a country on the mainland of South and Central America, Suriname excepted, may not enter or pass through Bonaire, Sint Eustatius and Saba, unless you settle permanently on the islands and have owned the animal for four months or more. Protected species require a CITES document.

Which clocks are running?

Step	Term or requirement
Microchip	before or on the day of the rabies vaccination, otherwise the jab is not valid
Rabies vaccination	at least 21 days before departure; not valid for an animal younger than 12 weeks
Minimum age on arrival	15 weeks
Health certificate	by an official or accredited vet
Looking up requirements and certificate	NVWA Export Assistant; otherwise e-mail dpp@nvwa.nl
Winair, pet in the cabin	at most 6 kilos including carrier, carrier 11 by 11 by 18 inches, $ 40 per flight
Winair, pet in the hold	at most 32 kilos including kennel, $ 60, one animal per passenger
Winair notification	at least 48 hours in advance, with confirmation
Makana Ferry	pets allowed; small crate $ 30, large crate $ 60
Customs exemption as removal goods	pets fall under the removal goods exemption

How does the Dutch side go?

The NVWA describes the route for every destination outside the EU. First the basics at your own vet: a chip and a valid rabies vaccination, and mind the order, because the animal must be chipped at the moment of vaccination, otherwise the jab does not count. Then you check in the NVWA Export Assistant whether a binding certificate with instructions is available for your destination; if not, you e-mail dpp@nvwa.nl with the details of your animal and your trip, and are told which requirements apply and how to meet them. Do that well in advance: you have your own vet complete and sign the health certificate, and you check how long it is valid, so that it covers the whole journey, including the transfer.

Why is the last leg the point?

Because Sint Eustatius has no direct scheduled flight from the Netherlands. F.D. Roosevelt Airport has a 1,199-metre runway and only Winair flies scheduled services there, from Sint Maarten. Winair carries only small pets, such as dogs, cats and small birds, and the number of places in cabin and hold depends on available space: you notify the airline at least 48 hours in advance and wait for confirmation. In the cabin an animal of at most six kilos including the carrier is allowed, for $ 40 per flight; in the hold at most 32 kilos including the kennel, for $ 60, with one animal per passenger. The Makana ferry from Philipsburg is the alternative, at $ 30 for a small and $ 60 for a large crate. On Statia you therefore plan a transfer with an animal waiting on Sint Maarten.

Count backwards, and book Winair first. Departure date minus 21 days is the last day for the rabies jab, but the place in the small aircraft from Sint Maarten is the real bottleneck: without Winair's confirmation, at least 48 hours in advance, your pet does not travel, and a dog of more than 32 kilos including kennel does not fit.

What changes after arrival?

At customs the pet counts as removal goods and falls under the exemption for your household goods, provided you applied for that permit in advance. What no longer goes by itself after landing is the way back: the NVWA warns that a rabies vaccination entered in the EU pet passport by a vet outside the EU is not valid for a trip back to the Netherlands. Whoever expects to fly back and forth therefore keeps the Dutch vaccination valid as long as possible. How the pet clock falls in the planning next to the container and the car is in the step-by-step plan for Sint Eustatius.

In Vertrekklaar this is phase 3 of 5 of the journey, step 3.3: the same steps, but for your situation — in your order, tickable, and with the deadlines watched. See the whole journey to Sint Eustatius or go straight to step 3.3 in the open plan.