Relocating Pets Between Taiwan and Mainland China
Mainland China is the corridor where the national rules are only half the problem. Customs (GACC) decides whether your pet enters at all and whether it spends 30 days in a designated facility — and then the city you are moving to decides, separately, whether your dog is allowed to live there.
Updated on , verified by 886JetPet
One corridor, two rulebooks
Entry to the mainland runs through the General Administration of Customs (GACC): pets arrive at designated ports, under a one-animal-per-person rule, and either qualify for release or serve 30 days in a designated quarantine facility. Coming back, Taiwan's APHIA applies its rabies-infected-origin protocol. Because the conditions attached to origin recognition and approved laboratories are revised from time to time, this is the one corridor where we re-confirm the current GACC notice for every single booking before a flight is paid for.
| Direction | Classification | What it means in practice |
|---|---|---|
| Taiwan → China | Mainland China (GACC) admits pets at designated ports under customs quarantine control | ISO microchip, two rabies vaccinations, a rabies antibody titer of at least 0.5 IU/mL from a recognised laboratory, and an official health certificate. One pet per person. Pets that do not satisfy the exemption conditions serve 30 days in a designated quarantine facility. |
| China → Taiwan | Taiwan (APHIA) does not list mainland China as a designated rabies-free area | Titer of at least 0.5 IU/mL sampled 90 days to 1 year before arrival, an e-permit at least 20 days ahead, and 7 days of post-entry quarantine unless the 180-day and 120-day waiver conditions are met. |
Quick compliance checklist: Taiwan ⇄ China
Corridor-specific requirements only — the universal basics (ISO chip before vaccine, IATA crate, live-animal flight space) are covered once on the Pet Travel Hub.
| Requirement | Who rules it | Critical window |
|---|---|---|
| TPE → mainland: designated port of entry | China GACC | Pets may only be presented at ports authorised to clear live animals — arriving elsewhere risks return or refusal |
| TPE → mainland: one pet per person | China GACC | A single dog or cat per traveller on the accompanied route; larger households need separate travellers or a commercial consignment |
| TPE → mainland: ISO microchip | China GACC | Implanted before vaccination and readable at the counter |
| TPE → mainland: two rabies vaccinations | China GACC | A documented vaccination history rather than a single current shot; the most recent must be valid on arrival |
| TPE → mainland: rabies antibody titer ≥ 0.5 IU/mL | China GACC, via a recognised laboratory | The original laboratory report travels with the pet and may be retained by officers on arrival |
| TPE → mainland: 30 days designated quarantine | GACC designated facility | Applies unless your pet meets the current exemption conditions in full — confirm the applicable notice before booking |
| Mainland → TPE: titer, e-permit and quarantine | Taiwan APHIA | Titer sampled 90 days to 1 year before arrival, e-permit at least 20 days ahead, 7-day facility stay unless waived at 180/120 days |
Taiwan's APHIA runs dog and cat imports through its online e-permit portal, with document uploads validated against the microchip record. We re-verify the current protocol on both sides of this corridor for every booking.
The chronological timeline
Read this top to bottom: each step's validity depends on the one before it, which is why a late fix costs months rather than days.
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Confirm the destination city's own rules T−7 months
- Before any veterinary work, check the residency rules where you will actually live: several major cities restrict dogs by breed and by shoulder height in their central districts, and registration is a separate municipal process from customs clearance.
- A pet that clears the border but cannot be registered at your address is a genuinely painful outcome — and an avoidable one.
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Build the vaccination history T−6 months
- Microchip first, then the rabies vaccination sequence; the mainland route expects a documented history rather than a single shot.
- Keep vaccine product names, lot numbers and dates legible — they are transcribed onto the certificate and checked.
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Titer blood draw T−5 months
- Sample to a laboratory recognised for the destination; 0.5 IU/mL or higher passes, and the original report travels with your pet.
- Taipei-bound instead? Draw at least 180 days before arrival to qualify for APHIA's quarantine waiver.
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File permits and confirm the current notice T−120 days to T−20 days
- Taipei-bound: APHIA e-permit at 120 days for the waiver, 20 days minimum otherwise.
- Mainland-bound: confirm the port, the exemption conditions and the accepted laboratories as they stand for your travel month — this is the step we never take from memory.
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Book uplift to a designated port T−6 weeks
- Cross-strait capacity for live animals is thinner than the passenger schedule suggests; the port requirement narrows it further.
- Confirm the routing does not transit a third country in a way that changes your pet's paperwork status.
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Export inspection, fly and clear T−10 days to T−0
- Taiwan APHIA branch inspection and export quarantine certificate in the final week.
- On arrival: customs quarantine inspection, then release or transfer to the designated facility for the 30-day stay.
What 886JetPet handles on this corridor
Your Taiwan ⇄ China move, fully handled
We verify the current GACC entry notice, the designated port and the recognised laboratory list for your travel month before anything is booked, and we flag the municipal breed and height rules at your destination address while they can still change your plans cheaply.
Track your pet's entire relocation in one live dashboard, unique to 886JetPet
Taiwan ⇄ China: common questions
Can I bring more than one pet to mainland China?
On the accompanied route the rule is one dog or cat per traveller. Households with two or more animals either travel with more than one adult passenger or move the additional animals as a commercial consignment, which is a different paperwork track entirely.
Will my pet have to do 30 days of quarantine?
Not automatically. Pets that meet the exemption conditions in full — microchip, the required rabies vaccination history and a passing titer from a recognised laboratory, arriving at a designated port — can be released rather than held. Pets that fall short of any element serve the 30 days in a designated facility at the owner's cost.
Is a rabies titer test required?
Yes, a result of at least 0.5 IU/mL from a recognised laboratory, and the original report should travel with the pet. Officers may keep it on arrival, so make sure your own records are complete before you hand it over.
Why do you re-check the rules for every booking on this route?
Because the conditions attached to origin recognition, accepted laboratories and designated ports on this corridor are revised more often than elsewhere in the region. A guide — including this one — tells you how the framework works; only the notice current in your travel month tells you what your pet must satisfy.
What about getting my pet back to Taiwan?
Mainland China is not on Taiwan's designated rabies-free list, so APHIA requires a passing titer of at least 0.5 IU/mL sampled 90 days to one year before arrival, an import permit at least 20 days ahead, and a 7-day facility quarantine unless the sample was taken 180 days to a year out and the permit was filed 120 days ahead.
Clear the border and the neighbourhood
A mainland move only counts as successful when your pet is registered and asleep in your apartment, not merely released from a port. Tell us the city and the month, and we will check the customs conditions and the municipal rules together — before the lease, the flight or the vet calendar is committed.