Relocating Pets Between Taiwan and France
Here is the good news, and it is genuinely good: Taiwan sits on the EU's list of approved third countries, so no rabies blood test stands between your pet and Paris. The bad news: France — with Germany, Denmark and Norway — is one of the European destinations on this site that can refuse your dog on the basis of what it looks like and what paperwork proves its breeding.
Updated on , verified by 886JetPet
One corridor, two rulebooks
Westbound, France applies the common EU entry rules: microchip, rabies vaccination, a twenty-one-day wait and an animal health certificate valid ten days to the border. Layered on top is French domestic law, which sorts certain dogs into two regulated categories and bars one of them from entering the country at all. Eastbound, Taiwan's APHIA runs its rabies-infected-origin protocol, because France is not on Taiwan's short designated list.
| Direction | Classification | What it means in practice |
|---|---|---|
| Taiwan → France | France applies EU entry rules — and Taiwan is a listed third country | ISO microchip before vaccination, rabies vaccination with a 21-day wait, an EU animal health certificate issued within 10 days of arrival, entry through a designated travellers' point of entry — and no rabies antibody test. French category 1 dogs may not be imported at all. |
| France → Taiwan | Taiwan (APHIA) does not list France 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 filed at least 20 days ahead, and 7 days of post-entry quarantine unless one of APHIA's waiver routes applies: the blood was sampled 180 days to one year before arrival and either the import permit was filed at least 120 days ahead or the permit was filed at least 20 days ahead with the laboratory or the exporting country's quarantine authority sending the passing report to APHIA directly; a pet tested in Taiwan before export and re-entering within one year of that sampling is also exempt. |
Quick compliance checklist: Taiwan ⇄ France
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 → CDG: no rabies antibody test | EU animal health rules | Taiwan is a listed third country, so the serological test and its three-month wait do not apply — the single biggest time saver on this route |
| TPE → CDG: ISO microchip, then rabies vaccination | EU animal health rules | Chip first; the pet must be at least 12 weeks old at vaccination, and at least 21 days must pass after the primary course |
| TPE → CDG: EU animal health certificate | Issued and endorsed by Taiwan APHIA | Valid 10 days to the border check, then 6 months for onward travel inside the EU or until the vaccination expires |
| TPE → CDG: category 1 dogs are barred | French domestic law | Pit-bull, Boerbull and Tosa types without recognised pedigree registration are category 1 and may not be imported into France, even in transit. A look-alike without papers needs a veterinary attestation, translated into French, stating it does not fall under the order of 27 April 1999 — and the authorities can order a counter-assessment |
| TPE → CDG: category 2 dogs are admitted but regulated | French domestic law | Pedigree-registered American Staffordshire Terriers, Rottweilers and Tosas — and Rottweiler-type dogs without pedigree — are category 2: permit (permis de détention), aptitude certificate, behavioural evaluation, insurance, muzzle and leash in public. Staffordshire Bull Terriers are not categorised |
| TPE → CDG: designated point of entry and the 5-day rule | EU border authorities | Arrive at a travellers' point of entry; travelling more than 5 days apart from your pet moves it to the commercial track with TRACES pre-notification |
| CDG → TPE: titer, e-permit and quarantine | Taiwan APHIA | Titer sampled 90 days to 1 year ahead, e-permit at least 20 days ahead, 7-day facility stay unless waived — sample 180 days–1 year old and either permit ≥ 120 days ahead or permit ≥ 20 days with the lab or exporting authority reporting directly to APHIA; a pet tested in Taiwan before export and back within a year is exempt |
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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Check your dog's category before anything else T−4 months
- If your dog is or resembles a pit-bull type, Boerbull or Tosa, establish now whether it has recognised pedigree registration. Without it, French law treats it as category 1 and it cannot be imported.
- Category 2 dogs can move, but arrive into a permit, insurance and muzzling regime — worth understanding before the flight, not after.
- Cats and every other breed: skip straight to the standard EU sequence.
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Chip, vaccinate, wait 21 days T−2 months
- Microchip before the rabies vaccination — a vaccine given first is void and must be repeated, restarting the 21-day clock.
- No titer is required, which is why a France-bound move takes weeks rather than the months an unlisted origin would need.
- Taipei-bound instead? This is where your six-month clock starts, with the titer blood draw.
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Classify the move: non-commercial or commercial T−6 weeks
- Flying within five days of your pet keeps it non-commercial. Sending it ahead or following later moves it to the commercial track, with different paperwork and a Border Control Post.
- The certificate is issued for the first EU country your pet enters — a connection through Frankfurt into Paris is a German entry.
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Book uplift T−4 to T−6 weeks
- Direct TPE–CDG capacity is good, and staying direct keeps the entry country and the certificate aligned.
- Summer departures from Taipei run into heat embargoes; the European end rarely constrains, the Taiwanese end frequently does.
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The ten-day window T−10 days
- The certificate must be issued within 10 days of the border check, and Taiwan's own APHIA export inspection has to fall inside the same stretch.
- Two appointments, one flight, no slack — this is the week that needs owning.
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Fly and clear T−0
- Arriving France: identity and document check at the travellers' point of entry; compliant pets continue with you.
- Arriving Taiwan: APHIA reconciles e-permit, certificate, titer report and chip.
Moving between Taiwan and France with your dog or cat?
886JetPet runs both directions of this corridor: the export from Taiwan with the APHIA inspection and France's own entry rules, and the import to Taiwan with the titer calendar, the e-permit and the quarantine plan.
- Free initial review
- No commitment
- Reply usually within one business day
What 886JetPet handles on this corridor
Your Taiwan ⇄ France move, fully handled
Track your pet's entire relocation in one live dashboard, unique to 886JetPet
Taiwan ⇄ France: common questions
Does my pet need a rabies blood test to enter France from Taiwan?
No. Taiwan is on the EU's list of approved third countries, so the rabies antibody titration test and its three-month waiting period do not apply. You need a microchip, a rabies vaccination given at least 21 days before travel and an EU animal health certificate.
Which dogs cannot be brought into France?
Category 1 dogs — pit-bull type dogs, Boerbulls and Tosas that are not registered in a recognised pedigree book — may not be imported. A look-alike without papers needs a veterinary attestation, translated into French, stating it does not fall under the order of 27 April 1999; classification is by morphological assessment and the authorities can order a counter-assessment. Category 2 dogs, which are the pedigree-registered equivalents plus Rottweilers, may enter but are regulated once in France.
How long is the EU animal health certificate valid?
Ten days from issue to the border check when entering the EU, and then six months for onward travel within the EU, or until the rabies vaccination expires — whichever comes first.
What changed in the EU rules in April 2026?
From 22 April 2026, non-commercial pet movement into the EU is governed by the Animal Health Law framework, Regulation (EU) 2016/429 and its implementing acts, which replaced Regulation (EU) 576/2013. The practical requirements for a pet arriving from Taiwan — microchip, vaccination, 21-day wait, certificate, designated entry point — remain in the same shape, but any guide still citing only the 2013 regulation is describing a superseded framework.
What is needed to bring a pet from France back to Taiwan?
France is not on Taiwan's designated rabies-free list, so APHIA requires a passing rabies titer of at least 0.5 IU/mL with blood sampled 90 days to one year before arrival, an import permit at least 20 days ahead, and 7 days of facility quarantine. The 7-day post-entry quarantine is waived in any of three cases: (1) the pet was blood-tested in Taiwan before export and re-enters within one year of that sampling; (2) the blood was sampled 180 days to one year before arrival and the permit was filed at least 120 days ahead; or (3) the blood was sampled 180 days to one year before arrival, the permit was filed at least 20 days ahead, and the passing report reaches APHIA directly from the laboratory or the exporting country's quarantine authority (rabiesreport@aphia.gov.tw, or retrievable on the laboratory's website). APHIA makes the final decision, so quarantine space is still reserved.
The easiest EU paperwork, and one hard question first
For most pets, Taipei to Paris is a six-week, no-blood-test move — one of the friendliest long-hauls we run. For some dogs it is not possible at all, and you deserve to know which you are before you book anything. Send us a photo, the pedigree papers if there are any, and your month.