Moving with a dog or cat between France and Switzerland

At a glance

Switzerland → France

Bringing a pet from Switzerland to France

For the European Union, Switzerland is a third country, but it is listed in Annex I to Implementing Regulation (EU) 2026/636, alongside Andorra, Monaco and Liechtenstein. That has three practical consequences for a dog or cat entering France from Switzerland:

• No rabies antibody titre test: a microchip and valid rabies vaccination are enough.
• No health certificate: the pet travels on a pet passport issued in Switzerland by an official or authorised vet and signed by the owner.
• No set point of entry: unlike arrivals from most third countries, the pet does not have to come in through a designated travellers' point of entry.

The FSVO points out that Swiss passports are only issued for animals already in Switzerland whose keepers live there. The general non-commercial rules apply: at most five pets, travelling with their owner or with a person the owner has authorised in writing, within five days before or after the owner.

France → Switzerland

Moving to Switzerland with a dog or cat

Switzerland applies rules to dogs, cats and ferrets that are equivalent to the EU's. A microchipped, rabies-vaccinated pet living in France travels on its EU pet passport. At most five pets may travel in a single private vehicle.

Clearing Swiss customs

The Federal Office for Customs and Border Security (FOCBS) distinguishes three cases:

• Holidays or short stays by owners living abroad: the pet comes in without customs formalities or charges.
• Moving to Switzerland: a pet you have owned and used personally for at least six months comes in duty-free as household effects, with form 18.44.
• A pet bought abroad: no customs duty, but VAT of 8.1% of its value.

When the pet has to be declared, cross at a staffed border post during customs clearance hours: the FOCBS states that declaring after the fact always costs extra.

Cropped ears and docked tails: import ban

Switzerland prohibits importing dogs with cropped ears or docked tails (ear cropping has been banned there since 1981, tail docking since 1997); unless an exception applies, they are turned back at the border. There are two exceptions:

• Temporary stays by owners living abroad (holidays, short stays), with a deposit lodged with customs.
• Moving to Switzerland: the dog can come in as household effects (which means you must have kept it for at least six months), provided this has been arranged in advance with the FOCBS. It may not then be sold, given away or shown, and the keeper must inform the cantonal authority.

A dog born with a short tail, or whose tail was amputated for medical reasons, is not affected, but this has to be proven: photos, X-rays or a genetic test, with a vet certificate, sent to the Federal Food Safety and Veterinary Office (FSVO) at least three weeks before arrival. The FSVO notes that French Bulldogs need no such evidence.

Banned breeds depend on the canton

There is no single federal list: some cantons ban certain breeds, make them subject to authorisation or require a course. Check the rule in the canton where you will live before signing a lease. Three examples:

• Geneva bans acquiring a dog of fifteen breeds and their crosses: American Staffordshire Terrier, Boerboel, Bullmastiff, Cane Corso, Dogo Argentino, Dogue de Bordeaux, Fila Brasileiro, Mastiff, Spanish Mastiff, Neapolitan Mastiff, Pit Bull, Presa Canario, Rottweiler, Thai Ridgeback and Tosa Inu. Someone moving from abroad can apply in writing to the cantonal consumer and veterinary affairs service (SCAV) for an exemption before importing the dog. Dogs over 25 kg and over 56 cm at the withers must also pass a control and behaviour test (TMC).
• Vaud abolished general courses in 2017 but still requires a course for keepers of Rottweilers, American Staffordshire Terriers, American Pit Bull Terriers and their crosses (American Bullies included).
• Zurich bans breeding, keeping or bringing into the canton a list of dog types that includes the American Staffordshire Terrier, Bull Terrier, Staffordshire Bull Terrier and, since 1 January 2025, the Rottweiler (as well as crosses with at least 10% of their blood). Visitors may bring such a dog for at most 30 days a year, on a lead and muzzled.

After arrival: AMICUS and dog tax

A dog imported into Switzerland must be seen by a vet within 10 days, who checks its identification and records it in AMICUS, the Swiss dog database. Holiday stays are exempt. The compulsory federal course for dog owners was abolished on 1 January 2017, but some cantons still require courses for certain dogs.

Dogs are also subject to a cantonal or municipal tax. In Geneva, for example, the annual cantonal tax is CHF 50 for the first dog, CHF 70 for the second and CHF 100 for each further dog, plus a municipal surcharge, CHF 4 for the epizootic disease fund and CHF 1 for stray-dog insurance (amounts checked on 19 October 2026).

Identification and vaccination

In both directions, the pet must be identified with an ISO-standard microchip (or a clearly readable tattoo applied before 3 July 2011) and then vaccinated against rabies. The order matters: microchip first, vaccine afterwards (or on the same day). The primary vaccination must be at least 21 days old on the day of travel; a booster given before the previous vaccine expired is valid immediately.

Puppies and kittens: the two countries take different approaches. Switzerland admits animals up to 16 weeks old whose vaccination is not yet complete, with an owner declaration on the FSVO model. France does not accept animals too young to be validly vaccinated: the rabies vaccine can be given from 12 weeks, plus the 21-day wait, so a pet cannot enter France before about 15 weeks of age.

Documents to prepare

• From France: the pet's EU passport with a valid rabies vaccination. For a house move, customs form 18.44 for household effects. For a dog with a natural or medically amputated short tail, the evidence sent to the FSVO; for a young animal not yet fully vaccinated, the owner declaration.
• From Switzerland: the pet passport issued in Switzerland. For a category 2 dog, its pedigree registration papers (except for the Rottweiler type) for the keeping permit.
• Authorised person: if the pet is not travelling with its owner, the owner's signed written authorisation, attached to the passport.

Rabies antibody titre test

It is not required in either direction for a pet travelling directly between France and Switzerland: Switzerland is in Annex I of the EU list of exempt countries. A titre test may become necessary, however, if your pet stayed in an unlisted country before coming to France: in that case the country it is coming from sets the rules. See bringing a pet into France.

Typical timeline

1. Check the breed and the canton as soon as the destination is known

   The destination canton's list (and, in Geneva, an exemption request before import), your dog's ears and tail, and its category in France for a dog arriving from Switzerland.

2. Microchip and rabies vaccine at least 21 days before departure

   No need to repeat anything if the vaccination is up to date and recorded in the passport.

3. Short-tail evidence or customs agreement at least 3 weeks before arriving in Switzerland

   Only for the dogs concerned.

4. Travel

   At most five pets, with the owner or an authorised person; for a house move, a staffed border post during customs hours.

5. After arrival 10 days (Switzerland) · 7 days (France)

   Vet check and AMICUS in Switzerland; I-CAD registration in France for stays of three months or more.

Ways to travel

Most moves between France and Switzerland are made by road, with the pet in the family car: at most five pets per private vehicle, with no requirement for the vehicle itself.

Rail works well for a single pet. Fares published by the operators as of 19 October 2026:

• TGV Lyria (Paris ⇄ Geneva, Lausanne, Basel, Zurich): €10 for a small pet in a closed bag of up to 45 × 30 × 25 cm; €20 for a dog on a lead and muzzled. Pets are not allowed in Première Signature.
• SBB (trains within Switzerland): small dogs (up to 30 cm) and cats travel free in a carrier; for a larger dog, the Day Pass Dogs costs CHF 25, rising to CHF 27 from 13 December 2026.

For flights, each airline sets its own conditions (size, carrier bag or crate, fee): we check them for your journey at booking time.

Border crossings, airports and checks

Because Switzerland is in Annex I, a pet arriving from Switzerland does not have to enter France through a designated travellers' point of entry: any road crossing will do. French customs may still check the documents and the pet's identification, so keep the passport to hand. On entry into Switzerland, a pet that has to be declared (house move, purchase abroad) goes through a staffed border post during customs hours, and a dog with cropped ears or a docked tail must have been declared to Swiss customs as part of a house move.

What affects the cost

On this route, cost depends mainly on what is left to do at the vet (microchip, vaccine, passport update), how the pet travels (your own car, the train, or transport arranged through a partner, subject to availability) and any steps specific to your dog (evidence for the FSVO, a cantonal course or test, a keeping permit in France for a category 2 dog). On the Swiss side come the annual dog tax (in Geneva, from CHF 50 for the first dog plus municipal surcharges) and, for a pet bought abroad, VAT of 8.1% of its value. AMICUS and I-CAD registration fees are set by the bodies that run them. Our quote lists each item separately. See pricing.

Common mistakes

• Arriving in Switzerland with a cropped-ear dog without telling customs first: the house-move exception has to be arranged before crossing the border.
• Crossing at an unstaffed border post, or outside customs hours, with a pet that has to be declared: sorting it out afterwards always costs more.
• Missing the 10-day AMICUS deadline after arriving in Switzerland.
• Signing a lease without checking the canton's list: a Rottweiler or Cane Corso cannot be acquired in Geneva without an exemption, and a Staffordshire Bull Terrier, absent from Geneva's list, is banned in Zurich.
• Assuming a Staffordshire Bull Terrier is treated the same everywhere: it is not classified in France but is on Zurich's list.
• Forgetting I-CAD when moving back to France after several years in Switzerland.

Frequently asked questions

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