How the USDA Health Certificate and APHIS Endorsement Work

What the certificate actually is

The "USDA health certificate" is not one form. It is the destination country's health certificate (Japan's Form AC, Taiwan's dog and cat certificate, Singapore's "Dogs and Cats from USA" certificate, and so on) completed by a USDA-accredited veterinarian and then endorsed by USDA's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS). The endorsement is the US government confirming that the accredited vet's statements are official.

APHIS's own advice, on its pet travel page, is to contact an accredited veterinarian "as soon as you decide to travel". That is not a formality: some destinations need steps months before the certificate is signed.

Who does what

1. You choose the destination rules that apply (country, region, species) and gather the records.
2. The accredited vet checks the destination requirements, gives any vaccines, tests and treatments, examines the pet within the required window, and fills in the certificate.
3. APHIS reviews and endorses it, usually after the vet submits it through the Veterinary Export Health Certification System (VEHCS).
4. The airline and the destination check the endorsed original.

We coordinate this chain for clients through our US pet export service: we compile the destination checklist, review the draft certificate with your vet, and track the endorsement.

Digital endorsement or ink and embossing?

It depends on the destination, which is why you check the APHIS page for your country before the vet starts:

• Japan: accredited vets can sign electronically in VEHCS; for most pets the certificate is digitally endorsed and printed, and an APHIS-endorsed paper copy travels with the animal (APHIS Japan page).
• Taiwan: "USDA must ink-sign and emboss the health certificate", so the original has to come back to you before the flight (APHIS Taiwan page).
• Singapore: digital signature and endorsement through VEHCS are accepted; you print the endorsed certificate and no mailing is needed (APHIS Singapore page).

Paper endorsement adds shipping days in both directions. Build them into the timeline.

What APHIS charges

APHIS charges per certificate, based on how many laboratory tests appear on it. Vaccines do not count as tests. From the official fee page (modified June 18, 2026):

• No lab tests: $101.
• 1–2 tests: $160 for one pet; $10 for each additional pet on the same certificate.
• 3–6 tests: $206 for one pet; $18 for each additional pet.
• 7 or more tests: $275 for one pet; $21 for each additional pet.

APHIS accepts a user-fee account or a credit or debit card, and payment must arrive before endorsement. Your veterinarian's fees are separate and set by the practice.

Timing windows differ by country

The certificate is the last document, but its date is tied to rules the destination sets:

• Japan: the clinical exam must be within 10 days before boarding.
• Singapore: internal and external parasite treatment 2 to 7 days before export, recorded on the certificate.
• Taiwan: rabies vaccination between 1 year and 30 days before shipment, and a titer from 90 days to 1 year before.

Get the window wrong and the certificate is wrong, however neat it looks. Our country guides go through each one: Japan for dogs, Taiwan for cats and California to Singapore.

Mistakes that get pets turned away

• Using a state or generic form where the destination has its own. Taiwan, for one, rejects certificates on US state forms.
• A microchip number that doesn't match across the certificate, vaccine records and lab report.
• Corrections by hand. Japan's quarantine service warns against pencil, erasable ink and correction fluid.
• Leaving the original behind. A photocopy or a phone photo is not the endorsed original.
• Endorsing too early, so the exam or treatment window has closed by departure day.

Two special cases

Military families. For Japan, APHIS says active-duty personnel and their families may use a military veterinarian's dog or cat certificate without APHIS endorsement; retirees need endorsement. See our military relocation service.

Dogs that will come back to the US. A US-vaccinated dog that will spend time in a CDC high-risk country (for example, the Philippines or Thailand) needs a separate document before leaving: the CDC's "Certification of U.S.-issued Rabies Vaccination", completed by an accredited vet and endorsed by USDA before departure. USDA export health certificates issued after July 31, 2025 are no longer accepted for that purpose, per the CDC FAQ. Our CDC dog import guide explains why.