Pets at Schiphol and on-board Have dog, will travel

You’re welcome to bring your pet along with you to Schiphol. However, please make sure you follow these rules to protect you, your pet and other passengers.

Animal passport

Dogs in the arrival and departure halls

Your canine friend must always be kept on a lead or tied up when it’s in the terminal. We don’t have dog toilets and you’ll need to clean up after it – so please bring a pooper-scooper or plastic bag supply.

If a pet is traveling in a kennel, it is only allowed to take the animal out of the kennel in the arrival hall (after the customs passage when leaving the reclaim hall).

Flying with pets

Every airline sets their own rules for travel with animals, so please check these with your airline, before you leave. Nearly all airlines regularly fly with pets on board and have a special heated section for them in the cargo hold. You can also arrange for your pet to travel without you on a separate flight.

Travel documents for pets

Most of the time, you will need to travel with the following travel documents for your pet:

  • A pet passport
  • A valid health certificate signed by an authorised veterinarian. In some countries, certificates older than 2 days may not be valid
  • A valid rabies certificate signed by a local veterinary inspector or another official. The animal must have been vaccinated against rabies at least 21 days before departure for travel within Europe. For countries outside Europe different terms may apply. Vaccinations administered more than a year ago are not valid in some countries.

Pet pro-tips

Here are a few tips when travelling with Fido or Fluffy:

  • Allow for an additional half-hour to check in
  • Your pet’s kennel will be labelled at check-in
  • Arrange for vaccinations and travel documents far in advance
  • Check the regulations in your destination country
  • Attach a label to the side of the kennel with your pet's name and feeding instructions
  • Start getting your pet used to the kennel 5 days before departure
  • Some pets may suffer from air sickness. Do not give your pet anything to drink for 4 hours prior to departure, and no food for twelve hours
  • We strongly advise against sedating your pet before the journey. Sedation delays habituation to travel and may cause your pet to become chilled.