Travelling with dogs or cats to Norway

You may take a dog, cat or ferret with you to Norway if you satisfy the requirements. ID-marking, rabies vaccination and tapeworm treatment are some of the requirements if you are to take your pet with you  to Norway to live or for a holiday, or if you have travelled abroad with a pet and now want to return. Here you can read about the regulations that apply for import of various animals. 

It is the Norwegian Food Safety Authority (Mattilsynet) that handles the legislation regarding import of animals to Norway.

Dogs, cats and ferrets may be imported and brought with you on trips to Norway when the following regulations are fulfilled:

• Dogs, cats and ferrets must be at least three months old on the date of import, because of the age requirement in rabies vaccination. Dogs, cats and ferrets that have been legally kept in Sweden are exempt from this regulation. These animals do not require a rabies vaccination, so may be younger than three months. All animals must have ID-marking and an EU-approved pet passport.
• All dogs travelling into Norway must be treated for fox dwarf tapeworm (anti-echinococcus [worm] treatment). The requirement for worm treatment does not apply for cats and ferrets, nor for dogs imported directly from Finland, Malta, the UK or Ireland. The tapeworm treatment must be administered by a veterinary surgeon 24-120 hours before the arrival in Norway. Alternatively, the dog must be treated at least twice with an interval of 1-28 days before the first entry to Norway. The treatment then continues at least every 28th day. This alternative can be suitable for people travelling frequently.
• Animals that enter Norway must be vaccinated against rabies. No anti-rabies vaccination is required for cats, dogs and ferrets travelling from Sweden. The vaccination must be administered by a veterinary surgeon, and the animal must be at least twelve weeks old. When the animal has been vaccinated against rabies for the first time, the period of validity begins 21 days after the vaccination. If the animal is revaccinated, the vaccination applies from the date of the vaccination, providing the animal is vaccinated within the period of validity of the previous vaccination. The requirement for rabies vaccination applies when entering Norway from rabies-free countries other than Sweden.
• When pets are travelling from countries in the EU/EEA, the animal and necessary documentation must be presented to the Norwegian Customs for checking. Walk/drive through the red zone in the Customs area. When travelling to Norway from Sweden, the animal and documentation need not be shown to the Norwegian Customs if the animal has been kept legally in Sweden and meets all requirements for entry.
• Note that there are special regulations for banned dogs, which may not be imported.
• If you are bringing more than five animals into Norway, or if you are importing animals for sale or transfer to another owner, read the information on the Norwegian Food Safety Authority website about commercial import. If you are bringing more than five animals from the EU/EEA to participate in a competition, and you have documentation to prove this, the animals must satisfy some specific requirements that apply for import of more than five animals for a show or other events. 

Regulations regarding import of dogs, cats and ferrets from countries outside the EU/EEA vary. In addition to the treatment and documentation requirements applying to import of pets, specific requirements apply with regard to border crossing, point of entry, and notification of the entry to the appropriate inspection agency. More information (Norwegian Food Safety Authority) 

Svalbard is not covered by the EEA Agreement, so there are strict regulations regarding sending or taking animals and animal products from Svalbard to the mainland. There is rabies on Svalbard, but mainland Norway is free from the disease.

If you want to take a dog to Svalbard, a permit is required from the Norwegian Food Safety Authority. A permit is granted for one year at a time. 

No permits are issued for taking cats or ferrets to Svalbard. No permit is needed to take rabbits, hamsters, tame rats, caged birds, aquarium fish, etc. to and from Svalbard.