Moving a cat from Great Britain to Australia

Last verified: 2026-08-25

What is different for a cat

Everything on the Great Britain corridor page applies. The differences run in both directions.

Simpler: no extra blood tests, and a shorter certificate

The Leishmania, Leptospira and Brucella tests are dog-only. A cat’s laboratory work is the RNATT and nothing else. The export health certificate for cats is 2432, which APHA lists as active, rather than the dog certificate 2580.

Everything else about British certification still applies: signature, date and stamp of the official government veterinarian on every page, the stamp of the government veterinary administration, and dates in day/month/year format.

Stricter: the hybrid ban, and Bengals

Non-domestic cat hybrids cannot enter Australia: Savannah (crossed with serval), Safari (Geoffroy’s cat), Chausie (jungle cat) and Bengal (Asian leopard cat), plus any crossbred offspring derived from them. The department states the list is not exhaustive.

As of 1 March 2026, Bengal cats are no longer permitted to enter Australia.

Bengals are a popular breed in the UK, and this change is recent enough that a great deal of British pet-travel advice still describes the older position. If you have a Bengal, the pathway is closed — this is not a documentation problem to solve.

The ban comes from Australian environmental-protection law, and the authority is the Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water, not the department issuing your import permit. A cat identified after arrival as possibly a hybrid may be investigated.

Feline vaccinations

Vaccination against feline enteritis (panleukopenia), rhinotracheitis and calicivirus is not mandatory for import, but those diseases exist in Australia and the vaccinations should stay valid for the whole quarantine period.

The order, for a British cat

1. Microchip verified — ISO compliant. For cats under six months, verify identity before starting the process at all.
2. Two OV66 identity checks, by OVs at different unassociated practices, each emailing their declaration to DAFF. Both dates at least 180 days before export, and both before the RNATT blood is drawn — a check done afterwards cannot be recognised.
3. Rabies vaccination at 84 days of age or later.
4. RNATT blood sample, with the sampling date between 180 days and 12 months before export.
5. 180 days from the sample’s arrival at the laboratory — residency, not quarantine.
6. Import permit through BICON.
7. Quarantine booking at Mickleham — 30 days, or 10 with the identity check.
8. External parasite treatment from at least 21 days before export; internal treatment twice in the final 45 days, the second within 5 days of departure.
9. Certificate 2432, signed, dated and stamped on every page.
10. Travel as manifest cargo, direct to Melbourne.

At export your cat must not be under quarantine restrictions, more than 30 days pregnant, or nursing kittens.

Where British cats most often come unstuck

• A Bengal or suspected hybrid, discovered late.
• No OV66 vet nearby, or only one — two unassociated practices are required. See OV66: what to do with no vet nearby.
• The identity check after the blood draw, which cannot be recognised and costs twenty extra days at Mickleham.
• A lapsed rabies booster, restarting the 180 days.

What this page does not cover

• Whether your cat qualifies as a hybrid — only DCCEEW can answer.
• The detailed notes for guidance for certificate 2432 — the certificate page itself has been read, but the notes for guidance have been read only for the dog certificate 2580.
• Crate requirements and carrier acceptance.