Getting my export papers in Bangkok

To export a dog from Thailand you need to get an export permit. This is done at Suvarnabhumi Animal Quarantine at Suvarnabhumi airport. They are also the official vet for Thailand. So if your destination country requires a health certificate signed by an official vet, they also do that here too.

We decided to do the paperwork the day before our flight. This would give us time in case there was anything we had missed. Prior to going to the office, mammy e-mailed them all of my documents for them to check in advance and they were very efficient and quick to respond. You can e-mail them at qsap_bkk@dld.go.th

Documents Required

The documents that you need for the export permit in order to export a dog from Thailand are;

• Passport of the exporter
• Microchip certificate
• Vaccination book which must include a valid rabies vaccine. (must include pet’s name, date & type of vaccine and the vets details with full name, licence number and signature)
• Rabies titer test result. (done at least 3 months before departure date & a minimum of 30 days after the primary rabies vaccine tested in an EU approved laboratory)

You are required to take both the originals and hard copy of every document. Our final destination was the UK so we also had to have heartworm treatment done within 5 days of arrival. Therefore, we went to Thonglor pet hospital before going to the Animal Quarantine station to get that done.

No appointment is required, you can just turn up, but the hours are quite restrictive. They are open from 08:30 – 12:00 and then from 1pm – 3:30pm only Monday – Friday and not on public holidays. So you will need to plan your flights carefully to make sure you have time to get the permit.

As we had to go to the vet first, we arrived at the Quarantine section at about 11am. They told us the whole process would take about 2 – 3 hours. As we arrived just before lunch it would add on extra time. In actual fact, we only needed to be there for about 30 minutes and the rest of the time was for processing. So we were able to leave and then come back later in the day to collect the documents.

Location

The Animal Quarantine section is located at Suvarnabhumi airport. However, it is in the cargo area, not the normal terminal. If you are getting a taxi here, we gave the taxi driver the number to call them for directions on +66 2 134 0731. We still took a wrong turn but managed to find it in the end. When you enter the cargo section, the animal quarantine is in the first building on the left. So it’s quite easy to find when you have got into the cargo section.

There are plenty of parking spaces so if you are driving yourself it is perfect. There are a number of pet relocation companies parking there too so it also makes the area easier to spot.

Step 1 : Fill in the application form

Upon entering the building, it is quite clearly sign posted the various steps you need to do in order to export a dog from Thailand.

First of all, you need to take a ticket number and fill in the application form.

There is a sample form on the wall so you can make sure you are filling it out correctly. Of course they chose a Westie to be the sample, as we are clearly the best!

Step 2 : Take Documents for Checking

You then need to go to the room where they will check all of your documents. They ask for both originals and hard copies of everything so make sure you have the copies too. We had prepared everything in advance but I think they can also copy there for a fee if you have missed something.

Step 3 : Veterinary Health Check

One they have confirmed that your documents are in order, it is time for the vet check up. They check your microchip and do a physical exam of the dog to make sure they appear healthy. They also ask some basic questions about their health. I was praised for my healthy skin as she said there’s only about 10% of Westies that don’t have skin issues. So I am a very lucky boy!

Step 4 : Wait for the permit to be ready

The whole process took about 30 minutes from us arriving to finishing the vet check. We were told to process the papers it would take around 2 hours but as it was approaching lunch we would need to add an extra hour to the waiting time. They said we could sit and wait, come back later or even come back the following day. For peace of mind that everything was OK we wanted to pick them the same day, just in case.

As we came by taxi we didn’t really want to head back into Bangkok itself, so we decided to head over to the airport terminal to pass the time. Taxi’s aren’t so easy to find so we asked the staff inside and they told us there was a free shuttle bus service that would take us there. The bus stop is located just behind the Animal Quarantine building and they seem to come pretty regularly as we only waited for a few minutes. We transferred at the bus terminal to another shuttle bus which took us directly to the airport departures terminal.

Suvarnabhumi Airport

At the airport terminal, we had a walk around and grabbed some lunch from Subway. The airport was extremely quiet with very few people around. We went on the 1st November, the first day of the reduced 1 night quarantine, however there was certainly no rush of tourists arriving that we saw. A lot of places are still closed so there wasn’t a huge choice of places to eat. Hence we decided to just grab a sandwich from Subway.

We spent about another hour or so walking around the terminal. I was getting lots of looks from people as it’s not often you see a dog walking around an airport, and many people stopped to take pictures of me. I felt like a celebrity!

We headed back to the Animal Quarantine section at about 2pm and got the bus back again. It was easy to get back on bus route A and it dropped us at the same bus stop that we got on at. We arrived back at the office at about 2:15.

Step 5 : Collect the export permit & health certificate

When we arrived back the papers were not yet ready so we had to wait a little bit longer. We sat in the waiting area in the corridor. It was really hot and stuffy and there were a few other dogs and cats waiting. So it made me very anxious so daddy ended up taking me outside to wait. After about 15 minutes our lucky number 13 was called and mammy collected everything from the office.

The staff kindly explained all of the documents and gave us both the original and a copy of both the health certificate and export permit. They also gave us back all of our original documents that we had given to them, although not the copies.

Overall, the process to export a dog from Thailand was pretty simple as long as you keep on top of your documents. Keeping up to date with rabies vaccines is vital in order to maintain a valid rabies titer test. This helps in the future if you plan to import or export your dog again elsewhere. Having a valid rabies vaccine and titer test helps to reduce any waiting times and I strongly recommend always having these kept up to date if you plan to move with your dog.

The staff at the Animal Quarantine section are very helpful and friendly and were always available to answer any questions you may have.

As I mentioned, there were a number of animal relocation companies here also, but I think the process was simple enough to do it yourself and avoid all of the additional costs.

If you have any questions on how to export a dog from Thailand or if you would like to share your experience, please feel free to leave a comment in the comments section below. You can also check out my Youtube channel for a video on this process as well. Or if you are planning on bringing your dog back to Thailand you can check out the process in reverse on how to import your dog to Thailand.