Now that the UK has left the EU, travelling with a pet to EU countries incurs additional costs, not least an Animal Health Certificate which costs £110 per trip.  This is on top of other charges such as £16.28 for a one-off microchip and £50.40 for a rabies vaccination which needs to be repeated ever three years. 

I am pleased that the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Select Committee has launched an Inquiry into the new Brexit regulations and how they will affect pet travel, and I look forward to reading their findings. 

In the meantime, I wrote to the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, George Eustice, and raised this issue with him.  I have since received a reply from Lord Goldsmith, the Minister for Pacific and the Environment.

I have posted copies of both my letter to the Secretary of State and the Minister’s response below.

The key part of the Minister’s response is this:

‘We will continue to press the EU Commission in relation to securing ‘Part 1’ listed status, recognising that achieving this would alleviate some of the new requirements for pet owners and assistance dog users travelling, including the requirement for an Animal Health Certificate (AHC).’

I hope that the Government will be able to secure ‘Part 1’ listed status, so that people can travel to the EU with their pets without having to pay the additional charges that came into effect post-Brexit.  I can assure you that I will continue to push the Government to negotiate on this issue.