The rules for traveling to Mexico from the U.S. with a dog changed in 2019. If you’re planning to head south of the border with your pup, these tips will help make your trip a success!
Whether you’re walking across the border for the day or planning a longer trip to Mexico, there’s no reason to leave your pup behind! The rules for traveling to Mexico with a dog changed in 2019, and it’s now easier than ever to take your furry travel buddy along.
But remember, it’s just as important to get back into the United States as it is to get into Mexico! So be sure you’re prepared for crossing the border in both directions.
Traveling To Mexico With A Dog
Your experience crossing the border will be very different depending on how and where you travel. More scrutiny and inspections are common at busy crossing like San Diego and El Paso. If you’re flying in, your documents will also be reviewed more thoroughly.
In contrast, if you’re walking across the border, the process could be very casual – especially if you’re visiting a small town. Driving across the border will likely be somewhere in between, with where you choose to cross having the biggest impact.
What People Need
Mexico requires all foreign citizens visiting the country to fill out an Official Entry Immigration Form, also called a tourist card, prior to their arrival. Tourist cards are free and you can fill out and print the form at home.
When you arrive at the border, present the immigration officer with your printed tourist card and your passport. Since your information will already be in their system, once your tourist card is stamped, you’ll be off to enjoy Mexico!
If you are walking across the border into Mexico, you might find the immigration officer doesn’t request your tourist card. Still, it’s better to have it prepared – just in case.
Auto Insurance
If you are driving in Mexico, you will also need to purchase Mexican car insurance. Even if your U.S. auto insurance policy covers you in Mexico, it cannot pay damages that you would legally owe to others if you were in an accident. Mexican law is very clear—in order to drive in Mexico, you must at least have Mexican liability coverage, underwritten by a Mexican carrier.
What Dogs Need
On December 16, 2019, the United States Department of Agriculture announced that cats and dogs traveling to Mexico from the U.S. no longer need a health certificate.
The rules now state that travelers with the pet dogs and/or cats must visit the Mexican Animal and Plant Health Inspection Office (OISA), and see the person working with SENASICA upon arriving in Mexico.
If you travel regularly between the U.S. and Mexico with your dog, you can request to register in the “Pet Program – Frequent Traveler.” For further information, refer to the USDA website.
Pet Inspections When Entering Mexico
SENASICA inspectors aren’t present at every crossing. When we walked into Mexico from Naco, Arizona near Bisbee, there was no pet inspection. Myles simply strolled across the border with us.
READ MORE ⇒ Travel Guide: Pet Friendly Bisbee, Arizona
If there is a SENASICA inspector at your crossing, the rules state that pets must be presented clean cages or carriers. Though, we’ve heard this rules is not always enforced – especially for larger pets. If you cannot easily carry your pet in a carrier, presenting your dog on leash should be fine.
The SENASICA agent will perform a physical inspection of your pet to determine the following:
- Your pet shows no sign of infectious and contagious diseases,
- is free of ectoparasites (ticks), and
- has no fresh wounds or wounds in the process of healing.
If ticks are detected, your pet cannot cross the border. You’ll either need to return to the U.S., or the SENASICA agent will send a sample of the tick for diagnostic testing at the official laboratory. Your pet would have to remain at the OISA (Mexican official office) until confirmation is received that the parasites are not exotic/foreign to Mexico.
What If Your Pet Has Health Issues?
If your pet is being treated for lesions and/or infections due to a skin condition, present the SENASICA agent with the diagnosis and treatment instructions from your veterinarian. This information should be presented on letterhead, including the veterinarian’s professional registration number (or equivalent).
Can You Bring Pet Food Into Mexico?
When traveling to Mexico with a dog, the rules state you can only bring enough food to feed your pet that day. If you’re staying longer than a day, you could purchase pet food in Mexico. Or, consider shipping your dog’s food to your destination so it’s there when you arrive. Otherwise, you might be sharing your meals!
Something To Consider Before Traveling To Mexico With a Dog
In Mexico, we’ve found people to be very friendly toward Myles. Shopkeepers are generally less fussy about letting animals in stores, so traveling with a dog is pretty easy.
However, in Mexico and other Latin countries, you will often see dogs running loose in the streets. Generally, these dogs keep their distance. But if you have a reactive dog, this can be a stressful experience.
READ MORE ⇒ Tips For Traveling With A Reactive Dog
Returning To The United States
When you return to the United States from Mexico, U.S. citizens need to show a valid passport. If you are traveling by foot or car, you can provide a U.S. Passport card. This is a less expensive alternative to a full passport. But it only works for land and sea travel from Mexico, Canada, Bermuda, and the Caribbean.
Your dog needs less documentation to return to the U.S. than you! The CDC does not include Mexico among the list of countries considered high-risk for rabies.
So proof of vaccination is not required for dogs coming to the U.S. from Mexico, as long as your dog has not traveled to a high-risk country in the past six months. You’ll just need to provide a written or verbal statement your dog has only been in a country NOT at high risk for rabies for at least 6 months or since birth for puppies less than 6 months of age. And there is no limit to the number of dogs you can bring, as long as they are your personal pets.
Have you taken your dog to Mexico? How was your experience?
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We just returned from spending an afternoon in Agua Prieta, MX with our dog. We walked across from Douglas, AZ near Bisbee where the infamous Myles & Maynard of Go Pet Friendly fame live. Thought I would share our experience. Crossing in to MX and returning back to the US was a piece of cake! No one asked a single question about the dog. Surprising. The only thing they did was ask me to do was remove his pillow from the pillow case as we crossed in to MX. He’s almost 19 yrs old so we travel with a giant wagon/stroller and there is a human pillow in the bottom. We knew a health certificate was no longer needed due to law changes a few years ago. We had his vaccination records with us just in case, but no one asked. We carried in extra water for him as we didn’t want him (or us) drinking the local water of course. Since we were only there for a few hours we didn’t take any food. My research I believe indicated you are only allowed to bring 1 days worth of food with you even if crossing for a longer period of time? The only “issue” we had was finding a pet friendly location to eat other than the numerous food trucks found in the Central Plaza district. There are tables & chairs in the plaza if you want to eat at one of the food trucks, but we wanted a local restaurant with some personality. We ended up at Mia Burrito (corner of Av 11 & Calle 7). Local burrito stand with a few seats at the outside bar (with shade) & a bathroom in their back kitchen if you ask nicely. Human bathrooms were nearly impossible to come by….fyi. We each had a burrito & a soda. Total was $9. The dog enjoyed tortillas. We had wanted to eat at Bizio Cafe. However, they were closed due to construction. They too have outdoor seating with shade and are pet friendly. As we were walking back towards the border entry we stumbled upon what would have been exactly what we were looking for restaurant wise. La Rueda is the name and it’s on the same street before you get in line to re-enter. Outdoor shaded seating. Street dogs in A P were almost non existent. Different than other parts of MX we’d been to. We encountered 2 street dogs and both just ignored our dog. We walked the streets before & after lunch and then easily crossed back in to the US. Again, no questions asked. The hardest part of the return was getting his huge wagon thru the 2 turnstiles at customs. Where to park? You can park at the Douglas visitor center, but that’s a bit more of a walk. Put Douglas, AZ Walmart in your GPS. Park in that vicinity. There is a large parking lot across from Walmart with an abandon store front. That was were someone suggested we park. However, we ended up parking a few blocks closer to the port of entry near Dollar Tree. There was a strip mall where the store fronts were not yet finished. There were other cars parked here that appeared to have been from people walking across as well. A quick/short walk to border entry. Was there much to see/do? Nope. Exactly as we had expected. It was something we did more for the experience. Eat a good meal. Support the economy. Get our exercise walking for the day. Make some more memories with our Chuckie The Travelin’ Adventure Dog! Hope this helps anyone else considering crossing with their dog.
How wonderful! Thank you for sharing your experience, Cheri. I’m so glad to hear that crossing to AP is so easy. We’ve been across the border to Naco with Myles, but we haven’t gone to Agua Prieta yet. It sounds like we’ll have to give it a try!