Everything you need to know about moving your dog or cat from Kenya to the US: CDC high-risk country requirements, Kenya’s DVS export process, costs, and timeline — all in one place.
Everything you need to navigate international pet relocation: import rules, customs, costs, timelines.
Difficult (dogs, foreign-vaccinated) / Moderate (dogs, US-vaccinated) / Easy (cats)
8–10 weeks or more (dogs, if a new vaccination and the titer pathway are both needed)
Kenya's export procedure fee is confirmed (≈$13 USD); several other fees could not be verified
Only if no valid titer (28 days, mainland US); required in Hawaii and Guam
Because Kenya is on the CDC’s high-risk list for dog rabies, dogs need the full high-risk pathway — a Certification of Foreign Rabies Vaccination and Microchip form, plus either a passing titer test or a 28-day quarantine. Cats face no comparable US federal requirement, though Kenya’s own export process still applies to cats leaving Kenya.
Everything you need to know about moving your dog or cat from Kenya to the US: CDC high-risk country requirements, Kenya’s DVS export process, costs, and timeline — all in one place.
Kenya's Directorate of Veterinary Services (DVS) issues an international veterinary certificate (VS16) and a veterinary health certificate as part of the documented export procedure. Separately, the CDC requires a Certification of Foreign Rabies Vaccination and Microchip form for dogs, endorsed by an official Kenyan government veterinarian.
A DVS-Authorized Veterinarian
Kenya’s Directorate of Veterinary Services issues and verifies the export certificates as part of the government-documented procedure.
Not Required (Foreign-Vaccinated Pathway)
Dogs vaccinated in Kenya use the foreign-vaccinated pathway instead of a USDA-endorsed form; that USDA step only applies if your dog was vaccinated in the US before spending time in Kenya.
30 Days (CDC Form) — Kenya-Side Windows Not Independently Confirmed
The CDC’s Certification of Foreign Rabies Vaccination and Microchip form must be completed no more than 30 days before travel. Secondary sources describe Kenya’s own export permit as valid 14 days before departure and the veterinary health certificate as valid 3–4 days before departure, but these specific windows weren’t independently confirmed from the government portal.
Confirm with DVS or a licensed clearing agent
Kenya’s documented export procedure lists several required documents, but whether original (versus copied) documents must travel with the pet isn’t stated on the government portal — confirm directly with DVS or a licensed clearing agent.
→ Implant the microchip before the rabies vaccination
→ Choose between a rabies serology titer test or a 28-day quarantine on arrival
→ If skipping the titer, you can only enter at one of five CDC-approved airports (ATL, JFK, MIA, IAD, LAX)
→ Kenya’s export procedure is confirmed to cost about $13 USD, per the government’s own trade portal
→ Kenya Airways flies non-stop to New York JFK, but only carries pets as cargo — not as checked baggage or in the cabin
Follow this timeline to make sure you complete everything on time for a smooth, stress-free travel day.
Kenya is explicitly on the CDC's high-risk list for dog rabies, not the simpler low-risk pathway some other countries qualify for.
For a dog needing a new rabies vaccination before pursuing the titer pathway, the test has two sequential CDC wait periods that combine to a 58-day minimum.
Kenya Airways' own official policy explicitly excludes pets from checked baggage and the cabin.
The documented KenTrade procedure involves 7 institutions and 13 steps.
Costs vary based on pet size, airline, season, and any additional Services.
Kenya's export procedure cost is confirmed at approximately $13 USD (KES 1,750); the titer test cost and Kenya Airways' cargo fee could not be verified for this route.
Typical total cost
Price in USD, Estimate only.
→ International veterinary certificate (VS16), issued by DVS
→ Veterinary health certificate
→ Vaccination certificate
→ CDC Dog Import Form receipt (dogs)
→ Certification of Foreign Rabies Vaccination and Microchip form, endorsed by an official Kenyan government veterinarian (dogs)
→ Valid rabies serology titer report, or your CDC-registered Animal Care Facility reservation if skipping the titer (dogs)
Start with your origin country guide for route-specific requirements, timelines, and common pitfalls.
→ Yes — Kenya is on the CDC’s High-Risk Countries for Dog Rabies list.
→ Dogs from Kenya follow the high-risk entry pathway, not the simpler low-risk process used for some other countries.
→ It’s a choice, not a strict requirement.
→ A valid titer from a CDC-approved lab lets you avoid quarantine on arrival.
→ Without one, your dog can still enter, but must complete a 28-day quarantine at a CDC-registered facility and fly into the specific airport where it’s located.
→ Not as checked baggage or in the cabin — Kenya Airways’ own policy explicitly excludes pets from both.
→ Your pet would need to travel via KQ Cargo as freight instead.
→ This applies even though Kenya Airways flies non-stop to New York JFK.
→ This isn’t fully clear from available sources.
→ Kenya’s official export procedure includes clearing-agent and customs steps that look built for commercial cargo shipments.
→ Confirm directly with DVS or a licensed clearing agent whether the full process or a simpler version applies to an individual traveler.
→ For US federal entry, largely yes — USDA APHIS has no federal health requirements for cats from any country.
→ Your cat just needs to appear healthy on arrival.
→ Kenya’s own export requirements still apply to cats leaving Kenya, though.
→ Only five: Atlanta (ATL), New York JFK, Miami (MIA), Washington Dulles (IAD), and Los Angeles (LAX).
→ Specifically, wherever your reserved CDC-registered Animal Care Facility is located.
→ Only for dogs without a valid rabies titer — a mandatory 28-day quarantine at a CDC-registered facility.
→ Dogs with a valid titer, and all cats, are not quarantined.
→ Hawaii and Guam have completely separate, stricter quarantine programs.
Our pet relocation experts are here to guide you every step of the way.
If a regulation changes after this page was published, the official source always takes precedence over this guide — check the links above for the current rules before you travel.
Moving a pet from Kenya to the United States follows the same CDC high-risk pathway documented on other routes on this site — Kenya is on the CDC’s high-risk list for dog rabies, so dogs need a Certification of Foreign Rabies Vaccination and Microchip form plus a choice between a rabies titer test and a 28-day quarantine.
Kenya’s official Trade Information Portal (run by KenTrade, the Kenya Trade Network Agency) documents the dogs-and-cats export procedure through Jomo Kenyatta International Airport in genuine step-by-step detail — naming every government office involved and even publishing a real cost estimate (about $13 USD). This is stronger sourcing than several other high-risk routes on this site.
That documented 13-step procedure includes a clearing agent, a Kenya Revenue Authority customs entry, an air waybill, and a packing list — language that reads like a commercial cargo shipment process. It’s not clear whether an individual traveler flying with their own pet needs every one of these steps, or a simpler version centered on the DVS veterinary certificate alone. Confirm directly with DVS or a licensed clearing agent which applies to you.
Kenya Airways flies non-stop between Nairobi and New York JFK seven times a week — a genuine convenience for the human side of this move. But Kenya Airways does not accept pets as checked baggage or in the cabin at all; every non-service pet must travel separately via KQ Cargo.
Given the open question about how much of Kenya’s formal export process applies to an individual traveler, and the need to coordinate separately with KQ Cargo, this is a route where professional help can genuinely reduce uncertainty.
If a regulation changes after this page was published, the official source always takes precedence over this guide — check the links above for the current rules before you travel.
If a regulation changes after this page was published, the official source always takes precedence over this guide — check the links above for the current rules before you travel.
