Last reviewed and updated on September 14 2026
TLDR: China is a CDC high-risk country for dog rabies, so the requirements depend on where your dog was vaccinated. Dogs vaccinated in the US follow one path; dogs vaccinated in China follow another. Cats have no CDC or APHIS rabies requirement and face a much simpler process. Your dog also needs screwworm certification whether it's coming from mainland China or Hong Kong.
Moving a dog from China to the US isn't a one-form process. China is a CDC high-risk country for dog rabies, and since the CDC's rule took effect August 1, 2024, the requirements split depending on where your dog received its rabies vaccination. Get the wrong track and you risk arriving at the wrong airport or missing a required document. Here's both paths, plus what cat owners need to know. For the full country-level breakdown of US entry requirements, see our US pet import requirements guide.
Regardless of which track you follow, every dog entering the US must be at least 6 months old at the time of entry, appear healthy on arrival, and have a microchip readable by a universal scanner. The microchip must be implanted before the rabies vaccination. If the vaccine was given first, CDC considers that vaccination invalid, and your dog will need a new, valid rabies vaccination administered after the microchip is in place. That restarts the 30-day wait before a titer blood draw and adds time and cost, so check the sequence with your vet now rather than after the fact.
If your dog was originally vaccinated in the US before traveling to China, and you're now bringing them back, this is your track.
You'll need:
Dogs on this track may enter at any US port of entry and do not need a CDC-registered Animal Care Facility reservation.
If your dog was vaccinated in the US but this certificate wasn't endorsed before departure: CDC does not allow this form to be issued retroactively once the dog has left the US. There is no fix on this track after the fact. In practice, this means your dog will need to follow the foreign-vaccinated track below instead, since the document that would have let it skip that track can no longer be obtained. Talk to your vet and a coordinator as soon as you realize this, since it changes your airport options and adds the titer timeline.
If your dog received its rabies vaccination in China, this track applies, and it has more steps.
You'll need:
Dogs on this track must arrive by air or sea at one of the eight airports with a CDC-registered Animal Care Facility: Atlanta (ATL), Dallas (DFW), Los Angeles (LAX), Miami (MIA), New York (JFK), Philadelphia (PHL), Seattle (SEA, cargo-only reservations), and Washington Dulles (IAD). This applies whether or not your dog has a valid titer; the titer decides what happens at the facility, not which airports are open to you. The full list, current facility names, and booking details are on the CDC's Animal Care Facilities page, which changes, so confirm current facilities before booking. If your dog doesn't have a valid passing titer, they'll face a 28-day quarantine at the facility on arrival.
Moving a cat from China to the US is far simpler than moving a dog. There is no CDC or APHIS rabies requirement for cats. Cats can still be inspected at the port of entry and refused entry if they appear ill, but there's no titer, no vaccination form, and no facility reservation to arrange. If you're a cat owner reading through the dog requirements above and feeling overwhelmed, none of that applies to you.
Screwworm and rabies risk are assessed separately, and China's rabies high-risk status doesn't tell you anything about screwworm status.
Mainland China and Hong Kong are both on APHIS's current list of screwworm-affected regions. Your dog needs screwworm certification regardless of which part of China it's coming from. This can be a standalone document or included in the export health certificate, as long as it carries the required statement and signature. It must be signed by an official government veterinarian of the origin region, confirming the dog was inspected within 5 days before shipment and is either free of screwworm or was treated and cleared. If you're moving a dog to Hong Kong rather than transiting through it, the full Hong Kong import process applies instead.
Note that Hong Kong is excluded from CDC's high-risk classification for dog rabies, even though mainland China is not, and both mainland China and Hong Kong are treated the same way for screwworm purposes. A dog vaccinated in Hong Kong and traveling from there follows different rabies documentation than the mainland China tracks described above, but the same screwworm certification requirement applies either way. Talk to your coordinator about which rabies track applies if your pet's history involves Hong Kong at all.
Figuring out which track applies to your dog, and making sure the right form gets filed for that track, is where this process most often goes wrong. PetRelocation has coordinated moves from China for over 20 years and knows how to route each case correctly from the start.
Complete Support covers full coordination of your dog's CDC forms, titer testing or vaccination certification, facility reservations, and airport routing. Vet Paperwork Support focuses on the CDC form and vaccination documentation while you handle flight logistics. Consultation gives you direct access to a coordinator to confirm which track applies to your pet before you commit to a timeline.
Get a free quote from PetRelocation and a relocation manager will walk you through your options.
Does it matter where my dog was vaccinated for rabies?
Yes. Dogs vaccinated in the US follow one set of requirements, and dogs vaccinated in China follow a different, more involved set. Getting the track wrong can mean arriving at the wrong airport or missing a required document.
What form do I need if my dog was vaccinated in China?
A Certification of Foreign Rabies Vaccination and Microchip form, completed by an authorized veterinarian and reviewed and signed by an official government veterinarian in China. Confirm with your vet that the form is filled out completely and typed, since handwritten or incomplete forms are not accepted.
Does my cat need a rabies titer to enter the US from China?
No. Cats have no CDC or APHIS rabies requirement. Cats can still be inspected and refused entry if they appear ill, but the titer, vaccination form, and facility reservation requirements only apply to dogs.
Does my dog need a screwworm certificate coming from China?
Yes. Both mainland China and Hong Kong are on APHIS's current screwworm-affected regions list. Your dog needs screwworm certification regardless of which part of China it's coming from. This can be a standalone document or included in the export health certificate, as long as it carries the required statement and signature, signed by an official government vet of the origin region, with inspection within 5 days before shipment.
Which airports can my China-vaccinated dog use?
One of the eight airports with a CDC-registered Animal Care Facility: Atlanta, Dallas, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, Philadelphia, Seattle, or Washington Dulles. This applies regardless of your titer result; a valid titer changes what happens at the facility, not which airports are open to you.
What happens if my China-vaccinated dog doesn't have a valid titer?
Your dog will need to complete a 28-day quarantine at the CDC-registered Animal Care Facility on arrival.