The core three: certificate, rabies proof, microchip
Almost every international route rests on the same three pieces of paper. First, a health certificate signed by a vet after examining your dog, issued inside the validity window your destination sets, which is often a matter of days before travel. Second, proof of rabies vaccination showing the vaccine was given while the microchip was already in place, because a vaccination recorded before the chip was fitted may not count. Third, the microchip itself: it must scan on the day, and its number must appear identically on the certificate, the vaccination record, and any permit. Officials compare documents digit by digit, and a mismatch is treated as a different dog. Before anything else, have your vet scan the chip and print the number so you can check every document against one trusted source.
What your destination may add on top
Countries layer their own requirements over that core set, and they differ enough that last year's trip is not a reliable guide. Some require an import permit applied for in advance. Some require a rabies blood test taken a set period after vaccination, with a waiting period before travel is allowed. Others ask for specific parasite treatments given by a vet within a tight window before departure and recorded with dates and times. A few destinations require the certificate to be endorsed by an official veterinary authority after your own vet signs it, which adds days of processing you cannot compress at the end. Read the destination government's own pet import page, not just the airline's checklist, and build a timeline backwards from your flight so each step lands inside its window.
The airline's paperwork is a separate layer
Meeting a country's import rules does not automatically satisfy your airline. Carriers set their own conditions for dogs in the cabin or the hold: a booking confirmation for the pet space, an approved carrier size, weight limits, and sometimes their own health or behaviour declaration for you to sign at check-in. Some airlines will not carry certain breeds or will not carry dogs on particular routes or in hot weather. Confirm the pet booking directly with the airline rather than assuming a seat booking includes your dog, and keep the written confirmation with your travel documents. If your journey involves a stopover, check the transit country's rules too, because a dog who leaves the airport or even changes planes in some places can trigger that country's requirements as well.
Assembling the packet so check-in is boring
In the final week, lay out every document in the order an official will ask for them: health certificate, rabies vaccination proof, microchip details, permits, test results, and the airline's pet confirmation. Photograph each page as a backup, keep originals in your hand luggage rather than checked bags, and carry a spare copy of the vaccination record in case one set is retained. Recheck the certificate's dates the day before you fly; if a delay pushes you outside its window, contact the airline and your vet immediately rather than hoping it goes unnoticed. Travelling with the complete file assembled in KinsLe's Pet Passport means the set you checked at home is the set you hand over at the airport, with nothing left in a folder at home.