Notice of Proposed Rulemaking

CDC is not proposing any new changes for importers of cats at this time. Information about the current requirements for the importation of cats is published on CDC’s website. While both dogs and cats are included in the current regulation 42 CFR 71.51, cats are not required to have proof of rabies vaccination (although CDC recommends that they be vaccinated).

CDC’s dog and cat importation regulations were last updated in 1956. Over the past seven decades, the process of animal importation has dramatically changed. The NPRM proposes modernizing CDC’s dog and cat import regulation while protecting the United States from the importation of rabies. CDC values the human-animal bond and the important role that dogs play in our lives. We also believe it is imperative to protect the public’s health from dog rabies and other emerging and zoonotic diseases that dogs may introduce or reintroduce into the United States.

The rabies virus can infect any mammal. A dog infected with rabies can transmit the virus to humans, domestic pets, livestock, or wildlife. Once signs of illness appear in people, the disease is almost always fatal. Dog rabies was eliminated in the United States in 2007 but is still endemic in over 100 countries around the world. Importing inadequately vaccinated dogs from countries at high risk for dog rabies poses a significant public health risk to people who interact with or are otherwise exposed to those dogs.

The proposed changes to the dog importation regulation will have little impact on the vast majority of dog owners or importers. For importers of dogs from low-risk or rabies-free countries, and importers of U.S.-vaccinated dogs returning from high-risk countries, the proposed changes in requirements are minimal. For example:

• CDC is proposing that all dogs be microchipped, at least six months old, and healthy upon arrival to be imported into the United States and that all importers complete a free, online CDC Import Submission Form providing details about their dog and the importer’s contact information.
  • Additional requirements would depend on whether the dog has been in a high-risk country for dog rabies within six months before importation and, for dogs that have been in a high-risk country, where the dog received its rabies vaccine.
• Dogs from rabies-free or low-risk countries for dog rabies would be permitted to enter the U.S. at any U.S. port and would need to be accompanied by written documentation that the dog has resided or otherwise been only in low-risk or rabies-free countries for the six months before entry.
• U.S.-vaccinated dogs from high-risk countries for dog rabies would be required to enter the U.S. at an airport with a CDC quarantine station and to be accompanied by a valid rabies vaccination form that had been completed by a U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) -accredited veterinarian and signed by a USDA official veterinarian.
• Importers of foreign-vaccinated dogs from high-risk countries for dog rabies would be required to have a valid rabies vaccination form that has been completed by an authorized veterinarian and signed by an official government veterinarian of the exporting country. Before the dog boards a flight to the U.S., importers would need to make a reservation with a CDC-registered animal care facility to have their dog examined and revaccinated upon arrival. Importers who do not have valid serologic titer results for their dogs would also be required to quarantine their dogs at the facility for 28 days. Dogs would need to enter the U.S. at the airport associated with the CDC-registered animal care facility.

Dog rabies was eliminated from the United States in 2007, and CDC’s dog importation program focuses on preventing the reintroduction of dog rabies into the United States. The rate of rabies is 14 times higher in dogs imported into the United States than it is in dogs that are already in the United States. CDC also identified an increasing number of inadequately vaccinated dogs from high-risk countries denied entry into the U.S. from 2018 through the first half of 2021 until CDC put into effect a temporary suspension of the importation of dogs from high-risk countries.

Between 2020 and the first half of 2021, CDC denied entry to more than 1,000 dogs because they did not meet CDC’s regulatory requirements. Dogs not meeting these requirements cannot be ensured to be protected against rabies. Even one imported case of dog rabies risks the lives of American families and their pets because rabies nearly always causes death once symptoms appear. The public health response to contain the spread of rabies can cost more than half a million dollars for each rabid dog imported to the U.S. and can cause people exposed to a rabid dog to need postexposure prophylaxis (PEP). For example, 18 people received PEP after a rabid dog was imported into the United States in 2021.

The proposed regulatory changes would better prevent attempted importations of inadequately vaccinated dogs and make it more difficult for importers to falsify rabies vaccination documentation. These proposed changes, if adopted, would reduce the risk of dog rabies being reintroduced into the United States.

• The proposed regulation would require airlines to confirm importers’ documentation before allowing dogs to board a flight to the United States. Airlines would also be required to confirm that dogs that have been in a high-risk country for rabies will arrive in the U.S. at an approved port of entry (i.e., an airport with a CDC quarantine station for U.S.-vaccinated dogs or an airport with a CDC-registered animal care facility).
• Airlines would need to generate a bill of lading for all dogs imported into the United States, regardless of whether they are transported as cargo, checked-baggage, or hand-carried baggage.
• Airlines would need to have a representative physically present at the airport until all dogs and cats are cleared for entry or housing arrangements have been made in the event the animal is detained pending determination of admissibility.
• Airlines would need to house dogs and cats in CDC-approved facilities and would no longer be able to leave dogs and cats in cargo warehouses while awaiting return to the country of departure (if denied entry).

Yes. The Notice of Proposed Rulemaking will be publicly available for comment for 60 days, from July 10, 2023 through September 8, 2023. HHS and CDC will carefully review all public comments received and decide whether to make any changes based upon those comments. HHS and CDC will then publish a final rule containing these changes. Any change would become effective at the time specified in the final rule.

You may submit written or electronic comments from July 10, 2023 through September 8, 2023, identified by Docket No. CDC-2023-0051 or RIN 0920-AA82, via the online system or through the mail.  Do not submit comments by email. CDC does not accept comments by email.

• Online (preferred): Federal Rulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the instructions for submitting comments.
• Mail: Division of Global Migration and Quarantine, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 1600 Clifton Road, NE, MS H16-4, Atlanta, GA 30329

After the public comment period closes, CDC will consider comments received from the public then publish a final rule that will announce the effective date.

For more information about current requirements to import dogs and cats or other CDC-regulated animals, please visit: Bringing an Animal into the United States.

To read the proposed regulation on importation of dogs and cats, please visit: Federal Register: Public Inspection: Extension of Temporary Suspension of Dogs Entering the United States from Countries with a High Risk of Rabies.