Vietnam to the U.S. with a dog: CDC high-risk rules

By Aaron Houston · Last checked 2026-10-29 against official CDC/USDA sources

Vietnam and the 6-month rule

CDC lists Vietnam as a high-risk country for dog rabies. The extra rules apply to any dog that spent time there in the 6 months before reaching the U.S., whether it was born in Hanoi or flew out from Seattle for a holiday (CDC: High-Risk Countries for Dog Rabies). Source: CDC and USDA APHIS pages listed below, last checked 2026-10-29.

Vietnam trips with dogs usually fall into two groups. Americans working or teaching in Vietnam who adopt or vaccinate a dog there and later bring it home. And Vietnamese-American families taking a U.S. dog to visit relatives. The rules for each are very different:

	Dog vaccinated in Vietnam	U.S. dog visiting Vietnam
Key document	Certification of Foreign Rabies Vaccination and Microchip form	USDA-endorsed Certification of U.S.-issued Rabies Vaccination form
Rabies titer	Needed to avoid quarantine (from a CDC-approved lab)	Not needed
Arrival airport	Only one with a CDC-registered animal care facility, with a reservation	Any port listed on the CDC Dog Import Form receipt
Quarantine risk	28 days without a valid titer	None, if paperwork is valid

(CDC: Frequently Asked Questions on Dog Importations)

Bringing home a dog vaccinated in Vietnam

The titer problem

There is no CDC-approved rabies serology laboratory in Vietnam on CDC's list (updated July 13, 2026). CDC's general instruction is that the vet "can send it to the closest CDC-approved laboratory." The approved list includes labs elsewhere in Asia, such as the Pasteur Institute in Cambodia, Thailand's Department of Livestock Development, labs in China and Taiwan, and the Research Institute for Tropical Medicine in the Philippines (CDC: Approved Rabies Serology Laboratories). The result must come straight from the approved lab.

Timing CDC sets for the titer (CDC: foreign-vaccinated dogs):

the blood draw must be at least 30 days after the first valid rabies vaccine;
it must be at least 28 days before the dog arrives in the U.S.;
CDC suggests drawing 60 or more days ahead because lab turnaround varies.

Unconfirmed: Which approved lab is "closest" or most practical from Vietnam, whether Vietnam's veterinary authority allows dog serum to be exported for testing, and how long courier and results take. No official U.S. source we checked says. Ask your vet in Vietnam and contact the lab directly before you set a flight date.

A timeline for a move home

4 to 6 months out: confirm the microchip scans with a universal reader and was implanted before the rabies shot. If the dog is a young local adoptee, note that CDC requires the first vaccine at 12 weeks or older and the dog must be at least 6 months old at entry (CDC FAQ).
60 to 90 days out: blood draw and shipment to an approved lab.
30+ days out: book the animal care facility. Book a 28-day quarantine as a fallback if results may be late.
Within 30 days of arrival: your Vietnamese vet completes CDC's foreign rabies and microchip form, and an official government veterinarian endorses it. It's valid 30 days from the vet's signature, for one entry.
Before the flight: complete a CDC Dog Import Form for each dog (free).
On arrival: the facility examines and revaccinates the dog with a U.S.-licensed vaccine.

If you do end up in quarantine, a personal pet with records of at least two rabies vaccines given on U.S.-style schedules may qualify for prospective serologic monitoring to shorten it. A dog you're importing for adoption or to rehome doesn't qualify (CDC FAQ).

Picking the U.S. airport

Flights from Vietnam often land on the West Coast. On CDC's Sept 1, 2026 list, the West Coast facilities are at Los Angeles (LAX), where CDC prefers dogs to arrive as cargo, and Seattle-Tacoma (SEA). San Francisco (SFO) and Houston are not on the list. The others are ATL, DFW, MIA, JFK, PHL (cargo only) and IAD (CDC: CDC-registered Animal Care Facilities). Connecting in Tokyo, Seoul, Taipei or Hong Kong is fine as long as the last leg lands at a facility airport. Honolulu and Guam are out, because CDC has no registered facilities in Hawaii or U.S. territories (CDC FAQ).

Unconfirmed: Which Vietnamese authority endorses CDC's foreign rabies form as the "official government veterinarian", and what Vietnam requires for a pet dog to leave the country (export certificate, quarantine station inspection). These aren't on official U.S. sources. Ask the regional animal health office or your vet.

Taking your U.S. dog to Vietnam and back

Before the dog leaves the U.S., a USDA-accredited vet completes the Certification of U.S.-issued Rabies Vaccination form and USDA endorses it. For a first-ever rabies shot, the vet can't complete the form until 28 days after the vaccine. With that form, the dog returns at any U.S. port on its CDC receipt, with no titer or facility needed (CDC: U.S.-Vaccinated Dogs from High-Risk Countries). Keep the vaccine current through the trip. If your dog gets a booster in Vietnam, CDC still wants valid, unexpired documentation of a U.S.-issued vaccination (CDC FAQ). See returning with a U.S.-vaccinated dog.

Vietnam's entry certificate

Vietnam's requirements come through the USDA health certificate (USDA APHIS: Pet Travel From the U.S. to Vietnam, last modified Sept 30, 2025; Vietnam dog and cat certificate, Sept 2025 (PDF)). The accredited vet certifies that:

they verified the microchip (a microchip number is required on the certificate);
they inspected the dog that day and it appears healthy and free of infectious or contagious disease;
to their knowledge, the dog came from an area not quarantined for rabies and wasn't exposed to rabies;
the dog is current on rabies vaccination. A table lists the vaccine name, batch number, vaccination date and the end of the validity period.

The certificate is valid 30 days from the date of issue to the date of departure. APHIS accepts electronic signature and digital endorsement through VEHCS, so the endorsed copy can be printed rather than mailed. Vietnam's rules can change without notice. Your vet is responsible for checking them before issuing the certificate.

Want it on one page? Dog travel document checklist by scenario (paid PDF; everything in it is also free on this site and cdc.gov).

Sources

CDC: High-Risk Countries for Dog Rabies
CDC: Entry Requirements for Foreign-Vaccinated Dogs from High-Risk Countries
CDC: Entry Requirements for U.S.-Vaccinated Dogs from High-Risk Countries
CDC: Frequently Asked Questions on Dog Importations (updated Aug 27, 2026)
CDC: Approved Rabies Serology Laboratories (updated July 13, 2026)
CDC: CDC-registered Animal Care Facilities (updated Sept 1, 2026)
USDA APHIS: Pet Travel From the U.S. to Vietnam and health certificate (PDF)

Keep going: This page is part of our main guide to bringing a dog into the U.S., which walks through every decision in order. Related questions: Rabies vaccine and titer rules. Ready to act? See CDC Dog Import Form.