Expatriate life in Luxembourg means a fair number of households eventually leave, and the dog is the part of the move that cannot be handled in the final week. Inside the European Union it is straightforward. Outside it, the sequence can take months, and starting late is the reason dogs get left behind.
What follows is the shape of the process. The details are set by the destination country and change, so treat this as a planning framework and confirm every specific with the official authority of the country you are going to and with your vet.
Six months out
Find out what your destination requires. The correct sources are the destination country's own agriculture or border authority, your airline, and your vet. Do not plan from a relocation blog or an expat group, both of which are frequently out of date.
The questions to answer: is there a blood test requirement after rabies vaccination, and how long is the waiting period afterwards; is there a quarantine period on arrival; which treatments are required in the days before travel; which official veterinary certificate is needed and who must issue and endorse it; and are there breed restrictions.
The classic mistake is doing things in the wrong order. A rabies booster given after a blood test can invalidate the test, and a test taken too soon after vaccination is not accepted.
The usual sequence outside the EU
- Microchip first. It must be readable and it must be in place before the rabies vaccination, or the vaccination may not count
- Rabies vaccination, recorded with the chip number
- Blood test, where required, taken at the interval the destination specifies, at an approved laboratory
- The waiting period, which for some countries is measured in months from the date of the blood sample
- Parasite treatments in the specific window before travel, sometimes as narrow as a day or two
- The official health certificate, issued by a vet and, where required, endorsed by the veterinary authority, usually within a few days of departure
Inside the EU the requirements are far lighter, and the sequence is fixed: an ISO microchip implanted before the rabies vaccination, a primary rabies vaccination given no earlier than twelve weeks of age, and at least twenty-one days between that primary vaccination and travel. Boosters given before the previous vaccination expires do not restart the twenty-one days; a lapse of even one day does.
Dogs entering Finland, Ireland, Malta, Norway or Northern Ireland also need treatment against the tapeworm Echinococcus multilocularis, given by a vet between twenty-four and one hundred and twenty hours before arrival and recorded in the passport. Non-commercial movement is also capped at five pets per traveller.
Rules verified against the European Commission and Your Europe pages in September 2026. Rules change, so check again before you travel.
Flying
Three options exist and they are not equivalent. In the cabin, for small dogs within a weight limit including the carrier. In the hold as excess baggage on the same flight as you. Or as cargo, which is a separate booking and often the only option for large dogs.
Airline rules vary enormously: weight limits, carrier specifications, temperature embargoes in summer and winter, the number of animals per flight, and routes where animals are not carried at all. Book the animal's place as early as you book your own, and confirm it again a fortnight before.
Several airlines will not carry flat-faced breeds in the hold, or at all, because of the well-documented risk to their breathing under stress and heat. If you have one, this limits your options and needs to be established before you choose the flight.
Practical points: a crate that meets the airline's specification, bought early and made comfortable at home for weeks beforehand; a direct flight where possible; avoiding the hottest part of summer; and no sedation, which is generally advised against for air travel because it affects breathing and temperature regulation at altitude. Ask your vet rather than deciding yourself.
Driving instead
For a move within Europe, driving is frequently kinder and cheaper. Plan stops every couple of hours, use a secured crate or a crash-tested harness, and carry the passport, the vaccination record and your insurance details in the car rather than in the boot.
Check the rules of every country you cross, not only the destination: some have specific requirements for transporting animals, and a few restrict certain breeds even in transit.
Before you leave Luxembourg
- Tell your commune the dog is leaving, so the dog tax stops
- Update the microchip register with your new address and a telephone number that will work abroad
- Ask your vet for the complete clinical history, in writing, to give to the new practice
- Ask whether your health insurance continues abroad, and cancel or transfer the civil liability cover
- Refill any long-term medication, since the equivalent may be prescribed differently elsewhere
- Order the identification tag with the new number before you go
The dog's side of it
A move is a long sequence of frightening days: boxes, strangers, an empty flat, a crate, a journey, a new home with no familiar smells. Keep the routine identical for as long as you can, keep the bed unwashed for the arrival, and set up one room first at the other end.
Practise the crate weeks in advance if flying, with food and short sessions, so it is a familiar place rather than something that appears on the worst day of the dog's year.
And plan the first fortnight at the destination before you get there: where the dog toilets, where it walks, who is home, and how the absences will be rebuilt. Dogs that struggle after an international move are usually dogs that went from constant company during the move to a full working day in week two.
If a relocation agent does it for you
Ask exactly what is included, who physically handles the dog, which airline and route, what happens if a flight is cancelled, and what their insurance covers. Ask for a written itinerary and the contact details of whoever meets the dog at the other end. A good agent answers all of that plainly; the price differences between them usually reflect precisely these points.
General information for dog owners in Luxembourg, not veterinary or legal advice. For your own dog, ask your vet, a qualified behaviourist or your commune. How this journal is written and checked.
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