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United States Equine Import Process
When you schedule your horse(s) travel with Equus Air, we can make all travel arrangements or
customize travel arrangements to your needs. First, horses travel from their ‘home’ farm outside of the US to an appropriate airport for export, which is dependent upon the country the horse is located in.
Horses fly in stalls on a pallet, which can fit up to 3 horses per pallet. All horses imported to the United States must meet the following requirements to gain access to the country, which is managed through ports of entry, such as airports, into the US:
A health certificate, which must be issued by the veterinary officer of the exporting country’s
government office.
The horse must be in the country of export AND in a disease-free location for 60 days
immediately before export.
The horse must be free of contagious diseases.
The horse must NOT have been vaccinated (e.g. alive, attenuated, or inactivated vaccines) in the
14 days prior to export.
The horse must NOT have been in a location where African horse sickness, dourine, glanders,
surra, epizootic lymphangitis, ulcerative lymphangitis, equine piroplasmosis, equine infectious
anemia (EIA), contagious equine metritis (CEM), vesicular stomatitis, or Venezuelan equine
encephalomyelitis has occurred during the 60 days immediately before export.
The horse must NOT have been in a country where CEM is known to exist or had any contact
with horses from countries where CEM is known to exist within the 12 months preceding export.
Upon arrival in the United States, horses are USDA quarantined and tested for dourine, glanders, equine piroplasmosis, and EIA. Any horse testing positive for any of the above diseases will be refused entry in the US port of entry.
The USDA quarantine time requirement is dependent upon the country of export, ranging from 3 days to 60 days. When your horse flies with Equus Air, we coordinate all USDA quarantine and keep you informed through the process. After release from USDA quarantine, mares and stallions over 731 days of age require additional CEM quarantine. CEM quarantine for mares is approximately 17 days and stallions are quarantined for approximately 31 days. During CEM quarantine, horses are tested for Contagious Equine Metritis (CEM).
Learn more about CEM quarantine here:
Equus Air can arrange for travel between USDA quarantine and CEM quarantine, or you can arrange this transport if desired.
Is your horse traveling abroad on a temporary basis? Contact us to find out if your horse meets
conditions to skip this CEM quarantine.
Each country has requirements for import, which can be viewed here:
https://www.aphis.usda.gov/aphis/ourfocus/importexport/animal-import-and-export/equine
US Customs
Our team handles all communication with customs to ensure you have a hassle-free experience when shipping your horse internationally.
United States Equine Export Process
Equus Air can coordinate with a USDA accredited veterinarian to attain your horse’s health certificate.
