Bringing a cat or a dog to Saint Petersburg, or taking one out, fails on small things: a vaccination given before the microchip, a carrier ten centimetres over the limit, no separate ticket for the animal. Here is what Russia requires, what the EU requires, how trains, the metro and Pulkovo Airport handle pets, and where in the city you can get every veterinary paper in one visit. Everything below follows the rules published by Rosselkhoznadzor (the federal veterinary service), Russian Railways, the metro and the airport.
Documents
- Veterinary passport with rabies and species vaccinations, microchip number and treatments. Any clinic issues one.
- Microchip to ISO 11784/11785, implanted before the rabies shot: the EU rejects a vaccination dated earlier than the chip.
- Rabies vaccination, valid for the period stated by the vaccine (usually a year). A booster given while the previous one is still valid needs no waiting period; a first or lapsed vaccination must be at least 20 days old for Pulkovo, and Rosselkhoznadzor counts 21 days for immunity to form.
- Clinical examination stamp in the passport, not older than 14 days: the airport states it allows travel inside Russia for 120 days.
- A transport document for the animal on long-distance trains, issued for each pet when you buy your ticket.
- For leaving Russia: a Form 1 veterinary certificate from a state clinic (SBBZh) no earlier than 5 days before departure; on its basis Rosselkhoznadzor issues the international certificate — the EU model certificate or Form 5a for other countries. For the EU and a dozen other countries you also need a rabies antibody titre report.
Vaccinations and deadlines
Since 16 September 2024 dogs, cats and ferrets entering the EU from Russia need a rabies antibody test: blood is drawn at least 30 days after vaccination, and entry is allowed no earlier than 3 months after the sample (EU Regulation 2024/1130). Turkey, the UAE, Israel, Japan, Korea, China and the USA (for dogs) ask for the same test. Only two Rosselkhoznadzor laboratories run it, in Moscow and Vladimir, but blood can be drawn in Saint Petersburg at the North-West branch of VNIIZZh, Moskovskoye shosse 15 (tel. 630-20-69, ext. 183), or at partner clinics. Since 1 December 2025 the reports are electronic with a QR code verified in the eCert system. Dogs entering the EU also need an echinococcus treatment 24 to 120 hours before arrival, recorded in the passport.
Trains
On long-distance trains run by FPK a small animal travels in a carrier of no more than 180 cm in total dimensions, at most two animals per seat, on the luggage space, and must not be let out until the end of the journey. When you buy a ticket on the Russian Railways website a pet icon next to the carriage shows whether animals are allowed; no icon means no. In higher-comfort compartment carriages with a permitting service class you pay the carrier's fee and do not have to buy out the compartment; a large dog is allowed only if you buy all seats in the compartment, in which case its transport document is free. Sapsan and Lastochka trains have their own operator rules, shown at booking. On suburban SZPPK trains a pet costs no more than a quarter of the adult fare and travels in a container; large dogs need a muzzle and a leash. Guide dogs travel free.
Pulkovo Airport
The airport's first instruction is to agree the transport with your airline in advance: pet quotas per flight are small, weight and carrier limits differ, and brachycephalic breeds are often refused. The Rosselkhoznadzor veterinary control desk is in the right wing of the terminal, tel. +7 (812) 324-34-44, ext. 4799. For a domestic flight show the pet passport; for an international one the desk issues the EU certificate or Form 5a on the basis of your Form 1. You can file the application online in eCert beforehand. Not every taxi takes animals, so mark "with a pet" when ordering a car; the ways into town are covered in our guide from Pulkovo to the centre.
