Travelling with an assistance dog

Requirements for an assistance dog

An assistance dog has been trained to provide support to a person with a visible or non-visible disability or medical condition. These dogs are able to travel safely in the aircraft cabin on a British Airways flight. For your assistance dog to travel with you, they must:

• Be trained to assist with a disability or medical condition by way of specific tasks by:
  • an accredited member of Assistance Dogs International (ADI) or the International Guide Dog Federation (IGDF), or
  • received accreditation from the Assistance Dog Assessment Association, or
  • trained to the same or higher standard as these organisations if evidence of training can be provided (e.g. dogs trained by organisations in some countries which legislate accreditation methods and/or assistance dogs trained by government authorised organisations)
• Have had behavioural training and show appropriate behaviour in public and on board an aircraft.
• Remain under your control at all times.

If your dog doesn’t meet the above criteria, or is an emotional support dog, it will need to travel as a domestic pet.

For direct flights between the United States and the United Kingdom, you will only be required to complete the US DoT Service Animal Forms.

We've partnered with non-profit disability advocacy group, Open Doors Organisation, to make travelling with your assistance dog simple. 

You’ll need to register your assistance dog online before you travel using the relevant form on the Open Doors Organisation portal. We recommend that you register your dog immediately after booking your trip. 

The process to approve your assistance dog for travel in the cabin varies depending on the route you're travelling. It’s important that you use the correct portal to ensure you provide the correct information and documents for your dog.  

If any part of your journey includes a flight that arrives in or departs from the USA, please use this link: 

• Assistance dog form: for travel to or from the US

If your journey does not include a flight arriving in or departing from the USA, please use this link:

• Assistance dog form: for travel to the rest of the world

Once you've completed the form and your request has been submitted, you’ll receive your assistance dog ID. For any future trips, you can simply notify us of new travel dates using this ID. 

Travelling to the US

The United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) have introduced additional requirements for all dogs entering the country, regardless of whether they're travelling in the cabin as an assistance dog or in the aircraft hold. You can find further information on the these regulations on the CDC website.

You'll be required to complete a CDC Dog Import Form online.  A receipt will be emailed to you which you'll need to show prior to boarding your flight.  This can be in printed format or on your smart device. 

If your dog has been in a high-risk rabies country in the last six months you'll need to provide the CDC with additional vaccination documentation before you can travel.  If you don't have a valid vaccination certificate issued in the United States, or an export health certificate approved by the USDA, your dog can only be admitted through one of the six airports that have a CDC Animal Care Facility: Atlanta, Los Angeles, Washington, New York, Miami or Philadelphia. You'll need to book an appointment directly with the facility.

Travelling to the UK

Due to entry regulations into the UK, you must have contacted and received pre-approval from the UK Animal Reception Centre at least 72 hours before your flight. You’ll be asked to show your pre-approval letter before boarding your flight to the UK. Failure to comply with this requirement will mean we’re unable to accept you for travel to the UK.

• All dogs arriving in the UK will need to meet the requirements of the Pet Travel Scheme set out by the UK Government.
• Customers and their dog will not be allowed to board their flight to the UK without a pre-approval letter for entry into the UK.
• On arrival to the UK, an Animal Reception Centre officer will meet you and your dog at the aircraft and carry out the clearance checks to enter the UK.
• The Animal Reception Centre officer will place a tag stating 'Pet Travel Scheme Entry Check Passed' on the dog's harness as proof that it’s been cleared for entering the country.
• Once the clearance checks have been completed, a member of the British Airways team will be able to take your dog to a relief area and then accompany you through Customs and Immigration.

Travelling on other airlines

If your flight is operated by one of our airline or franchise partners, they may have different processes for booking an assistance dog, so please contact them directly before you travel.

Preparing to travel