Bringing Pets to Paraguay

Paraguay is one of the easier countries in South America to bring a dog or cat into: no quarantine, no microchip mandate, and a paperwork process that completes at the airport, not in advance. The rules come from one binding document, MERCOSUR Res. 20/24, applied by SENACSA. Here is what it actually requires, and the claims about Paraguay pet import that are false.

The Authority, and What the Process Actually Is

SENACSA, Paraguay's national animal-health service, controls pet entry. Its published process has one step on arrival: present the original CVI to the SENACSA veterinary inspector at the point of entry for a document check and inspection of the animal (Res. 20/24 Art. 7; the inspector must not keep your original). The framework resolution contains no prior-permit step and no advance authorization, which is why accompanied-pet moves into Paraguay are administratively light.

No import permit is required for accompanied dogs and cats within the five-animal cap — six or more animals counts as commercial import under a different regime. That is a negative-confirmed fact, not an inference of silence: MERCOSUR Res. 20/24 is the complete requirements instrument for companion-animal entry into Paraguay (it replaced Res. 17/15), and its 19 articles and annexes enumerate every requirement — the CVI, rabies vaccination, parasite treatment, the clinical exam, identification, border control — with no permit or advance-authorization step anywhere. SENACSA's official trámites catalog matches: the only companion-animal trámite is certificate emission (TR 02), and the government's single-stop entry procedure (paraguay.gov.py) prescribes the certificate alone. One US-side note: USDA APHIS lists Paraguay's requirements as "Unknown" in its export guidance — a gap on the US side, not an absence of Paraguayan rules.

The arrival inspection is not free: SENACSA's fee schedule (Decreto 10995/13, partially modified by Decreto 11626/13, both still posted on SENACSA's official aranceles page) prices companion-animal import certification at 1.56769 jornales mínimos diarios per animal. That unit is Paraguay's daily minimum wage, so the payable amount moves with the wage in force when you pay rather than sitting as a fixed guaraní figure — confirm the current amount with SENACSA (Certificación Sanitaria, 021 729 0015 int. 1125, San Lorenzo).

Rabies: the 90-Day Threshold and the 21-Day Wait

Rabies is the one required vaccine, and its rules are precise (Res. 20/24 Arts. 9-12). Animals from 90 days of age must enter vaccinated, and the vaccination must be current. If your pet is being vaccinated for the first time, shipment is authorized only 21 days after the shot, and an animal whose booster lapsed counts as first-vaccinated again, restarting the 21-day clock.

Under 90 days of age, a puppy or kitten may enter unvaccinated if the CVI certifies its age and confirms no contact with urban rabies in the previous 90 days. Animals from WOAH-recognized rabies-free countries or zones are exempt when that status is certified in the CVI.

Microchips: Not Required, but ISO if You Use One

Paraguay's governing rule does not mandate a microchip. Res. 20/24 Art. 17 reserves identification procedure to each member state, Paraguay's published entry process sets no chip requirement, and the CVI model marks the microchip field "en caso de corresponder," where applicable. The "microchip mandatory for Paraguay" claim on several relocation sites is refuted by the primary source.

If your pet is chipped, the chip must meet ISO 11784/11785 when electronic identification is used. Chipping remains sensible, especially for travel onward from Paraguay, since some destination-country paperwork routes expect one.

The CVI and Its Three Clocks

The core document is the Certificado Veterinario Internacional, issued by your origin country's official veterinary authority, not by a pet-shipper and not by your neighborhood vet alone (a USDA-endorsed health certificate is the US equivalent). Three deadlines govern it:

A valid official pet passport can replace the CVI where it carries the same data (Art. 8). There is no apostille step in Paraguay's framework; the document is official veterinary certification, so the endorsement route is your country's veterinary authority, not a notary or apostille office.

Quarantine: None, and What Happens if Paperwork Fails

Paraguay imposes no routine quarantine. The word "cuarentena" appears zero times in the governing resolution, and the arrival process is inspection, then release, for a compliant animal. The "30-day quarantine" figure on some international pet-transport pages is a conflation of the 21-day post-vaccination wait and does not describe any Paraguayan rule.

The real risk is non-compliance. For an animal that does not meet the requirements, the importing authority may reject it, return it to the country of origin, or retain it, and every resulting cost is the owner's (Res. 20/24 Arts. 18-19). That is the argument for getting the CVI clocks right rather than treating the trip as a formality.

How Many Pets, and Which Animals Count

Only domestic dogs and cats are "pets" under Paraguay's rules, and the cap is five animals per traveler. Six or more is a commercial consignment under live-animal import rules, a different and heavier process. Birds, reptiles, and other exotics are outside the pet framework entirely: contact SENACSA directly before making plans.

On breed bans: none is in force at import or nationally. A responsible-ownership bill listing potentially dangerous breeds, including Pit Bull types, was still in debate in Congress as of September 2026, and press reporting confirms ownership is not prohibited. Municipal ownership rules are a separate question, worth checking with your municipality, and a mother traveling with suckling young under 90 days counts as one biological unit with only the mother certified.

Airlines Into Asuncion

Two carriers publish pet rules that check out against their official pages. Copa Airlines, the main hub carrier through Panama, accepts dogs and cats in the cabin up to 10 kg combined weight with a soft-sided carrier (28 x 45.7 x 28 cm), one pet per passenger, the pet slot reserved at least 48 hours before the flight through its offices or call center, at USD 125 plus taxes per international flight; pets over the cabin limit move through Copa Cargo. Paranair, on its regional Asuncion routes (Santa Cruz, Montevideo, Buenos Aires, Brazil), accepts one cabin pet per passenger up to 8 kg combined with the carrier, animals from three months of age, with pet owners seated in rear rows.

For every other airline flying into Asuncion, including the major Latin carriers, treat pet acceptance as unconfirmed until you have it in writing: pet pages move, rules differ by route and aircraft, and cabin-versus-cargo classification changes with the animal's size. Confirm acceptance, class, container specifications, and fees directly with the airline before booking anything non-refundable.

At the Airport in Paraguay

On arrival at the point of entry, present the original CVI to the SENACSA veterinary inspector for the documentary check and the sanitary inspection of the animal. Keep the original: the rule explicitly leaves the CVI in the owner's possession, and you may need it for a return or onward trip. In practice the check is brief for a compliant animal, and there is no step to complete in advance of landing.

After entry, Asuncion and San Lorenzo have university and municipal veterinary services alongside private clinics, including the UNA faculty veterinary hospital in San Lorenzo and municipal low-cost vaccination and deworming clinics whose published prices are a fraction of private-clinic rates. Private consult prices are not published; budget locally and ask in the expat groups for current recommendations.

The Myths About Bringing Pets to Paraguay

Frequently Asked Questions

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• → Moving to Paraguay checklist (the full move, pets included)
• → Driving in Paraguay (license rules and buying a car)
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