You can take your dog or cat with you on Lufthansa flights. Please read the following information carefully before booking a flight with your pet.
Transporting animals in the aircraft
A good trip for your precious pet
Depending upon the kind of animal, its weight and size, and the regulations applicable in different countries, transport is possible at an extra cost either as additional carry-on baggage in the passenger cabin or as excess baggage in the passenger aircraft’s air-conditioned cargo hold. Lufthansa Cargo also offers the transport of the above-mentioned animals and other species as air freight. Special rules apply to assistance dogs. Please note that because of local circumstances and restrictions, the transport of large animals in the cargo hold to certain destinations is not possible.
General advice on transporting animals on Lufthansa flights
Please note the minimum age of the animals to be transported. For dogs and cats the minimum age is:
- 12 weeks,
- and 15 weeks for carriage from/to/via Germany.
- If you are travelling to the USA: 6 months for dogs
Please make sure that you find out about the import and export regulations applicable to your pet in your departure, transit and destination countries in plenty of time and before booking your flight. Such information is available from the relevant consulates, for example. Please also ask your vet about applicable animal welfare provisions for travelling with your pet. Obtain all the travel documentation required for your pet so that nothing will stand in the way of your trip.
In the event of Lufthansa having to refuse the carriage of your pet because of non-compliance with the regulations, Lufthansa is not liable for any resulting costs (e.g. rebooking charges, animal boarding costs, hotel accommodation).
Lufthansa also reserves the right to refuse to transport animals in the cargo hold if there are extreme weather conditions at the destination. This can happen at short notice or seasonally.
Please note: each passenger is allowed to take a maximum of two animals with them (in an approved transport container). The animals may not be intended for commercial purposes. Animals can be transported in the cabin and/or in the cargo hold:
- 2 animals of the same species in the cabin in a pet carrier, or
- 1 animal in the cabin and 1 animal in the cargo hold, or
- 2 animals in the cargo hold in 2 separate transport containers, or
- 2 animals of the same species in the cargo hold in one transport container.
Special animal welfare provisions apply to the transport of several animals in one transport container:
- A maximum of 2 adult animals of comparable size that are used to each other and weigh up to 14 kg each may travel in one cage.
- Up to 2 weaned puppies or kittens may travel in one transport container if they come from the same litter, are not older than 6 months, and each weighs no more than 14 kg. Please make sure you find out about any differing country-specific regulations, where applicable.
Lufthansa does not accept pregnant animals.
Please note that if you are travelling to the USA you must register your dog with us using an online form and you must also fill out the CDC Dog Import Form.
Registering an animal for carriage
To register the carriage of an animal in the cabin or in the hold please use the appropriate online form:
Please note that if you are travelling to the USA with your dog you must also fill out the CDC Dog Import Form.
CDC entry requirements
The CDC entry requirements for dogs to the USA have changed as of 1 August 2024.
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Due to changes to the entry requirements of the American health authority Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), until further notice Lufthansa is accepting new bookings for dogs travelling to the USA only for travel to Atlanta, Los Angeles, Miami, New York-JFK, Philadelphia and Washington DC.
Since October 2024, the transport of dogs to Newark (EWR) is possible again, provided that your dog has not been in a high-risk area (rabies) in the last six months before entering the USA. The transport of animals as air freight to other destinations is also still possible. For this, please contact an animal freight forwarder.
Please familiarize yourself with the new requirements in good time and register your animal for your flight.
CDC Dog Import Form
In preparation for your dog’s trip, you must also complete the online form provided by the American authorities, the ‘CDC Dog Import Form’. After you have submitted this form, confirmation will be sent to the email address you have provided. On the day of departure and when entering the USA, you must present this confirmation in digital or printed form.
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If you do not comply with the CDC entry requirements, we must unfortunately refuse transport. Lufthansa is not responsible for any costs incurred as a result (e.g. rebooking costs, accommodation costs for the animal, hotel accommodation).
We apologise for any inconvenience.
Assistance dogs
The transportation of assistance dogs remains possible, provided all the CDC entry requirements are fulfilled. You can find detailed information on the CDC website. It is the passenger’s responsibility to fulfil all the requirements. Failure to present the documents required by the CDC upon check-in will result in import/transport being refused.
All the regulations mentioned here apply exclusively to flights operated by Lufthansa. For code-share flights, therefore, please make sure that you check the regulations of the airline operating the flight. If you are travelling with several airlines, please ensure you have confirmation from all the airlines concerned that they will also transport your pet.
Your pet must be registered in good time and have been confirmed by Lufthansa, i.e.:
- up to 72 hours before departure online or via your travel agency, or
- 24 hours before departure at the latest in the Lufthansa Service Center.
For assistance dogs, the deadline of 48 hours before departure applies.
As the allocation is limited, we recommend that you book your pet in early, preferably at the same time as you book your own flight.
- If possible, get your pet used to its transport container at home before the journey by putting it into the closed transport container several times for about two hours at a time and rewarding it afterwards with a treat.
- Many pets are very nervous before and during a flight. Nevertheless, you should think very carefully about whether you wish to tranquillize your pet with medications. This makes it difficult to predict how your animal may react. It can, for example, cause circulatory problems during the flight. Please ask your vet’s advice about this.
- Put your pet’s "comfort blanket" and its favourite toy in the transport container in order to soothe and calm it with familiar smells.
- Ask your vet how to adapt your pet’s food for the flight, if necessary.
Online and mobile check-in 30 hours before departure is possible for all passengers travelling with animals. Passengers travelling with their animal in the cabin must collect their boarding pass at the check-in counter at the airport.
The boarding pass for passengers whose animals are travelling in the hold is issued during online/mobile check-in. These passengers cannot check in their baggage at self-service bag-drop kiosks.
You are also welcome to take your four-legged friends with you into our lounges. Please understand, however, that out of consideration for our other guests, your dogs or cats should not be allowed to wander freely around Lufthansa lounges and should await their onward journey in their transport box or pet carrier. Assistance dogs are exempt from this regulation.
What travel options are there for the different types of animals?
Only smaller dogs and cats weighing no more than 8 kg including their transport container may be transported under certain conditions as additional carry-on baggage in the passenger cabin. Larger dogs and cats, and all other animal species regardless of their weight and size, are not allowed in the cabin.
For all flights (excluding the USA)
You can register to take your pet with you into the cabin yourself under My bookings. We recommend that you make your booking at least 72 hours before departure. Otherwise, please contact the Service Center up to 24 hours before departure. Lufthansa also reserves the right to apply stricter regulations where necessary and refuse bookings on certain routes (such as to the UK or Ireland, for example) to exclude the animal from travel.
For USA flights
For flights from or to the USA, you must register at least 72 hours before departure via the following form. Due to these restrictions, it is not currently possible to register via the Service Center.
For you to take your pet into the cabin as carry-on baggage, we require your confirmation for all flights that the animal meets the stated requirements. Please present two printouts of the completed and signed form at the check-in counter to confirm this.
Please note that the form is not required for assistance dogs on direct flights to/from the USA.
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Dogs and cats weighing more than 8 kg including their transport container may be carried as excess baggage in the aircraft’s air-conditioned cargo hold under certain conditions. You must register using the following online form no later than 72 hours before departure. Otherwise, please contact the Service Center up to 24 hours before departure.
For USA flights
For flights to the USA, you must register at least 72 hours before departure using the following form.
For the carriage of all other animals, please contact Lufthansa Cargo.
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You can take your assistance dog with you on board Lufthansa flights free of charge. Please find out about the general requirements for taking an assistance dog into the aircraft cabin with you.
Special regulations apply to taking fighting dog breeds with you when you fly.
Dogs and cats belonging to snub-nosed breeds have anatomically restricted airways with the accompanying difficulty in breathing. For this reason, there are special instructions and rules for transporting these animals.
If you are unable to travel together with your pet, if country regulations stipulate that animals must be transported by air freight, or if you would like to transport an animal not listed on lufthansa.com, it is possible to have your animal transported as air freight. Varying prices apply to shipping animals as air freight (for example, with Lufthansa Cargo). For this, you need a carrier who specialises in transporting animals. You can find the contact details of one near you with the help of the animal freight forwarder search.
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If you have any questions about this, the Lufthansa Cargo Service Centre will be happy to assist you further. You can contact them in Germany on tel. 0180 6 – 747 100 (calls cost €0.20 per min. from the German landline network; max. €0.60 per min. from mobile phone networks).
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