Menu

Import

Horses may imported into the United States provided they are accompanied by a proper veterinary health certificate issued by a full-time veterinary officer of the National Government of the exporting country stating that the horses have:

  1. Been in that country for 60 days immediately preceding importation. If not, they must be accompanied by a like certificate issued by a full-time salaried veterinary officer of the National Government of each country in which the horses have been during the 60 days immediately preceding shipment to the United States.
  2. Been inspected and found to be free of contagious diseases and, insofar as can be determined, exposure thereto during the 60 days immediately preceding exportation.
  3. Not been vaccinated with a live or attenuated or inactivated vaccine during the 14 days immediately preceding exportation.
  4. Not been on a premises where African horsesickness, dourine, glanders, surra, epizootic lymphangitits, 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 preceding exportation, nor have these diseases occurred on any adjoining premises during the same period of time.
  5. Not been in a country where CEM is known to exist, nor have had any contact, breeding, or otherwise, with horses from such country, for the 12 months preceding exportation.
  6. Been inspected and found to be free from ectoparasites.

Horses imported into the United States are required to be detained at the United States port of entry while tests for dourine, glanders, equine piroplasmosis, and EIA are conducted. Test results from NVSL are generally available 3 days after the date of arrival of the horses. Horses that test positive for any of these diseases will be refused entry into the United States.

Insurance

Horses travel at owner’s risk! Whether on a van, ship, or aircraft, horses travel entirely at the owner’s risk.

Therefore we strongly urge all owners to obtain mortality insurance on their horse, to include the purchase price, and the cost of shipping whenever possible. References for Insurance carriers are available upon request.

Import Procedures for Horses Imported Into The United States From Countries Affected With Contagious Equine Metritis (CEM) Horses Over 731 Days of Age

Horses may be imported into the United States provided they meet the following requirements.

GENERAL REQUIREMENTS
All horses must be accompanied by an official health certificate written in English. The official health certificate must be signed by a full-time veterinary officer of the National Government of the country of export.

PRE-EXPORTATION REQUIREMENTS (TEST FOR CEM)

  1. From stallions collect one set of specimens from the prepuce, urethral sinus, fossa glandis (including the diverticulum of the fossa glandis) within 30 days of export.
    From mares, collect one set of specimens from the clitoral sinuses and clitoral fossa. These results must be negative for the horse to be eligible for entry into the United States.
  2. All specimens must be received within 48 hours of collection by a laboratory approved by the animal health authorities of the National Veterinary Service of the region of export.
  3. The dates and time of specimen collection and culturing, and the results of such cultures with the name of the laboratory must be recorded on the health certificate.
  4. If any specimen collected is found to be positive for CEM, the stallion or mare must be treated for CEM in a manner approved by the National Veterinary Service of the region of export. After the treatment is completed, at least 21 days must pass before the horse will be eligible to be tested again. All treatments performed, and the dates of the treatments, must be recorded on the health certificate.
  5. The horse must not have been bred naturally or by artificial insemination from the period of time after specimen collection of the date of export.

Upon completion of U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) import quarantine and testing requirements, the mare or stallion must be consigned to a State approved to receive mares and stallions from CEM-affected countries to undergo the prescribed CEM treatment and testing requirements.

Countries Affected with Contagious Equine Metritis

The Member States of the European Union (EU) are: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, the Republic of Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden. [The United Kingdom (UK) has left the EU but continues to follow EU harmonized import requirements, and has indicated that it will do so until at least the end of 2020.]