Shipping your things and pets abroad: container, air freight or suitcase?

Ship less than you think, fly your essentials, and start your pet's paperwork the day you know where you're headed.

The short version

• Container shipping suits a full house. It's the cheapest per item but takes weeks to months door to door.
• Air freight suits a few boxes you need quickly. It's fast and priced by weight and volume, so the sticker shock comes fast too.
• Pets need a USDA-endorsed health certificate from a USDA-accredited vet for most destinations [1]. The process can take a few weeks to many months [2].
• The EU has strict timing: a microchip before the rabies shot, a wait of at least 21 days, and USDA endorsement within 10 days of arrival [3].
• Leave behind most US appliances, cheap furniture and anything you could buy again for less than the shipping.

Container vs air freight vs luggage

This isn't a U-Haul move across state lines. You have three main ways to get your things overseas, and most families use two of them: a sea shipment for furniture and a few extra suitcases for what they need on day one.

We don't quote prices here because they swing with fuel, routes and season. Get at least three written quotes, and make sure each one covers the same things: packing, export paperwork, ocean or air freight, destination port fees, customs clearance and delivery to your door. A cheap quote that leaves out destination charges is a classic bait and switch, even when nobody means it that way.

How to choose

1. Make an inventory. List furniture and large items with rough sizes. Movers estimate from volume, not item count.
2. Ask what it costs to replace. If you can buy a new bookcase in Madrid for less than shipping yours, sell it.
3. Check what your employer covers. Many relocation packages pay for a set volume of sea freight plus some air freight.
4. Check your new home's size. Apartments in many cities are smaller than US homes, with narrow stairwells and no elevator. That sectional from the suburbs may never make it up to the fourth floor.
5. Get the destination's customs rules. Many countries let new residents bring used household goods duty free, but often only within a set time after arrival and with proof of residence. Ask the destination customs office or your mover.

Insurance and inventories

Buy marine or transit insurance on the full replacement value, not the default per-pound liability, which pays pennies. Photograph valuables before packing and keep the numbered inventory list the movers give you. Check boxes against it on delivery, before you sign.

What to leave behind

Shipping is charged on space, so every item has to earn its spot on the truck.

• Most electrical appliances. The US runs on 120 volts and 60 hertz. Much of the world uses 220 to 240 volts and often 50 hertz. Converters are bulky, and things with motors or heating elements don't do well on them. Laptops and phone chargers are usually fine, because most work on both.
• TVs and large electronics may not match local broadcast standards and are cheap to replace.
• Cars. Importing a US car is often costly and slow, with emission tests, conversion work and import taxes. Your pickup may also be too big for European streets and parking garages. Most people sell before they go.
• Firearms and ammunition. These need export and import permits, and many countries effectively ban them for new residents. Don't put them in a household shipment.
• Food, plants and soil. Most countries restrict these. Use up the pantry, including that bulk-size Costco haul, instead.
• Alcohol. Often allowed only in small amounts and taxed. Check before you pack the wine.
• Cheap furniture. Sell it, donate it or give it away.

What you should carry by hand

Keep passports, visas, birth and marriage certificates, pet paperwork, medicines, laptops and a week of clothes in your carry-on or checked bags. A container can sit at a port for weeks. Your documents shouldn't.

Taking your pet: how the USDA process works

The USDA's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) endorses the health certificates most countries want for dogs and cats from the US. Here's the usual order [1]:

1. Find a USDA-accredited vet. Only an accredited vet can issue a health certificate the USDA will endorse. Accreditation is voluntary and state-based, so the vet you've used since your dog was a puppy may not have it [1].
2. Look up your destination. APHIS has a page for each country. Requirements change, so check again close to travel [1].
3. Build a schedule. Work backward from your flight. Some countries want blood tests or a waiting period that adds weeks or months [2].
4. Get the microchip, shots and tests in the right order.
5. Get the health certificate from your accredited vet within the destination's time window.
6. Get USDA endorsement. Your vet can submit online through the Veterinary Export Health Certification System (VEHCS), or you can mail the original to a USDA Endorsement Office. Pick one route only [1].
7. Pay the endorsement fee. APHIS charges a fee; check its current fee page. Service dogs covered by the ADA are exempt [1].
8. Finish any post-endorsement steps, such as tapeworm treatment for dogs heading to Finland, Ireland, Norway, the UK or Malta [1].
9. Fly with the originals. Destination officials don't accept electronic copies [1].

Example: dogs and cats to the European Union

The EU is a common destination and a good example of strict timing. For a non-commercial move to Spain, for example [3]:

New EU certificate versions take effect in October 2026 [3], so make sure your vet uses the current one.

Some places are much stricter. Rabies-free islands and countries such as Australia, New Zealand and Japan can require blood tests and waiting periods measured in months. Start as soon as you know your destination. If your family is heading to Australia with a dog or cat, our sister site ExpatCooee walks through bringing a pet into Australia step by step.

Airlines and your pet

Each airline sets its own rules on cabin and hold travel, crate sizes, breeds and seasonal heat limits. Snub-nosed breeds like bulldogs and pugs face extra limits on many carriers, and summer heat embargoes can ground a pet in the hold during the hottest months. Book your pet's spot when you book your own ticket, and get the airline's confirmation in writing. If your pet must fly as cargo, some countries require a licensed pet shipper.

If you'll ever bring the pet back

The US has its own import rules. The CDC sets rules for dogs, based on where the dog has been in the past six months and where it was vaccinated [4]. Keep copies of every vaccination record from your time abroad. Check the CDC and APHIS pages before any trip back to the States, not just when you move home for good.

When you move back

If you return to the US, used household goods are usually allowed back without duty. CBP Form 3299 asks you to declare the goods, and household effects bought abroad must have been used abroad for at least a year in your household to qualify [5]. Alcohol, tobacco and goods for sale are listed separately [5]. Our moving-back guide covers the rest of the return.

A timeline that works

Others who've just moved can tell you which local customs brokers and vets were easy to work with. Our community groups for Americans abroad are a good place to ask.

Sources

1. Pet Travel Process Overview, USDA APHIS
2. Frequently Asked Questions About Traveling With Your Pet, USDA APHIS
3. Pet Travel From the United States to Spain, USDA APHIS
4. Bringing a dog into the United States, CDC
5. CBP Form 3299, Declaration for Free Entry of Unaccompanied Articles, US Customs and Border Protection

Keep reading

• Moving abroad checklist for Americans
• Moving back to the US: taxes, health insurance and credit
• Driving abroad on a US license
• Keeping or renting out your US home after you move abroad