For a dog or cat entering Paraguay, plan backward from the date the International Veterinary Certificate (CVI) will be issued. SENACSA applies the sanitary guarantees in MERCOSUR Resolution 20/2024 to the companion-animal route.
The route covers domestic dogs and cats. A movement of one to five animals can use the companion framework; six or more animals are treated by SENACSA as a commercial live-animal consignment. Other species need a separate species-specific consultation.
The original CVI is the central document
The animal must travel with an original International Veterinary Certificate issued by the competent veterinary authority of the exporting country. The CVI certifies the MERCOSUR health requirements and is presented with the animal to SENACSA at the point of entry.
The CVI is generally valid for 60 calendar days from issuance, provided the rabies vaccination certified in it remains valid. Under the MERCOSUR rule, the original remains with the owner or responsible person rather than being permanently retained at the border.
Health timing before CVI issuance
Clinical examination. The animal must be examined within the ten days before the CVI is issued and certified free of clinical signs of infectious, contagious or parasitic disease and fit for transport.
Rabies. Dogs and cats aged 90 days or more need a valid authorized rabies vaccination. After the first rabies dose, at least 21 days must pass before travel. A revaccination given after the previous coverage expired is treated as a first vaccination again. A booster given while the previous vaccination is still continuously valid takes effect without a new 21-day wait.
Animals under 90 days. An unvaccinated animal younger than 90 days requires the CVI to certify its age and the permitted declaration or epidemiological basis showing no contact with urban rabies during the previous 90 days.
Parasites. A broad-spectrum treatment against internal and external parasites must be given within the 15 days before CVI issuance, using authorized products. The treatment information is recorded in the certificate.
Identification and microchips
Member states can set identification requirements for entry. When a microchip is used, Resolution 20/2024 requires ISO 11784/11785 compatibility and the chip's location to be recorded in the CVI. Check SENACSA's current entry instruction where identification matters to the specific case.
Worked calendar: travel on 30 September
Suppose entry is planned for 30 September and the animal is receiving its first rabies vaccination. The first dose must be early enough for at least 21 full days to pass before travel; a dose given only a few days before the flight will not work. If the CVI is issued on 28 September, an antiparasitic treatment on 20 September and a clinical examination on 25 September would both sit safely inside the respective 15-day and 10-day windows. The point is not to copy those dates, but to calculate every deadline backward from the actual CVI and travel dates.
Arrival in Paraguay
- Carry the original CVI and vaccination history.
- Present the animal and documents to the SENACSA veterinary inspector at the point of entry.
- Allow documentary and sanitary control.
- Follow any additional lawful sanitary measure if the file or animal does not comply.
Noncompliance can lead, depending on the case, to rejection, return, retention or another sanitary measure, with costs or losses borne by the owner. The MERCOSUR rule also permits the importing state to refuse an animal previously diagnosed with leishmaniasis.
Keep airline rules separate
The CVI does not determine whether an airline will carry the animal in the cabin, hold or as cargo. Crate dimensions, booking, weight, breed restrictions and carrier deadlines belong to transport rules. Conversely, an airline booking does not replace the SENACSA/CVI entry requirements.
Travel checklist
- Confirm species and number of animals.
- For six or more, ask SENACSA about the commercial route.
- Check the rabies-validity chain and the 21-day first-dose rule.
- Schedule antiparasitic treatment inside the 15-day window.
- Schedule the clinical examination inside the 10-day window.
- Obtain the original CVI from the exporting country's competent authority.
- Check the 60-day CVI validity and continuing rabies validity.
- Satisfy airline transport rules separately.
Working backward from the intended CVI and travel dates avoids the common failure mode: having a certificate in hand whose vaccination or treatment dates do not actually satisfy the entry rule.
Last verified
9 September 2026. SENACSA currently directs entrants to comply with the sanitary guarantees of MERCOSUR Resolution 20/2024. The MERCOSUR norm register still lists Paraguay as “not incorporated” for that resolution; this guide therefore describes SENACSA’s currently published entry practice and does not make a broader claim about formal incorporation status. Recheck if SENACSA or MERCOSUR changes the applied requirements, five-animal threshold, CVI validity, rabies rules, treatment windows or identification requirements.