Moving with Pets in Australia

Moving with pets within Australia is mostly a logistics problem, not a paperwork one — but the country's size and a couple of state-specific quirks are worth knowing before you book anything.

Car travel

For most local and regional moves, car travel is simplest — a secure crate or harness, water on hand, and regular breaks. Australia's distances can be genuinely large even for a "regional" move — factor in real driving time and stops, not just kilometres, and never leave a pet alone in a parked car, even briefly and even with windows cracked.

Domestic flights

Airline policies for interstate moves vary a lot between carriers:

• Qantas carries dogs, cats, rabbits, guinea pigs, and some birds and fish on domestic routes — but only in the cargo hold. No pets are allowed in the cabin except certified service dogs.
• Virgin Australia allows pets as checked baggage in an approved cargo crate on most domestic routes. It also runs a limited in-cabin trial for small dogs and cats (up to 8kg combined with the carrier) on select routes, currently extended through mid-2026 — check whether your specific route is included before assuming it applies.
• Jetstar doesn't carry pets at all, on any domestic route.

Book your pet's spot as early as you know your travel dates — cargo-hold capacity per flight is limited, and pets can't be added at the last minute.

Interstate quarantine: mostly about goods, not pets

Australia's interstate biosecurity rules are mainly about household goods, not pets themselves. Western Australia in particular restricts plants, fresh produce, seeds, and anything with soil on it (including garden tools and pot plants) at its borders, due to pests like Mediterranean fruit fly that are established in WA but not elsewhere — clean gardening equipment and declare anything plant-related before crossing into WA.

Pets themselves generally don't face special interstate quarantine within Australia the way international pet imports do — but requirements do occasionally differ by state for specific animals, so it's worth a direct check with your destination state's biosecurity department if you're moving an animal other than a standard cat or dog, or if you're unsure.

What to keep with you, not on the truck

Food, any medication, a water bowl, familiar bedding or a toy, your pet's carrier, and vet records should travel with you or your pet directly — not packed away in the moving truck.

Moving-day containment

On the day itself, keep pets contained somewhere secure and away from doors left open for furniture removal — a bathroom or a crate in a closed-off room works well. Moving day is when pets most often go missing, simply because there are more open doors and more strangers around than usual.

Paperwork and registration

1. Update your pet's microchip details with your state's pet registry as soon as you have a new address — a chip with outdated details doesn't help if your pet goes missing during the move.
2. Register with your new council once you've moved — like NZ, dog (and in some states, cat) registration in Australia is local-council-based, so this applies even if your pet is already registered elsewhere in the state, and definitely after an interstate move.
3. Ask your current vet to transfer or provide records to a practice near your new home, especially if treatment or vaccination is due soon.

Settling in

Keep your pet in one room at first, especially cats, rather than giving them the whole house immediately. Bring familiar bedding and routines across unchanged, and check the new property's fencing properly before letting a dog off-lead, even in a yard that looks secure.

Common mistakes

• Booking a flight without checking the airline actually carries pets on that specific route.
• Assuming pets need the same interstate quarantine treatment as garden tools or pot plants moving into WA — they generally don't, but the goods do.
• Introducing a pet to its travel carrier for the first time on moving day itself.

This guide covers domestic moves within Australia only. Airline pet policies and interstate biosecurity rules change from time to time — confirm current rules directly with your airline and the destination state's biosecurity department before booking.