What is AQCS?
Updated By PetymFacts checked against official sources on
Quick answer
AQCS, Animal Quarantine and Certification Services, is the Government of India service under the Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying that examines pets and issues the health certificate a pet needs to leave India, and clears pets arriving. It has six stations: Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai, Bengaluru and Hyderabad. Its fees are paid online through Bharatkosh.
Also called Animal Quarantine and Certification Services, animal quarantine India, AQCS NOC, pet quarantine India.
Key facts
- AQCS works under the Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying, Government of India. AQCS, Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying
- For a pet leaving India, AQCS issues the Certificate of Health for Export (Pet Animals), normally the same day, after examining the pet. AQCS, Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying
- The export certificate costs Rs 500 and the import application Rs 1,000, from 1 May 2025, paid online through Bharatkosh only. Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying
- For a pet arriving, AQCS issues the Advance NOC through ATITHI 2.0 before the flight and examines the pet at the port to issue the Final NOC. AQCS, Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying
- A pet that fails the arrival examination spends 15 days at the AQCS quarantine station, at Rs 800 a day for boarding. Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying
What does AQCS do when a pet leaves or enters India?
AQCS appears twice in a pet's international journey: once on the way out, once on the way in.
About 7 days before a pet flies out
You confirm an AQCS appointment by email or phone, and bring the pet and its papers in person. AQCS, Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying
At the appointment
The officer examines the pet and, if it is healthy, issues the export certificate, normally the same day. It is valid for 10 days. AQCS, Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying
At least 7 working days before a pet flies in
You apply for the Advance NOC on CBIC's ATITHI 2.0 portal with the vet papers; AQCS issues it within 1 working day of checking. AQCS, Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying
On landing in India
AQCS examines the pet and its original documents at the port, round the clock, and issues the Final NOC so Customs can clear it. Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs
Only if the pet fails the examination
15 days at the AQCS quarantine station. AQCS, Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying
Where are the AQCS offices?
Six stations, in Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai, Bengaluru and Hyderabad. Cochin International Airport is also an entry port under AQCS Chennai.
If you live elsewhere, you travel to the nearest station with your pet for the export examination: there is no online portal for pet export, and someone else can attend on your behalf only with an authority letter.
| What | The rule | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Delhi | Kapashera, New Delhi 110037 | AQCS, Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying |
| Mumbai | Sector 11, Koper Khairane, Navi Mumbai 400709 | AQCS, Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying |
| Kolkata | Narayanpur, via Rajarhat Gopalpur, North 24 Parganas | AQCS, Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying |
| Chennai | Velachery Main Road, Pallikaranai, Chennai 600100 | AQCS, Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying |
| Bengaluru | Hessarghatta, Bengaluru 560088 | AQCS, Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying |
| Hyderabad | Cargo Satellite Building, Rajiv Gandhi International Airport, Shamshabad 501218 | AQCS, Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying |
| Kochi (entry port) | Cochin International Airport, under AQCS Chennai, since a notification of 10 October 2024 | Gazette of India (Controller of Publications), for Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying |
What does AQCS charge?
AQCS's own charges are small; the larger costs of a pet move are lab, vet and airline charges.
As published
- Export health certificateRs 500Per certificate, from 1 May 2025. Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying
- Import applicationRs 1,000Per application, from 1 May 2025. Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying
- Quarantine boarding, only if a pet fails the arrival examinationRs 800 a dayPer dog or cat. Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying
- How to payBharatkosh onlyOnline; cash and demand drafts are not accepted. Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying
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Questions owners ask
What is the full form of AQCS?
- Animal Quarantine and Certification Services. It is the Government of India service, under the Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying, that certifies pets leaving India and clears pets arriving, through stations in Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai, Bengaluru and Hyderabad.
Is the AQCS NOC the same as the export certificate?
- For a pet leaving India, yes: AQCS's own export page calls its Certificate of Health for Export "the NOC". It is different from the Advance NOC on the ATITHI 2.0 portal, which is for pets coming into India.
Can I apply to AQCS online?
- For a pet coming into India, yes: the Advance NOC is applied for on CBIC's ATITHI 2.0 portal. For a pet leaving India, no: you book an appointment by email or phone and bring the pet in person. Only the fee is paid online, through Bharatkosh.
Will AQCS quarantine my pet?
- Only if it fails the examination. A healthy pet arriving with the right papers gets its Final NOC at the port. A pet showing signs of disease goes to the AQCS quarantine station for 15 days, at Rs 800 a day for boarding plus test costs.
Keep reading
Related terms
More in travel and paperwork
- Advance NOCThe Advance NOC (No Objection Certificate) is the clearance a passenger must hold before a pet dog or cat can board a flight to India. You apply on CBIC's ATITHI 2.0 portal at least 7 days before travel, and AQCS issues it within 1 working day of checking your documents. Airlines will not board the pet without it.
- Dog boxA dog box is the compartment in a train's brake van, where a dog travels as luggage when its owner does not hold a whole First AC or First Class coupe or cabin. It is booked at the station's luggage office at least 3 hours before departure and charged at the Scale L rate on a fixed 30 kg.
- Export health certificateThe export health certificate, formally the Certificate of Health for Export (Pet Animals), is the document AQCS issues after examining a pet in person, without which a pet cannot leave India. AQCS calls it "the NOC". It costs Rs 500, paid online through Bharatkosh, is normally issued the same day and is valid for 10 days.
- Fit-to-fly certificateA fit-to-fly certificate is a registered vet's signed and stamped statement that a pet has been examined and is healthy enough to fly. Every Indian airline that carries pets asks for one, with the rabies vaccination record. How recent it must be differs: within 7 days on Air India, 15 days on Akasa Air, 48 hours on SpiceJet.
- Health certificateA pet health certificate is a vet's signed and stamped statement that your pet has been examined and is healthy, usually free of infectious disease and fit to travel. In India, Indian Railways, airlines and AQCS ask for one. The catch is timing: each wants a certificate issued within its own window, from 24 hours to 10 days.
- IATA pet crateAn IATA pet crate is a travel kennel built to the International Air Transport Association's Live Animals Regulations, Container Requirement 1, for pets flying in the hold. It must let the pet stand, turn and lie naturally, and be rigid, ventilated on all four sides, bolted together, with a water bowl filled from outside and the right labels.
- Pet passportIndia does not issue a pet passport; the EU pet passport is issued only by authorised vets to owners living in the EU. When people in India say pet passport, they usually mean the travel papers: microchip and vaccination records, a vet's health certificate, the AQCS export certificate, and the destination's own certificate or permit.
- Scale LScale L is Indian Railways' luggage rate: its Scale P parcel rate plus 80%. A dog on a train is charged at Scale L on a fixed weight, whatever it weighs: 30 kg in the brake-van dog box, 60 kg if it rides with you in a First AC or First Class coupe or cabin. Distance does the rest.
- Transfer of residenceTransfer of residence is the customs category for a passenger moving to India after living abroad for two years or more. Under it, the passenger may bring up to two pet dogs or cats as baggage, with an Advance NOC from the ATITHI 2.0 portal. Anyone abroad for less than two years needs a different route, usually a DGFT licence.
Keep exploring
Sources
Each source was opened and read on the date shown. How Petym checks its sources
- AQCS, Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying: Animal Quarantine and Certification Services (opens in a new tab)
- AQCS, Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying: Frequently asked questions (opens in a new tab)
- Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying: Order of 28 April 2025: processing fees for import and export, and AQCS accommodation charges, from 1 May 2025 (opens in a new tab)
- AQCS, Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying: Import of live pet dogs under the Livestock Importation Act, 1898: standard operating procedure (August 2026) (opens in a new tab)
- AQCS, Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying: Export of pets (dogs and cats) (opens in a new tab)
- Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs: Guide for international travellers (February 2026, Baggage Rules 2026) (opens in a new tab)
Show all 9 sourcesShow fewer
- AQCS, Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying: Contact us: AQCS stations (opens in a new tab)
- Gazette of India (Controller of Publications), for Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying: S.O. 4396(E), 10 Oct 2024: pet dogs and cats through Cochin International Airport under AQCS Chennai (opens in a new tab)
- AQCS, Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying: Application for import or export of pet animals, with the list of documents for export (opens in a new tab)