The EU pet passport has been available in Austria since 3 July 2004, issued by a freelance (authorised) vet who records the pet's microchip number and full rabies vaccination history. A passport issued before 31 December 2027 stays valid for the animal's entire life, provided the vaccination record is kept current; a new EU-standard passport format becomes available from 1 January 2028 onward.

Travellers who aren't EU residents need a health certificate instead, issued under the same EU-wide framework rather than a passport. Austria's Sozialministerium guidance doesn't set its own separate non-EU process beyond this — it follows the standard EU entry-document rules that apply at any EU external border, which is worth knowing if your route into Austria crosses from outside the bloc.

One detail worth separating clearly from the passport itself: muzzle, leash and any breed-specific entry questions are not covered by the EU pet passport system at all. Austria's own guidance points travellers with those questions to the local district administrative authority (Bezirksverwaltungsbehörde) and its official veterinarian (Amtstierarzt) for the state they're entering, rather than treating it as a passport matter.