If you live outside the EU and Switzerland, your pet needs an Animal Health Certificate rather than a passport, confirming the microchip, rabies vaccination, and any required titer test are all in order. It has to be issued shortly before travel — check the exact validity window with the certifying vet, since it's tighter than the vaccination timeline.
For US travellers, this certificate is completed by a USDA-accredited veterinarian and endorsed by USDA APHIS — and Switzerland has its own listing in APHIS's country-by-country pet travel tool, separate from the general EU one. If your trip touches both the EU and Switzerland, this is the detail most likely to catch people out: confirm with your vet whether you need one certificate covering both, or two.
For UK travellers, GOV.UK's guidance on the April 2026 EU rule change applies here too: a fresh certificate is needed for every trip, and an old EU pet passport no longer works for entry, into Switzerland or the EU.