‘‘SEC. 10404A. IMPORTATION OF LIVE DOGS. 
‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 
‘‘(1) COMPENSATION.—The term ‘compensa-
tion’ means any act, consideration, or thing of value 
received by a person directly, including cash or 
noncash benefits, cost-avoidance, obtaining positive 
or avoiding negative publicity, an exchange of serv-
ices, or maintaining a license issued under any local, 
State, or Federal Government authority. 
‘‘(2) IMPORTER.—The term ‘importer’ means 
any person who transports or causes the transpor-
tation of a dog into the United States from a foreign 
country. 
‘‘(3) IMPORT TRANSPORTER.—The term ‘import 
transporter’ means any person or entity that— 
‘‘(A) receives an imported dog from any 
importer, dealer, research facility, exhibitor, op-
erator of an auction sale, or department, agen-
cy, or instrumentality of the United States or 
of any State or local government; and 
‘‘(B) receives compensation for moving 
such dog in commerce. 
‘‘(4) TRANSFER.—The term ‘transfer’ means a 
change of ownership or control of an imported dog 
to another person, including by sale, adoption, ex-
change, or donation. 
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‘‘(b) REQUIREMENTS.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para-
graph (2), no person shall import a dog into the 
United States unless prior to transport to the 
United States, the Secretary receives electronic doc-
umentation necessary, as determined by the Sec-
retary, to demonstrate that the dog— 
‘‘(A) is in good health; 
‘‘(B) has received all necessary vaccina-
tions and internal and external parasite treat-
ment, and demonstrated negative test results, 
as required by the Secretary and evidenced by 
a certificate that— 
‘‘(i) is issued by a licensed veteri-
narian accredited by a competent veteri-
nary authority recognized by the Secretary; 
and 
‘‘(ii) is endorsed by that authority in 
a manner representing that the veteri-
narian issuing the certificate was author-
ized to do so; 
‘‘(C) is officially identified by a permanent 
method approved by the Secretary; and 
‘‘(D) in the case that the dog is intended 
for transfer— 
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‘‘(i) is at least 6 months old; and 
‘‘(ii) is accompanied by an import per-
mit issued by the Secretary under this Act. 
‘‘(2) EXCEPTIONS.—The Secretary, by regula-
tion, shall provide an exception to any requirement 
under this Act in any case in which a dog is im-
ported for purposes of transfer— 
‘‘(A) as a personal pet of United States or-
igin returning to the United States; 
‘‘(B) as a United States military working 
dog or contracted working dog supporting a 
military mission or tasking; 
‘‘(C) for research purposes; 
‘‘(D) for veterinary treatment which is 
paid for by the importer, subject to the condi-
tion that the dog— 
‘‘(i) is taken directly to a veterinary 
facility for treatment with appropriate 
quarantine until the dog meets the criteria 
described in paragraph (1); and 
‘‘(ii) is then exported to its country of 
origin; or 
‘‘(E) in the case of a dog that is less than 
6 months old, for lawful importation into the 
State of Hawaii from the British Isles, Aus-
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tralia, Guam, or New Zealand in compliance 
with the regulations of the State of Hawaii and 
the other requirements of this section, if the 
dog is not transported out of the State of Ha-
waii for transfer at less than 6 months of age. 
‘‘(c) IMPLEMENTATION
AND
REGULATIONS.—Not 
later than 18 months after the date of enactment of the 
Healthy Dog Importation Act, the Secretary of Agri-
culture, in consultation with the Secretary of Health and 
Human Services, the Secretary of Commerce, the Sec-
retary of Homeland Security, and the Secretary of Trans-
portation, shall promulgate such regulations as the Sec-
retary of Agriculture determines necessary to implement 
and enforce this section, including regulations— 
‘‘(1) to facilitate electronic submission and 
interagency sharing of all documentation required 
prior to the importation of a dog into the United 
States under subsection (b)(1); 
‘‘(2) to establish any necessary post-arrival 
verification processes for imported dogs; 
‘‘(3) to ensure the denial of entry into the 
United States of any dog attempted to be imported 
into the United States in violation of subsection 
(b)(1); 
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‘‘(4) to provide that each importer, import 
transporter, intermediate handler, or carrier receiv-
ing a certificate of veterinary inspection required 
under this section shall submit a copy of the certifi-
cate to the Secretary, who shall, upon receipt, record 
and maintain the information in a centralized data-
base and, upon request by a State veterinarian, 
share the information with such State veterinarian 
within 3 days; 
‘‘(5) to require the Secretary of Agriculture to 
annually report aggregated data submitted under 
paragraph (4), including information on country of 
origin and purpose of import; and 
‘‘(6) to determine and establish such fees for 
the verification of documentation and issuance of 
permits required under subsection (b)(1) as may be 
necessary to fund the implementation and enforce-
ment of this section. 
‘‘(d) RULE
OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in sub-
section (c)(6) shall be construed as limiting the availability 
of funding made available under section 10417 to carry 
out this section. 
‘‘(e) ENFORCEMENT.— 
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‘‘(1) AUTHORITY.—The Secretary shall have 
the authority granted under section 10414 to en-
force this section. 
‘‘(2) PENALTIES.—An importer or import 
transporter that fails to comply with this section 
shall— 
‘‘(A) be subject to penalties under section 
10414; and 
‘‘(B) provide, as the Secretary may deter-
mine, at the expense of the importer or import 
transporter, for— 
‘‘(i) the care (including appropriate 
veterinary care), forfeiture, quarantine, 
and removal from the United States of 
each applicable dog; and 
‘‘(ii) the return of each applicable dog 
to its place of export, with due care for the 
welfare of each applicable dog.’’. 
(b) TRANSITION PERIOD.— 
(1) IN
GENERAL.—During the transition pe-
riod, regulations promulgated under section 18 of 
the Animal Welfare Act (7 U.S.C. 2148) (as in ef-
fect on the day before the date of enactment of this 
Act) relating to the importation of live dogs shall 
continue to apply to the extent that such regulations 
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do not conflict with section 10404A of the Animal 
Health Protection Act (as inserted by subsection 
(a)). 
(2) TRANSITION
PERIOD
DEFINED.—In this 
subsection, the term ‘‘transition period’’ means the 
period beginning on the date of enactment of this 
Act and ending on the date on which final regula-
tions are promulgated under such section 10404A. 
(c) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 18 of the 
Animal Welfare Act (7 U.S.C. 2148) is repealed. 
Æ 
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