ESTCA
European Standard
European Standard for Travel with Canine Animals
Canine Travel Readiness Certification
Standard v1.2
- DOCUMENT
- ESTCA-STD-001-v1.2
- EFFECTIVE
- 1 May 2026
- CLASSIFICATION
- Public
European Standard · ESTCA-STD-001
Cabin readiness, assessed in advance and recorded in public.
ESTCA is built mainly for dogs above today's usual cabin weight limits, where behaviour and welfare matter most. It sets the welfare baseline, the approval rules for trainers, and the five-area behavioural assessment a dog must meet before it travels in an aircraft cabin. Every certificate issued against the standard is published in a register that airlines, and anyone else, can check.
Public register look-up
live
Owner contact details are never returned. Public queries expose status, dates and the certifying trainer only.
Scope
Where ESTCA sits in a dog's travel file
Airlines are opening cabin carriage to larger dogs. Small under-seat pets are usually already covered by carrier size rules. ESTCA's main role is to make it possible for larger dogs to go in the cabin, strictly following the safety requirements and rules from the airlines, but with an assessed record showing they are fit to fly.
Existing documentation covers identity and health; carrier policy sets weight and dimensions. Neither addresses behaviour, so acceptance is often decided at check-in or the gate. ESTCA provides that assessment in advance, by an ESTCA-approved assessor against a published standard, in a public register carriers can verify at booking and check-in.
The result is that acceptance becomes a decision made with information rather than without it, supporting safety, animal welfare and operational efficiency. It does not replace existing documentation or carrier policy, and does not grant carriage.
What each document answers today
Weight & size
Carrier policy
Does the dog physically fit the cabin space sold?
Identity & health
EU Pet Passport · Animal Health Certificate
Is this the right animal, microchipped, vaccinated and cleared to cross the border?
Behaviour & welfare
ESTCA-STD-001
Is the dog actually fit to fly? Can the dog settle in a confined cabin space, accept handling by crew or unfamiliar people, and recover from a startle without distress?
An ESTCA certificate does not grant permission to fly. Full comparisonRegister look-upAccess ESTCA's certification platform here.
Journey
The ESTCA journey in practice
Tap or click to view full size
What each party gets
- Airlines
- A readiness check that runs at booking, so a refusal happens before the ticket is sold rather than at the gate. Final acceptance stays the carrier's decision.
- Owners
- An honest answer before booking, and preparation that earns it. The certificate is portable: it travels with the dog, not with one airline.
- Trainers
- Assessment work becomes a recognised credential, with accountability attached to every certificate issued.
- The dog
- A welfare bar set in advance and observed. A dog that isn't ready is stopped by a trainer who can advise, not by a stranger at a gate.
The normative text
Read the ESTCA Standard in full
A carrier can read exactly what a certificate means before deciding whether to rely on it. No licence fee for the text; a small administrative fee covers assessor approval and registry operation.
- AScope, roles & definitions
- BWelfare baseline
- CAssessor approval
- DFive areas of assessment
- ECertification, registry & verification
- FQuality assurance & accountability
- GAirline implementation guidance
Routes
Airlines & operators
Technical briefing, API review, and the boundary between a readiness signal and your own acceptance decision.
Airline pathway
Dog owners
Assessment, preparation and certification are delivered on the certification platform — a separate service from this register.
certified-estca.eu
Trainers
Eligibility, the train-the-trainer module, the code of conduct, and the accountability attached to every certificate issued.
certified-estca.eu
How it works
Four steps from owner to airline
The whole point is that no one loses. The dog wins, because the welfare bar is set and observed. The owner wins, because they get real preparation rather than a guess at the gate. The trainer wins, because the work is recognised and accountable. The airline wins, because it can plan operations around a verifiable readiness signal it didn't have to invent.
01
Find an ESTCA-approved assessor
Owner
Owners go to certified-estca.eu to find an ESTCA-approved assessor.
02
Five-area assessment
Trainer
The trainer assesses the dog across the five behavioural areas in the standard.
03
Certificate issued and registered
Registry
If the dog meets the standard, the certificate appears in the public register on estca.eu.
04
Airlines verify at booking or check-in
Airline
Airlines look up the certification via the API or the register. Cabin acceptance stays with the airline.
For airlines & operators
Verify readiness beside your own weight and space rules
Look up certification status at booking, check-in or compliance via the public register or JSON API. Results do not replace airline approval, safety assessment or animal-health documentation.
Briefing
Request a briefing
How the standard and register sit next to check-in and cabin policy.
API
OpenAPI specification
Machine-readable verification contract for operator systems.
Pilot
Pilot programme interest
Early operational conversations. No partnership is claimed until both sides agree.
Programmatic verification
Status, dates, trainer and certification number. No owner contact data.
Privacy-safe lookups
Public queries confirm readiness without exposing owners.
Your decision stays yours
ESTCA does not set your weight policy or decide cabin acceptance.