Air China carries cats and dogs as checked pets in a pressurised, oxygen-supplied hold, up to 32 kg including the crate, food and water. It also runs a cabin pet service for cats and dogs on its own flights, at RMB 1,399 per pet per flight segment, with only two pets allowed per flight. The big exception for American travellers: since February 1, 2025, Air China has suspended dogs on all flights to the United States, including guide and hearing dogs.
This guide is built from Air China's own pet transportation page and its cabin pet transport agreement, which is published in Chinese. We read both in November 2026. Air China's English pages sometimes lag behind the Chinese versions, so confirm the details for your flight with Air China before you pay for anything.
If you are moving between the US and mainland China with a dog, Air China is not currently an option on the transpacific leg. Cats are a different story, and so are flights within China and to other countries.
Air China pet rules at a glance
| Rule | Checked pet (hold) | Cabin pet |
|---|---|---|
| Animals | Domestic cats and dogs | Domestic cats and dogs |
| Weight or size | Up to 32 kg including crate, food and water | Soft crate up to 35 x 28 x 24 cm, under the seat |
| Minimum age | 8 weeks | 6 months |
| Limit | One checked pet per passenger | 2 per flight, 1 per passenger |
| Booking | Apply at least 2 hours before departure | Book 7 days to 24 hours before departure |
| Fee | Special baggage fee, paid at check-in | RMB 1,399 per pet per segment |
| US flights | Dogs suspended on flights to the US since February 1, 2025 | |
Air China's pages don't list the checked pet fee as a single number, because it is charged under the special baggage fee schedule for your route. Ask for the amount when you book.
The US dog suspension
Air China's pet page says that from February 1, 2025, it has temporarily suspended the transport of dogs on flights to the United States. The suspension covers dogs checked as pets, dogs in the cabin, and guide or hearing dogs travelling with passengers with disabilities. Passengers who already had a dog booked could ask for a ticket change or a refund.
The notice was still on Air China's page when we checked in November 2026. It came a few months after the CDC tightened its dog import rules in August 2024. China is on the CDC list of high risk countries for dog rabies, not counting Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan, which adds extra steps for any dog entering the US from the mainland.
The notice talks about dogs. Cats aren't named in the suspension, so a cat may still fly as a checked pet on a US route. Confirm that with Air China for your specific flight, since a page like this can change with little warning.
Checked pets: who can fly
Air China takes only domestic cats and dogs as checked pets. It refuses aggressive animals that might injure people, pregnant or nursing animals, animals that gave birth in the last seven days, sick animals, and pets under eight weeks old. Each passenger can check in only one pet.
Pets travel in a cargo compartment with an oxygen supply. Some A319, A320, 737-8 and ARJ21-700 aircraft don't have that, so they can't carry pets at all. If your route uses one of those aircraft, you will be told when you apply. Book the pet before you lock in the rest of your plans.
Weight limit and crate rules
The weight limit is 32 kg, and that includes the crate, food and water. A large dog that weighs 26 kg on its own may go over the limit once the crate is added. Weigh both at home.
Air China's crate rules are detailed. The crate must be at least as long as the animal's body plus half the length of its front leg, twice as wide as its shoulders, and as tall as the animal standing, measured to the top of its head or ear tips, whichever is higher. Materials allowed are fibreglass, metal, rigid plastic, welded mesh or hardwood. Ventilation holes must cover at least 16 percent of the wall area, in the upper third of three walls, behind wire mesh.
The door goes at one end and must lock with a sliding bolt or hinge that the pet can't bend or chew through. Air China doesn't allow fibreglass or hard plastic doors, so look for a crate with a metal door. The floor must be solid and leak-proof with absorbent bedding, and straw is not allowed. Fixed food and water bowls are required, and you can tape food to the crate in case of delays. A crate built to the IATA Live Animals Regulations with a metal door usually meets these rules.
Banned breeds
Air China doesn't accept short-nosed pets that are prone to breathing problems. Its pet page lists examples including Boxers, bulldogs, Pugs, Pekingese, Shih Tzus, Chow Chows and Shar-Peis, plus Persian, Himalayan, Burmese and Exotic Shorthair cats. The list also names Pit Bulls, spaniels and mastiffs, and Air China says it is "including but not limited to", so other similar breeds may also be refused.
The cabin agreement has its own longer list, covering dangerous dog breeds such as the Staffordshire Bull Terrier, American Pit Bull Terrier, Tosa, Fila Brasileiro, Dogo Argentino and Belgian Malinois, and flat-faced breeds such as Cavalier King Charles Spaniels, Boston Terriers, Lhasa Apsos and Japanese Chins. Samoyeds are refused because of heat and altitude sensitivity. Crossbreeds of these breeds are refused too. Our guide to the snub-nosed breed flying rules explains the risks.
Booking, check-in and connections
You can book a checked pet through the Air China website or app on eligible flights. The application must be in at least two hours before the scheduled departure, and the pet must be checked in at the airport at least 120 minutes before departure. Each flight segment is booked separately, so a connecting trip needs a pet booking on each flight.
Connections need time. Air China asks for at least 2.5 hours of transit at Beijing Capital, Shanghai Pudong or Chengdu. If the transit is longer than four hours, you have to collect the pet and check it in again yourself. Plan the connection with that in mind, and check whether it means clearing the pet through quarantine at the transit airport. Our guide to connecting flights with a pet covers the general rules.
If you change your flight, cancel the existing pet booking first and then make a new one for the new flight.
Cabin pets: the Chinese-language agreement
Air China also offers a cabin service for cats and dogs on flights it operates itself. The rules are set out in a Chinese-language agreement you sign at check-in. Only two pets can travel in the cabin on one flight, and each passenger can bring one. Service dogs don't count toward that limit.
You book between seven days and 24 hours before departure through the Air China app, mini program, mobile site or the 95583 hotline, and the fee is RMB 1,399 per pet per segment. Arrive at the check-in counter at least two hours before departure with the pet, the crate, the documents and supplies. The agreement doesn't spell out which routes the service covers, so ask Air China whether it is available on your flight.
The cabin crate rules are strict. Only soft crates with double-ended zips are accepted, with a maximum size of 35 x 28 x 24 cm. The zips are locked with disposable security seals, and an outer mesh net with its own seal goes over the crate. The seals must stay intact from check-in until you leave the arrival terminal. Pets under six months are refused.
What happens in the cabin
The pet stays in its crate for the whole journey, including security screening. The agreement bans feeding the pet or giving it water in the cabin, and requires it to wear a muzzle and a diaper throughout. Pets aren't allowed in Air China lounges. Sedated pets are refused, as are pets with strong odours, heart, breathing or digestive problems, or surgery in the previous 48 hours.
No water for a whole flight is a hard rule for some pets, and it is one reason the service suits short domestic flights better than long ones. Talk to your vet before you book if your pet is older or has a health condition.
Flying a pet within China
For domestic trips, Air China is one of the more practical choices, because it offers both a checked option and a cabin option. A small cat or dog over six months old that fits the 35 x 28 x 24 cm soft crate can sit with you, as long as one of the two cabin spots is free. A bigger dog goes in the hold up to 32 kg. Either way you need a domestic quarantine certificate from a local animal health office before you fly.
Cabin spots go quickly on busy routes and around Chinese New Year and the October holiday. Book on the first day the seven day window opens. If the cabin is full, the hold may still have room, so ask about both before you give up on a flight.
Common reasons pets are refused at check-in
Most problems come down to the crate or the paperwork. A plastic crate door, a crate that is too short for the pet to stand in, missing fixed water and food bowls, or straw bedding can all lead to refusal for a checked pet. For a cabin pet, a hard-sided carrier or one without double zips that can be sealed will be turned away.
On the paperwork side, a quarantine certificate that has expired, a breed that appears on either restricted list, or a pet that looks unwell at the counter can stop the trip. Arrive with time to spare, keep the documents in one folder, and be ready for a live animal inspection at security.
Getting a pet ready for the flight
Start crate training a few weeks before the trip. Leave the crate open at home, feed meals inside it and let the pet sleep in it, so it feels like a safe place rather than a trap. For a cabin pet, practise with the soft crate zipped shut for an hour or two, and get the pet used to wearing a diaper and a muzzle, since the agreement requires both. A pet meeting all three for the first time at the airport is likely to panic.
Ask your vet about timing for the health and quarantine certificates, and about whether a long flight without water is safe for your pet. Never give a sedative without veterinary advice, and remember Air China refuses sedated pets in the cabin.
Liability if something goes wrong
The cabin agreement says that if a pet is injured or dies in transit, the transport fee is refunded. Air China pays compensation only where there is evidence the carrier caused it, and caps it at RMB 3,000, the same as the carry-on baggage limit. Veterinary costs for injuries the carrier causes are reimbursed up to the same cap, with official invoices. Air China recommends pet transport insurance, and our guide to pet transport insurance explains what it covers.
Paperwork for China
Domestic flights need a quarantine certificate. International flights must also meet the rules of the destination, origin and any transit country. Pets entering mainland China need an ISO microchip, a valid rabies vaccination certificate and an official health certificate, and generally face 30 days of quarantine unless they come from a listed exempt country or region and meet other conditions. Only one pet per person can enter. Our guide on pet transport from China to the US covers the reverse trip and the CDC side.
Other options between China and the US
With Air China not flying dogs to the US, most dog owners use another airline's cargo service, often booked through a licensed pet shipper. Some routes connect through a third country, which changes the CDC paperwork. Our guides to China Eastern and China Airlines cover two airlines often compared with Air China. Check each one's current status for US dogs, as several have changed their rules since 2024.