Pet Microchips in Ukraine: Databases, Registration and Tracing

Ukraine is introducing a new state register for dogs, cats and ferrets.

The system is being developed through a government experimental project.

Registration is voluntary and free, but access is still being introduced through participating veterinary clinics.

Animal-ID is also widely used for Ukrainian pets and provides an established public and international tracing route.

Because several systems may hold a record, a finder may need to check more than one source.

Which microchip databases are used in Ukraine?

Ukraine is developing a Unified State Register of Pets.

The state project covers:

• Dogs
• Cats
• Ferrets
• Animals registered through participating veterinary clinics
• Homeless animals recorded by approved organisations or carers

The state record can include information about the animal, its identification and its owner or keeper.

Ukraine also uses Animal-ID.

Animal-ID is a Ukrainian pet registration and tracing platform.

Owners can register an existing microchip and manage contact details online.

Its public lookup searches Animal-ID and more than 100 international databases.

Is the state register fully established?

Not yet.

The Ukrainian government launched a two-year experimental project in July 2026.

The project is intended to form the basis of the Unified State Register of Pets.

Registration is being introduced through state and private veterinary clinics that join the system.

Wider digital services, including a future pet passport in Diia, are planned after the project has been successfully implemented.

An older Ukrainian chip may therefore not yet appear in the state system.

The record may instead be held by:

• Animal-ID
• A local or municipal register
• A veterinary clinic
• A shelter or rescue organisation
• A database in another country

For this reason, it is often worth checking several sources.

Is registration in the state system required?

No.

Registration in the experimental state system is voluntary.

It is also free for the owner.

The animal and owner or official representative must normally be present.

A participating vet checks the animal’s identity and enters the information.

Online self-registration is not currently available.

A microchip is recommended, but it is not required simply to join the state register.

If the animal already has a readable chip, it does not need another one.

The vet scans the existing chip and adds the number to the record.

What is Animal-ID?

Animal-ID is a Ukrainian pet registration and tracing service.

It has been used in Ukraine for many years.

An owner can create an account and register an existing microchip.

The pet’s profile may include:

• The microchip number
• Information about the animal
• The owner’s contact details
• A photograph
• Missing-pet information

Animal-ID also supports QR identification tags.

A finder can scan the tag with a mobile phone.

The tag can help, but it does not replace the microchip.

Can a Ukrainian chip be searched publicly?

Yes, through Animal-ID.

The Animal-ID microchip lookup searches its own records and more than 100 international sources.

A public result may identify the database or organisation connected to the chip.

It should not reveal the owner’s full private information.

The state register does not yet provide the same simple public search route.

Are microchips required in Ukraine?

Ukraine’s new state registration project does not make microchipping a condition for registration.

However, microchipping is strongly recommended.

It gives the animal permanent identification and can help connect it to a database record.

A microchip may also be needed for:

• International travel
• Moving permanently to another country
• Adoption through some shelters or rescues
• Some local identification programmes
• Some breeder or kennel records

The chip only helps when the number is linked to current contact details.

What do Ukrainian microchip numbers look like?

Modern pet microchips normally contain 15 digits.

Ukraine’s ISO country code is:

804

A Ukrainian country-coded chip may therefore begin with 804.

However, not every Ukrainian pet has an 804 chip.

Many chips use a manufacturer code instead.

Manufacturer-coded microchips usually begin with the number 9.

Other animals were microchipped in another country.

This is common when:

• The pet was imported
• The animal was adopted through an international rescue
• The family moved between countries
• The animal received help during an evacuation

A readable foreign or manufacturer-coded chip can still be registered.

The first digits are only a clue.

They do not prove where the animal lives or where its registration is held.

Read our guide to pet microchip numbers for more information.

What should you do if you find a microchipped pet from Ukraine?

Take the animal to a vet, shelter or rescue organisation.

Ask them to scan the animal carefully.

Write down the complete microchip number.

It can be useful to scan more than once and across the shoulders and body.

A chip may have moved from its original position.

Then:

• Search the number through Animal-ID
• Ask a participating Ukrainian vet to check the state register when possible
• Check the Ukrainian veterinary passport
• Contact the veterinary clinic connected to the chip
• Contact the shelter, rescue or former owner
• Check databases in the country where the animal was found
• Check databases in countries where the animal may have lived
• Open EUROPETNET when a European registration may be involved
• Use ChipTrace for database, country and manufacturer clues

A Ukrainian pet may now have records in more than one country.

This is especially common for animals that were evacuated or adopted abroad.

A public search should not reveal the owner’s full private details.

The database, vet, shelter or rescue may contact the registered owner instead.

Do not publish the complete microchip number online.

Keep part of the number private so that ownership claims can be checked.

Read how ChipTrace works for an explanation of database checks, manual searches and next-step advice.

What if a Ukrainian microchip cannot be found?

Ask a vet or shelter to scan the animal again.

One incorrect digit is enough to produce no result.

Then:

• Search Animal-ID
• Ask whether the state register can be checked
• Check the veterinary passport
• Check vaccination, adoption and travel records
• Contact the former vet, shelter or rescue
• Check local or municipal records
• Check databases in countries where the animal has lived
• Open EUROPETNET for a manual European search
• Contact the chip manufacturer or distributor
• Use ChipTrace for database, country and manufacturer clues

An older record may only exist in a clinic, municipality, shelter or rescue file.

The chip may have been implanted but never added to a searchable database.

The animal may also still be registered in another country.

If no database result is found, the manufacturer or distributor may provide another trace-back route.

The manufacturer may be able to identify the distributor or supplier that received the chip.

The supplier may then identify the veterinary clinic, breeder, shelter or rescue that received it.

That organisation may know where the chip was implanted or registered.

They will not normally give the finder the owner’s private details.

Instead, they may contact the next organisation or the registered owner directly.

Trace-back is not guaranteed.

Records may be old, incomplete or unavailable.

A missing result does not prove that the animal has no family.

Read our guide to why a microchip may not appear in any database.

Check a Microchip

Do I need another international registration?

Animal-ID already provides an international tracing route.

You should also register the chip in the country where the pet now lives when local rules require it.

This is especially useful when:

• The pet has moved abroad permanently
• The pet travels between countries
• A foreign vet or shelter may search a local database first
• The original documents are difficult to access

An additional local registration does not replace the Ukrainian records.

Keep the same contact details in every active database.

How to register a pet in Ukraine

1. Make an appointment with a licensed vet.
2. Ask whether the clinic participates in the state registration project.
3. Take the animal and any documents you already have.
4. The vet scans the animal for an existing chip.
5. If needed, the vet can implant a microchip.
6. The vet identifies the animal and enters the state record when available.
7. Check the chip number and your contact details.
8. Ask for proof of registration.
9. Create or update the Animal-ID record separately.

Useful documents may include:

• A Ukrainian veterinary passport
• A vaccination record
• A microchip certificate
• An international health certificate
• An adoption contract
• A purchase agreement
• A foreign registration certificate

Who implants and registers the microchip?

A licensed veterinary professional normally implants the microchip.

The animal is scanned first.

This checks whether a chip is already present.

If a chip is needed, the vet implants it under the skin.

The chip is then scanned again.

This confirms that it works and shows the correct number.

A participating state or private vet can add the animal to the new state system.

The number should be read directly from the scanner during registration.

The state record may include:

• The microchip number
• The animal’s species and description
• The owner or keeper
• The address where the animal lives
• Rabies vaccination details
• Veterinary passport information

Is registration free?

Registration in the experimental state system is free.

The vet may still charge for:

• The microchip
• Implanting the chip
• A veterinary examination
• Vaccinations
• Other veterinary care

Basic registration with Animal-ID is also available without a required registration fee.

Optional paid services may be offered separately.

Does the vet register the chip automatically?

Do not assume that every registration has been completed.

The clinic may implant the chip without creating every possible database record.

Ask the vet:

• Was the animal added to the state register?
• Does the clinic participate in the state project?
• Which database holds the chip record?
• Is the chip registered with Animal-ID?
• Is my telephone number correct?
• Is my email address correct?
• Can I receive proof of registration?

The microchip itself only contains an identification number.

Current contact details must be stored in a database before a finder can reach the owner.

What is the Ukrainian veterinary passport?

The veterinary passport records the animal’s identity and health information.

It may include:

• Information about the owner
• A description of the animal
• The microchip or other identification
• Vaccinations
• Veterinary treatments
• Other health information

Official Ukrainian guidance states that dogs and cats need the correct veterinary passport when they are moved.

The passport is issued through an authorised veterinary service after the required checks.

The government plans to develop a digital pet passport in Diia after the experimental register project has been implemented.

A future digital passport will not automatically replace every document required at an international border.

How to update a Ukrainian microchip registration

Update every active record when:

• You move home
• Your telephone number changes
• Your email address changes
• The animal moves to a new owner
• The animal goes missing
• The animal is found again
• The animal moves abroad
• The animal dies

Check the state record and Animal-ID separately.

Updating the veterinary passport alone may not update either database.

How to transfer a Ukrainian microchip registration

The owner details should be changed when a pet is sold, adopted or given to another person.

Ask a participating vet or approved registration professional to update the state record.

The Animal-ID account may need to be changed separately.

Keep:

• The adoption contract
• The purchase agreement
• The veterinary passport
• Proof of the former registration
• Written confirmation from the former owner

After the transfer, check that the correct name and contact details appear in every active record.

What if the pet is still registered to someone else?

Contact the former owner, breeder, shelter or rescue first.

Ask them to help update the record.

If that is not possible, speak to a vet or contact the database directly.

You may need:

• An adoption contract
• A purchase agreement
• The veterinary passport
• Veterinary records
• Proof that the animal is now in your care

A database record shows who is listed as the contact.

It may not settle an ownership dispute on its own.

Buying or adopting a pet in Ukraine

Ask whether the animal has a microchip before taking it home.

Also ask for:

• The complete microchip number
• The veterinary passport
• Vaccination records
• An adoption or purchase agreement
• Proof of registration
• Information about every active database record

Ask a vet to scan the chip.

Check that the scanned number matches the documents.

The former owner, shelter, rescue or breeder should help update every active record.

What about a pet adopted from a Ukrainian rescue?

Ask the rescue which records already exist.

Also ask:

• Whether the animal has been scanned
• Who is named in the veterinary passport
• Whether the pet is in the state register
• Whether the chip is registered with Animal-ID
• Who will update the Ukrainian records
• Who will register the pet in the destination country
• Whether the rabies and travel documents are complete

Keep the Ukrainian registration active after adoption abroad.

Where possible, update it with the adopter’s current contact details.

What should you do if your pet goes missing?

Report the pet as missing in every database where it is registered.

Do this as soon as possible.

Also:

• Check that your telephone number is correct
• Contact local veterinary clinics
• Contact shelters and rescue groups
• Contact local animal welfare organisations
• Inform the police when theft may be involved
• Share a clear photograph
• Include the place and date where the animal disappeared

Do not publish the complete microchip number online.

Keep part of it private so that ownership claims can be checked.

When the animal returns, close every missing-pet report.

What if the pet was evacuated from Ukraine?

Keep the Ukrainian records active.

Do not delete the Animal-ID record simply because the animal now lives abroad.

Update it with a telephone number and email address that still work.

Register the chip in the destination country when local rules require it.

This can provide two useful tracing routes:

• The original Ukrainian registration
• The registration in the destination country

Save digital copies of:

• The veterinary passport
• The microchip certificate
• Rabies vaccination records
• Rabies antibody test results
• Travel certificates
• Adoption or foster documents

What if the documents were lost?

Take the animal to a vet first.

Ask the vet to scan the chip and write down the complete number.

Then check:

• The Ukrainian state register, when access is available
• Animal-ID
• The destination country’s databases
• EUROPETNET
• ChipTrace

Contact the former vet, shelter or rescue when possible.

They may still have:

• Vaccination records
• A copy of the passport
• The date the chip was implanted
• The former owner’s details

A vet may be able to issue replacement documents.

Only information that can be verified should be added.

Do not guess vaccination dates.

Bringing an imported pet into Ukraine

A foreign registration does not automatically create a Ukrainian record.

Take the animal and its documents to a licensed Ukrainian vet.

Take:

• The animal
• Its passport or official health certificate
• Its rabies vaccination record
• The microchip certificate, when available
• Your identification
• Your Ukrainian contact details
• Any foreign database information

The vet can scan the existing chip.

A readable foreign chip does not normally need to be replaced.

The vet can explain whether the clinic participates in the new state register.

You can also create or update an Animal-ID record.

Keep the foreign registration active until the Ukrainian records are confirmed.

Travelling with a pet to or from Ukraine

Microchip registration and border rules are separate.

A record in Animal-ID or the Ukrainian state system does not by itself allow a pet to cross a border.

A pet may need:

• A readable ISO-compatible microchip
• A valid rabies vaccination
• A veterinary passport or official health certificate
• A rabies antibody titre test
• Parasite treatment
• Entry through an approved control point

The identification may need to be completed before the rabies vaccination used for travel.

The exact rules depend on the destination, the journey and the animal’s documents.

Do not rely on old evacuation guidance or social media posts.

Check the current official rules before every trip.

Travelling from Ukraine to the European Union

Dogs, cats and ferrets entering the EU from Ukraine normally need:

• A readable microchip
• A rabies vaccination given after identification
• A successful rabies antibody titre test
• The correct EU animal health certificate
• Entry through an approved travellers’ point

The blood sample is normally taken at least 30 days after the rabies vaccination.

A three-month waiting period normally applies after the blood sample.

Special arrangements may sometimes apply during emergencies, but owners should not assume that an old exemption remains valid.

Check the latest official EU pet-travel guidance.

Useful Ukrainian microchip links

Animal-ID
Register a pet and manage its microchip record

Animal-ID microchip search
Search Animal-ID and international databases

Ukrainian state-register announcement
Read the government announcement about the experimental pet-register project

Diia veterinary passport guide
Read official information about Ukrainian veterinary passports

EUROPETNET
Complete a manual European microchip search

EU pet-travel guidance
Check the current rules for entering the European Union