Traveling with Pets Inside Colombia: Domestic Airline Rules, Intercity Bus Limits, and What ICA Does Not Require

Most people who search for "ICA certificate for my dog" before a flight from one Colombian city to another are about to waste an afternoon. That certificate belongs to animals crossing the border. If you are bringing a pet in from abroad, read our guide to importing pets into Colombia instead. This article is about the second leg: you have landed, you live here or are traveling here, and now the dog needs to get to another city.

Quick answer: ICA does not ask for a domestic certificate. What stops you is the carrier's own rules: kennel size, weight, age, breed lists, and a paid pet add-on with limited spots.

What ICA does and does not ask for inside the country

ICA's page on national movement of dogs and cats says no Certificado de Inspección Sanitaria (CIS) is required to move them inside Colombia. The CIS applies when a dog or cat enters or leaves the country, not on a purely domestic sector. LATAM's own Colombia help text says the same thing, tying the CIS to travel from or toward Colombia.

That does not mean no paperwork. Airlines and bus companies set their own conditions, and Supertransporte's user guide treats pet carriage as a special service that some operators offer, not a right. Avianca's general conditions ask for a photocopy of the vaccination card and a sanitary inspection certificate from a veterinarian with a professional license number. That is an airline document, not an ICA CIS. Ask the airline whether it wants a separate vet note for your domestic sector.

Avianca on a domestic ticket

Avianca is the most detailed of the operators, so start there.

• Cabin: dogs or cats up to 10 kg including the container, in a flexible kennel of 55 x 35 x 25 cm (length, width, height). One pet in the cabin, under the seat in front. The animal must be able to stand and turn without touching the roof or walls.
• Hold: up to 70 kg including a rigid kennel you supply. Pets cannot travel in an unventilated hold; ventilated A32S-family holds are limited to 15 pets.
• Age: on domestic flights in Colombia, Avianca accepts pets older than 2 months with the vaccination schedule for that age. Outside that exception it does not carry dogs or cats under 4 months.
• Breeds: brachycephalic dogs and cats (flat-faced) and their crosses are cabin-only, never the hold.
• Booking: request pet space at least 48 hours before departure; it is subject to quota. A second pet in the same party goes in the hold if the cabin pet stays within 10 kg with its kennel.

On price, Avianca publishes starting charges for domestic flights, taxes included: from COP 80.000 in the cabin and from COP 225.000 in the hold. Read "from" literally. High season can add up to USD 20 at sales offices, the contact center, and agencies, in the months the price page lists (January, July for cabin pets, November, and December).

Here is the part people miss: a passenger ticket does not reserve the animal. The pet space is a paid add-on with its own quota, so if you buy the seat first and call later, the spots may be gone. To compare carriers before you buy, our domestic airlines guide is the place to start.

LATAM and Clic

LATAM

LATAM's Colombia help page lists smaller cabin kennel maximums than Avianca: 36 cm long, 33 cm wide and 19 cm high if rigid, or 40 x 28 x 25 cm if flexible. The pet must stand without touching the ceiling and turn without touching the walls. It only applies to LATAM-operated itineraries in Economy or Premium Economy. A LATAM trade page suggests a minimum age around 16 weeks and requests up to 4 hours before departure, but treat that as a hint and confirm on your booking. I could not verify a LATAM peso fee, so I am not printing one. Check it at checkout.

Clic

Clic's pet page, checked on 1 October 2026, is the clearest on cost:

• Cabin: up to 10 kg including a soft kennel of 28 cm high x 33 cm wide x 48 cm long.
• Hold: up to 23 kg including a hard kennel, width up to 61 cm.
• Fee: $122.353 plus VAT per sector, in force from 15 January 2026, for both cabin and hold.
• Age and papers: minimum 8 weeks and the original physical vaccine card.
• Logistics: request at least 48 hours ahead, up to six pet services per flight, and be at the airport 2 hours before departure.

Clic's refusal list includes brachycephalic breeds and crosses and, on the same list, Affenpinscher, Pitbull, Presa Canario, English Toy Spaniel, Shar Pei, Bulldog, Himalayan, Persian, Chow, Burmese, and Exotic Shorthair. That is Clic's list as printed, not a scientific classification. If your dog or cat is on it, do not argue at the counter; pick another carrier or another mode.

Intercity buses

Buses are where people assume the most and can prove the least. Supertransporte's 2021 guide says pet transport is a special service that some companies offer depending on the vehicle. The passenger must notify the carrier, follow its rules and extra charges, use a muzzle or kennel, and carry a current vaccination card. A carrier that reasonably finds safety, hygiene, or comfort lacking may decline the animal. There is no universal right to board any bus with a dog.

Where pets are allowed on public transport, Ley 1801 article 118 requires dogs on a leash, a properly fitted muzzle for potentially dangerous dogs, and cats in a carrier or with a special transport collar. Article 123 leaves detailed public-transport conditions to district and municipal mayors, so local rules vary.

For a concrete checklist, Bogotá's notice for its intercity terminal (dated 5 July 2022) asks for a current vaccination card, a muzzle and/or leash, and an identification collar, and tells travelers to confirm conditions with the bus company.

Expreso Bolivariano says its pet rules sit in clause 10.3 of the transport contract, and its public pages do not print kennel sizes or fares. A reseller summary on Pinbus says small and medium pets ride in a kennel no more than 40 cm high in the cabin, taller kennels go in the hold only on trips under 8 hours, large breeds are at the company's discretion, and the ticket office issues a pet form. Treat those figures as a reseller summary, not contract text, and confirm at the ticket office before paying.

My honest advice: do not pay for a ticket until you know where the animal rides. A dog in a luggage compartment on a long highway trip is a risk I would not take.

If the animal will not fit

Sometimes the answer is no. The dog is over the cabin limit, too young, on a refusal list, or the pet spots are full. Do not improvise a luggage-hold trip or an unventilated hold. Use a pet-transport or pet-care provider who handles the journey properly.

If you are also moving belongings, that is a separate job. Freight waybills cover your boxes, not the pet's own ticket; see our intercity moving guide for that side.

The document pack to print

• Current vaccination card from a licensed vet (original for Clic, photocopy for Avianca).
• Avianca: confirmation of the pet add-on and a check on whether a separate vet note is wanted.
• Bus: the company's pet form from the ticket office, plus leash, muzzle if needed, and an ID collar.
• Kennel measured against the operator's numbers, not the pet store label.

You do not need SISPAP, USDA endorsement, or an export health certificate for a domestic sector. Those belong to international trips.

One caveat on service and emotional-support animals: they are a separate product from ordinary pets. Do not assume a large dog can ride loose in the cabin without the airline's assistance-animal file. A LATAM help snippet mentions a six-kennel limit and a 12 kg loose emotional-support dog rule for tickets bought from 3 June 2024; confirm on your booking.

Frequently Asked Questions

❓ Do I need an ICA certificate to fly my dog between Colombian cities?

No. ICA does not require a Certificado de Inspección Sanitaria for dogs and cats moving inside Colombia. The airline can still ask for your vaccination card and its own form, so check the carrier's conditions before you travel (verify with the official source, as accessed).

❓ What size carrier does Avianca allow in the cabin?

A flexible kennel of 55 x 35 x 25 cm, with the dog or cat plus kennel at 10 kg or less. It rides under the seat in front, and the pet space must be requested at least 48 hours before departure, subject to quota (verify with the official source, as accessed).

❓ Will LATAM take the same carrier as Avianca?

No. LATAM's Colombia help page lists a smaller cabin kennel: 36 x 33 x 19 cm if rigid, or 40 x 28 x 25 cm if flexible. Confirm the fee on your booking, because no LATAM tariff table was available to quote (verify with the official source, as accessed).

❓ How much does Clic charge to carry a pet?

Clic's page lists $122.353 plus VAT per sector for both cabin and hold. The cabin cap is 10 kg including a soft kennel, the hold cap is 23 kg including a hard kennel, and the fee is in force from 15 January 2026 (verify with the official source, as accessed).

❓ Can I take a large dog on an intercity bus?

Only if that company accepts the animal on that bus. Supertransporte's guide treats pet carriage as a special service, and Bolivariano points to clause 10.3 of its contract. The 40 cm and 8 hour figures come from a reseller summary, so confirm at the ticket office (verify with the official source, as accessed).