Live Animals Regulations (LAR)

Order the LAR online

English, Spanish and French versions of the LAR are available in digital and print formats. If you are new to the LAR, all versions are updated annually. Digital products come with automatic updates for the year and a search function that makes finding current information easy. And, it's cheaper.

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What’s inside the LAR?

The LAR covers animal transport of all kinds and contains comprehensive information about the requirements for protected and endangered species as lab animals, livestock and domestic animals.

• Applicability (shipper and carrier responsibilities, training, combatting illegal trade)
• Government regulations (general and variations by country)
• Carrier regulations (general, variations by carrier, airline contact information and AVI services)
• Reservations and advance arrangements (schedules, routing, interline advance, delivery, accompanying persons)
• Animal behaviour (general, disturbance, segregation, sedation, euthanasia, in-flight environment)
• Listing, description and species size (taxonomy, alphabetical list, description and size)
• Documentation (shipper’s certification, waybill, captain notification, CITES documents, other documents, live animal acceptance checklist)
• Container requirements (general, stocking density, marking, labeling)
• Handling (animal acceptance, ground handling, loading, feeding and watering, captain’s advice, health and hygiene, OIE recommendations)
• CITES (general, documentation, list of states, management authorities by country, Article XI, combatting illegal trade)
• Life science logistics for lab animals (health status, animal type and number, species, and container considerations)

Stay up-to-date

Significant Changes and Amendments to the 51st edition (2025) of the IATA Live Animals Regulations (LAR) include:

2- State Variations

• General information moved to new Appendix A - Competent Authorities.
  • CANADA (CAG)
  • NEW ZEALAND (NZG)
  • SINGAPORE (SGG)
  • SRI LANKA (LKG)
  • UNITED ARAB EMIRATES (AEG)
  • UNITED STATES OF AMERICA (USG)
  • Amendments to State Variations for various airlines

3 - Operator Variations

• Operator Contact Information and AVI Services moved to new Appendix B - General Operator Information. 
• Amendments to Operator Variations for   many airlines.

4- Booking and Advance Arrangements 

• Replacement of the term reservation with booking for terminology alignment.

6 - Listing, Description and Sizes of Species 

• Amendments to section 6.2 
• Specific updates to sections 6.2.1, 6.2.2

7- Documentation 

• Amendments to section 7.6 to clarify the IATA In-Cabin Live Animal Acceptance Checklist and introduce the IATA Excess Baggage Live Animal Acceptance Checklist.

8 - Container Requirements 

• Amendments to Container Requirement 1

• Update to materials, size and sides of Container Requirement 18.
• Addition of a section on horse equipment to Container Requirement 2.
• Amendment to bird light requirement in Container Requirements 11 to 23.
• Clarification on aggressive birds in Container Requirement 13.
• Amendments to Container Requirement 57  

11- Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora  

• Full revision of the chapter. 

Glossary 

• Addition of definitions: