Page at a glance
What you need to know before reading further.
A quick look at who this page is for, what it covers, and which official sources back it up.
Best for
What it helps you do
Core questions answered
- What does OISA actually do at the airport or point of entry?
- What forms, carrier conditions, and problem scenarios matter most?
- Which pet and PMVF pages should link in and out of this page?
Official bodies in play
Related guides
Keep the research chain moving.
These pages cover closely related topics and are good next reads from here.
Best next steps
The most useful pages to read next based on where you are in the process.
Continue in Pets
More pages in the same section that go deeper on related questions.
Planning systems and printable versions
Printable guides and structured pathways that tie this topic into your wider move plan.
The answer first
At the airport, OISA is where SENASICA staff inspect pets and issue the import certificate when the requirements are met.
The airport-inspection page is useful because it explains OISA in the wider airport-sanitary context. These offices are not just there for pets. They exist to prevent pests and diseases from entering the country through regulated goods, baggage, and animal traffic. That helps explain why the pet lane can feel stricter than people expect.
What OISA does for pet travelers
For dogs and cats that satisfy the applicable rules, OISA is the office that handles the physical inspection and the issuance of the Certificado Zoosanitario para Importación — the CZI. In plain English: this is the official handoff point that turns a pet arrival into a legal pet entry.
Why staff take small rule violations seriously
The airport-inspection page also says OISA can retain traveler goods that do not comply with sanitary regulation for later destruction. That broader enforcement context is why carrier contents, form prep, and route-specific rules are not treated casually just because the traveler is stressed.
The simple airport sequence
- Arrive with the pet and the correct route-specific paperwork, if any.
- Contact SENASICA staff at OISA.
- Complete or present the CZI-related form layer.
- Present the pet for physical inspection.
- Keep any resulting documents with your travel records after release.
What to expect at inspection
The process is usually straightforward when your route and carrier are in order.
That is the good news. The other news is that OISA is still a real inspection point, not a ceremonial pet desk.
You should arrive ready with
- A clean carrier.
- The route-appropriate documentation if your route requires a health certificate.
- Enough time and mental bandwidth to let the inspection happen without trying to rush it into being something it is not.
OISA staff are looking for
- Compliance with the route-specific document rules.
- A physically inspectable animal.
- Carrier contents that follow SENASICA restrictions.
- Signs of sanitary risk that would require treatment or other action before release.
If the route is U.S./Canada
This is the easier paperwork route, but not a no-rules route. You still present the pet for physical inspection, and the carrier rules still apply.
If the route is elsewhere
Expect the certificate review and the physical inspection to work together. Weak document prep is what usually makes the airport step feel harder than it needed to be.
Using the OISA directory without overtrusting it
The directory is useful. It is just not new enough to trust blindly without one final check.
This is one of those rare moments where the cautious note is actually helpful, not annoying.
The practical note
The OISA directory found in the source pack is older — 2021 — but still useful because it includes addresses, emails, phone numbers, and tourist/commercial hours for airports, ports, and frontiers. Use it as a planning tool, then confirm the current office details before travel.
What the directory is good for
- Confirming whether your point of entry has an OISA office in the first place.
- Getting the official office email or phone as a starting point.
- Understanding that not all entry points operate on identical tourist-import hours.
A few useful boundaries
OISA is not your airline, not your customs broker, and not a pet-relocation concierge.
Which means some questions still belong somewhere else.
Ask OISA / SENASICA about
- Route-specific pet-entry requirements.
- CZI and inspection workflow questions.
- PMVF follow-through for repeat crossings.
- Point-of-entry office details, if the directory or website leaves something unclear.
Ask your airline about
- Cabin, checked, or cargo rules.
- Carrier dimensions and booking requirements.
- Day-of-travel airline acceptance and handling procedures.
Ask a trade/cargo specialist about
- Cargo-only pet movements.
- Release mechanics if the pet is not traveling as accompanied baggage.
- Any customs-release layer beyond the usual traveler arrival flow.
Use these next
These pages help once you understand what OISA actually handles.
Best companion pages
Sources and research basis
What this page is built on
This page is based mainly on the airport-inspection page and the OISA directory context found in the pet-entry research, then connected back to the pet-entry and PMVF workflow sources.