Although Brazil doesn't have any exceptionally strict regulations for admitting your cat or dog into the country for your visit or move, there is a short window of time in which to gather all of the necessary documents, stamps and signatures you'll need before traveling.

Get addresses for your respective United States Department of Agriculture and Brazilian consular offices by visiting the websites provided in the resources below.

The USDA has one office per state, and the Brazilian consulate has offices in Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York and San Francisco.

Visit a veterinarian who is certified by the USDA to complete an international certificate of health 10 days prior to your departure date. Although there will be space provided for several pieces of information including microchip or blood draw findings, the only items required by the Brazilian government are details about your pet's type, name, gender, color and breed plus rabies vaccination information.

The USDA only provides these certificates directly to veterinarians, so call ahead to ensure your vet has one at least a week in advance or when you make your appointment. You can contact your state's USDA office to request they mail your vet a copy if needed.

Mail the completed certificate of health along with your pet's rabies certificate via express mail with a $34 fee and an addressed and stamped envelope enclosed to forward to the Brazilian consulate or return to you. Include a self-addressed USPS Express Mail stamped envelope for return of your certificate and a $20 USPS money order payable to the Consulate General of Brazil if you are sending your documents directly to the Brazilian consulate.

Depending on your personal timeline and the policies of the Brazilian consular serving your area, you will either hand-deliver your paperwork or send it via express mail for processing. In some cases, the amount of time required by the Brazilian consulate for legalizing documents exceeds the amount of time you have available before traveling.

Go to the Brazilian consulate that serves your state in person if necessary. Each consular website has information about their business hours for processing paperwork. Typically, two business days are needed; however, in some cases special considerations can be made if you contact the Brazilian consulate directly. The fee to legalize the document is $20 via cash or money order. You may put more than one animal on a single form.