September 6, 2026
Buying a purebred dog from another country is only the beginning of the registration process.
When your puppy arrives home, you may already have the puppy's contract, vaccination records, microchip information and an Export Pedigree. But what should you actually do with these documents?
Where should you register the dog?
Do you need to join a kennel club?
Does the Export Pedigree need to be exchanged for a local pedigree?
And what happens if you want to show your dog or breed from it in the future?
This guide explains what normally happens after a purebred dog is imported into another country within the FCI system.
Important: The exact procedure, fees and membership requirements are determined by the national canine organisation in the country where the dog will live. The general system described below follows the FCI framework, but owners should always confirm the current procedure with their national organisation.
Imagine that you live in Poland, Germany, France, Spain, Italy or another country and purchase a Xoloitzcuintli from a breeder abroad.
For example:
You live in Poland → you buy a Xoloitzcuintli from Ukraine → the puppy travels to Poland → you receive the Export Pedigree.
At this point, the dog is physically in your country, but its original registration is still connected to the country in which it was previously registered.
The next step is to contact the national canine organisation in your country of legal residence.
FCI itself directs owners with questions about pedigrees and existing pedigree documents to the FCI member organisation in their country of legal residence.
In other words, the international FCI system works through national canine organisations.
An Export Pedigree is the official pedigree document used when a registered purebred dog is transferred to another country.
It is not simply another version of the normal pedigree.
Its purpose is to allow the dog's registration to be recognised and transferred into the canine registration system of the new country.
Under FCI regulations, when a dog is sold abroad, the national canine organisation that previously registered the dog issues an official Export Pedigree. The document identifies the new owner and is intended for registration in the country to which the dog has been exported.
This is why an Export Pedigree is particularly important for an internationally purchased puppy.
Not necessarily.
This is one of the most important things for a new owner to understand.
Receiving an Export Pedigree from the breeder's country does not automatically mean that the dog has already been entered into the studbook of your country.
The Export Pedigree is the document that allows the national canine organisation in your country to register the imported dog.
Think of the process like this:
Country of origin
Breeder → Puppy registration → Pedigree → Export Pedigree
↓
New country
Export Pedigree → National Canine Organisation → Import registration / studbook registration
↓
Registered dog in the new country
The exact terminology varies between countries, but the principle is similar.
Once your dog has arrived, do not simply put the Export Pedigree in a drawer and forget about it.
Your next step should be to contact the FCI member national canine organisation in your country of residence.
Ask specifically about:
The national organisation will tell you which local branch or club you should contact.
Often, the first practical step is to contact a local branch of the national canine organisation.
However, it is important to understand the terminology.
A local branch or breed club is not the same thing as FCI itself.
FCI is the international federation.
The national canine organisation is the FCI member organisation responsible for the country.
The local branch or club operates within that national system.
Therefore, if you live in another country, you normally do not go looking for a random organisation that simply calls itself a “dog club.”
You should first identify:
Which FCI member organisation represents my country?
Then:
Which local branch or office handles registrations in my area?
This distinction is important because not every dog association is part of the FCI system.
For example, in Poland, the Związek Kynologiczny w Polsce (ZKwP) is the national organisation connected with FCI, and its branches handle practical services such as dog registration and pedigree procedures. Some ZKwP branches specifically list registration and nostrification of imported pedigrees among their services.
This is where the process becomes easier to understand.
Your dog already has its ancestry.
The Export Pedigree already identifies the dog, its parents and previous registration.
The new national organisation is not creating a new ancestry for the dog.
Instead, it records the imported dog in its own national studbook according to its rules.
Under FCI regulations, when a dog is sold abroad, the new studbook registration number and the initials of the new studbook are recorded on the original Export Pedigree and certified by the new national canine organisation. FCI specifically states that a new pedigree must not be issued for an imported dog in this situation.
This is a very important distinction.
Its:
remain connected to the original registration.
The new country adds its own registration information.
You might ask:
“If I already have an Export Pedigree, why do I need to register the dog again?”
Because the dog has moved from one national canine system to another.
The national registration allows the new country's canine organisation to recognise the dog as an imported registered purebred dog within its own studbook.
This can become important if you later want to:
The exact rights and requirements depend on the country and its regulations.
This is where owners should be careful.
Do not assume that the rules are identical in every country.
Some national organisations require membership for particular services, while others distinguish between registration of the dog and membership of the organisation.
Membership can provide access to services such as:
For example, individual ZKwP branches publish membership fees separately from registration and nostrification fees, and some state that current membership is required to use certain services such as shows, breeding and training.
Therefore, after receiving your Export Pedigree, ask your national organisation:
“Do I need to become a member to register my imported dog, and what services require membership?”
That is the correct question.
A purebred dog registered within an FCI-recognised system is more than simply a companion animal with a veterinary passport.
Of course, legally and emotionally, your dog is first and foremost your companion.
But from a cynological perspective, a registered purebred dog is part of a documented breeding system.
Its pedigree records:
The national studbook creates an official record of the dog within that country's canine system.
This is particularly important if the dog is later involved in breeding, showing or other official cynological activities.
The exact list varies by country, but you should normally be prepared to provide some combination of:
This is the key document for international registration.
Do not throw it away or replace it with a photocopy unless the organisation specifically instructs you to do so.
FCI rules specifically refer to the original Export Pedigree when the new national studbook registration is recorded.
This may include:
Your dog's microchip number must correspond to the identification information in the documentation.
FCI rules require exported dogs to be identified by microchip or tattoo for issuance of an Export Pedigree.
You may need:
The national organisation may require its own import-registration or nostrification form.
There may be separate fees for:
The exact fees change from country to country and from year to year.
You may encounter this word when registering an imported dog.
Nostrification generally refers to the official recognition or validation of a foreign pedigree within the national canine system.
The terminology differs between countries.
For example, Polish ZKwP branches use the term “nostryfikacja” for recognition of imported pedigree documents and list it separately from registration.
This is essentially the administrative step through which the foreign pedigree is recognised and the dog can be entered into the national studbook.
This is particularly important.
The original Export Pedigree remains the fundamental document.
The new national organisation adds its registration information to it according to its procedures.
FCI regulations state that the new studbook initials and registration number are recorded on the original Export Pedigree and certified by the national canine organisation. FCI also expressly prohibits issuing a new pedigree to replace the Export Pedigree for an imported dog in this situation.
So the process is not:
Ukrainian pedigree → throw it away → receive a completely new Polish/German/French pedigree.
It is closer to:
Original Export Pedigree → registration in the new national studbook → new national registration number added to the original document.
Let's make this practical.
Imagine that you live in Kraków, Poland.
You purchase a Xoloitzcuintli puppy from a breeder in Ukraine.
The breeder prepares the necessary documents.
The puppy travels to Poland.
You receive:
What should you do?
In Poland, this is the Związek Kynologiczny w Polsce (ZKwP), which is the Polish organisation within the FCI system.
Contact the ZKwP branch serving your area and ask about registration of an imported dog.
Tell them that you have an imported dog with an Export Pedigree issued by the Ukrainian Kennel Union.
Take the documents requested by the branch, particularly the original Export Pedigree.
The organisation checks the documentation and processes the imported dog's registration according to its rules.
The foreign Export Pedigree is recognised within the Polish system according to ZKwP procedures.
The dog receives its Polish studbook registration information.
The original Export Pedigree remains an important document for the dog.
ZKwP branches currently publish separate fees for nostrification and registration, illustrating that these can be distinct administrative steps.
This is another reason why registering the dog promptly is a good idea.
If you want to participate in official FCI-recognised dog shows, you should make sure your dog is properly registered with the relevant national organisation before entering events.
Do not assume that simply owning an Export Pedigree automatically completes every local registration requirement.
The national organisation can tell you:
This becomes even more important.
Owning a pedigree dog does not automatically mean that the dog is approved for breeding.
Registration of the dog and qualification for breeding are separate matters.
If you eventually want to breed your Xoloitzcuintli, you should contact your national canine organisation and learn its breeding requirements.
Depending on the country, these may include:
Therefore:
First register the imported dog. Then learn the breeding requirements of your national organisation.
The same basic documentation principles can apply.
A Pet-Class puppy can still have a fully documented pedigree.
However, Pet-Class and Show-Class are classifications made by the breeder according to the puppy's purpose and prospects, and the purchase agreement may contain specific breeding restrictions.
Therefore, having a pedigree does not automatically mean that a dog is intended for breeding.
Your sales agreement should always be considered together with the dog's registration documents.
You may still be able to keep the dog as your companion.
But you may lose access to certain services or activities that require national registration.
Depending on the country, this can affect:
The exact consequences depend on the national organisation.
That is why it is better to complete the import registration soon after receiving the dog.
One of the biggest sources of confusion for new owners is the word “registration.”
There can be several completely different registrations.
This concerns:
This concerns:
This concerns:
These systems can interact, but they are not the same thing.
Having a veterinary passport does not replace an Export Pedigree.
Having an Export Pedigree does not automatically complete every veterinary requirement in the new country.
And being listed as the owner does not necessarily mean that the dog has been entered into the national studbook.
For an international puppy purchase, the process can be understood as a chain:
The breeder registers the litter through the national canine system.
The puppy is identified and documented.
The ownership and destination country are recorded according to the exporting organisation's rules.
The document identifies the dog and its new owner for international transfer.
The owner completes all required veterinary and border procedures.
The owner asks about registration of an imported dog.
The national organisation checks and processes the foreign document.
The dog receives the registration information of the new country's studbook.
If membership is required for the services the owner wants to use, the owner joins the relevant organisation or club.
Depending on the rules, this can include:
The FCI system is based on cooperation between national canine organisations.
FCI does not function as one enormous central registry where every dog in the world is directly registered.
Instead, national organisations maintain their own systems and cooperate internationally through FCI.
This is why an owner who moves a dog from Ukraine to Poland, Germany, France or another FCI country deals with the national organisation of the new country.
FCI regulations require pedigrees issued by FCI Members and Contract Partners to be recognised as documents proving that puppies were born from pedigree parents of the same breed, subject to the applicable FCI rules.
Our recommendation is simple:
Once your puppy has arrived:
1. Keep all original documents together.
2. Check that the microchip number matches the documents.
3. Keep your purchase agreement.
4. Keep the original Export Pedigree safe.
5. Find the FCI member national canine organisation in your country.
6. Contact your nearest appropriate branch or office.
7. Ask about imported-dog registration and Export Pedigree recognition.
8. Ask whether membership is required.
9. Complete the registration and pay the applicable fees.
10. Keep the confirmation and registration number with your dog's documents.
Buying a purebred dog internationally means entering a system that is larger than the purchase itself.
Your puppy has an identity within a breed.
It has a breeder.
It has parents and ancestors.
It has a registration history.
And when it moves to another country, that history should move with it.
The Export Pedigree is the bridge between the registration system of the country of origin and the registration system of the country where the dog will live.
The next step is not to obtain a completely new identity for the dog.
It is to have the existing pedigree recognised and the dog entered into the appropriate national studbook.
Once this process is completed, you have a properly documented imported purebred dog within the national cynological system.
And if you intend to show, breed or participate in official cynological activities, completing this registration is particularly important.
At Sine Metu, we believe that buying a puppy is not the end of the breeder's responsibility.
A good breeder should also help the new owner understand what happens after the puppy leaves the kennel — including its documents, international registration and the practical steps required in the owner's country.
Because a pedigree is not just a piece of paper.
It is part of the dog's documented identity.
Is a mono-breed Miniature Xolo kennel.
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We choose only the best Xolo bloodlines in the world for the breeding purpose in our kennel.
Our graduates live in more than 15 countries in Europe, the USA and Canada.
All our breeding dogs get tested for genetic diseases and are in excellent health condition.
