Updated August 31, 2026
Traveling with an emotional support animal
The short version: since January 2021, airlines can treat your ESA as a pet, and most do. Here is what still works.
Reviewed for clinical accuracy by Andrew Patel, LCSW, Licensed Clinical Social Worker. Last reviewed August 31, 2026.
Flying
The Department of Transportation revised its rules under the Air Carrier Access Act effective January 2021. Airlines are no longer required to accommodate emotional support animals and may treat them as ordinary pets. Every major US carrier did exactly that.
In practice that means a carrier fee, a size limit, and the animal in a carrier under the seat in front of you — or in cargo if it is too large, which is a serious decision for a snub-nosed breed. Airline-by-airline details →
Trained service dogs are a separate category and still fly in-cabin at no charge, with DOT service animal forms submitted in advance.
Hotels
Hotels are public accommodations under ADA Title III, which covers service animals but not emotional support animals. A hotel can enforce its pet policy and charge pet fees for an ESA.
What works better than citing the law: book pet-friendly properties. Many are, many waive fees for small well-behaved animals if you ask nicely, and the conversation is far shorter.
Trains and buses
Amtrak permits small pets under 20 pounds on most routes for a fee, with reservation requirements and route restrictions. Trained service dogs travel free. Emotional support animals are handled under the pet policy.
Greyhound and most intercity bus lines permit trained service animals and generally do not allow pets.
Rideshares and taxis
Uber and Lyft are covered by the ADA for service animals, and drivers refusing a service animal face deactivation. Emotional support animals are not covered, and it is up to the driver. Both apps have pet-friendly options in many markets — worth using rather than arguing at the curb.
International
Almost no other country recognizes the US emotional support animal category. Entry rules are about animal health, not disability accommodation: microchips, rabies titers, health certificates, and in some places quarantine.
Start six months ahead for places like the UK, Australia, New Zealand, Japan and Hawaii. Rabies titer requirements alone can take three to six months, and missing a step means quarantine at your expense.
The honest advice
If your reason for wanting a letter is travel, the letter is not going to do what you want. It has not since 2021. If you need to travel with an animal that helps you, the routes that actually exist are a trained service dog, or booking travel and lodging that welcome pets and paying the fees.
Pricing
ESA Letter Cost: One Price, Paid Once
No subscription, no renewal auto-charge, no registry fee. You pay for a clinical evaluation and, if the clinician approves you, a signed letter.
ESA Letter
- Signed by a clinician licensed in your state
- Covers up to 2 emotional support animals
- Formatted for landlords, property managers and HOAs
- Free rewrite if your landlord asks for a different format
ESA Letter · 3+ Animals
- Every animal named on one letter
- Signed by a clinician licensed in your state
- Useful when a building caps the number of pets
- Free rewrite if your landlord asks for a different format
PSD Letter
- Confirms a disability and a need for task-trained work
- Useful for housing, employers and school disability offices
- Covers up to 2 dogs
- Not an ADA certificate — see the note below
PSD Letter · Up to 3 Dogs
- Every dog named on one letter
- Confirms a disability and a need for task-trained work
- Covers up to 3 dogs
- Not an ADA certificate — see the note below
About the PSD letter: it is documentation from a licensed clinician, not a certificate or an ID. Under the ADA, public access comes from your dog being individually trained to do work or tasks for your disability. Businesses are allowed to ask only two questions and are not allowed to require paperwork. Nobody can sell you access rights — anyone who says otherwise is selling a novelty.
You are charged only after a clinician approves you. We may place a temporary authorization hold on your card beforehand to confirm it is valid; a hold is not a charge and is released if you are not approved.
100% refund if your landlord denies your ESA. If your housing provider refuses the accommodation after you submit a letter we issued, we refund what you paid in full. Full terms, including what a claim needs, on our refund policy page.
Questions
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I still fly with my ESA at all?
Yes, as a pet: in a carrier, under the seat, for a fee, subject to size limits and per-flight animal caps. Book early because those caps fill.
What if my letter says I need the animal to fly?
Airlines are not required to accept it. The DOT rule change removed that obligation and no clinician letter reinstates it.
Do psychiatric service dogs fly free?
Yes, in-cabin, at no charge, with the DOT Service Animal Air Transportation Form submitted in advance. Note the form is self-attested by the handler, not a document a clinician signs. More here.
Sources
- Service animals on aircraft, and the DOT Service Animal Air Transportation Form U.S. Department of Transportation
- Passengers with disabilities — Air Carrier Access Act guidance DOT Office of Aviation Consumer Protection
- 14 C.F.R. Part 382 — Nondiscrimination on the basis of disability in air travel Electronic Code of Federal Regulations
- File an air travel disability complaint with the DOT U.S. Department of Transportation
- ADA 2010 Revised Requirements: Service Animals U.S. Department of Justice, Civil Rights Division
- Fair Housing Act, 42 U.S.C. § 3604 — discrimination in the sale or rental of housing Office of the Law Revision Counsel, U.S. House of Representatives
Find Out Where You Stand in About Ten Minutes
Answer a short screening questionnaire, talk to a clinician licensed in your state, and get a real answer either way.