According to the European Commission, it takes a minimum of 4 months to prepare a dog or cat to travel to Europe.

The steps that need to be taken to prepare a cat or dog for traveling are:
1. The dog or cat needs to be microchipped.
2. Rabies vaccination – preferably two: the first has to be given at the age of 3 months, the
second a month later. (The second is just make sure that the blood test results are okay.)
3. Blood test – after the rabies vaccination, the serum of a blood sample needs to be tested for
rabies antibodies at an approved laboratory in Europe. On this website of the approved laboratory is a form to be found that needs to be filled in and sent together with the serum sample.
4. When tested positive, 3 months have to pass before the animal is allowed to travel.
5. The health certificate has to be filled in and signed by the government just before traveling.