People with disabilities or reduced mobility have certain guaranteed rights in Europe when travelling locally or across borders, including the right to free assistance when travelling by plane, train, bus or ship:
- They are entitled to free care or assistance when boarding, disembarking and transferring at airports, train stations, bus stations and ports, provided they notify the relevant company of their need for assistance and arrive at the location in good time.
- In some cases, it is possible to bring along an accompanying person or a service dog free of charge.
People with disabilities must not be prevented from purchasing tickets, making a booking or boarding, except in cases where there are safety concerns or technical obstacles, for example.
In Germany, people with disabilities have the right to bring an accompanying person and/or a service dog free of charge with them in accordance with the German Social Security Code Book IX (SGB IX), the German Act on Equal Opportunities for Persons with Disabilities (Behindertengleichstellungsgesetz, BGG Section 12e) and the German Service Dog Regulation (Assistenzhundeverordnung, AHundV). However, this depends on their severely disabled status.
- If the 'B' marker is entered in the severely disabled person's pass and the note 'Die Berechtigung zur Mitnahme einer Begleitperson ist nachgewiesen' (The entitlement to bring an accompanying person has been proven) or 'Die Notwendigkeit ständiger Begleitung ist nachgewiesen' (The need for constant accompaniment has been proven) has not been deleted, an accompanying person and/or a service dog identified in accordance with Section 12e (4) BGG may be brought along.
- Persons with a pass for severely disabled persons without the 'B' marker or with a 'Mensch-Assistenzhund-Gemeinschaft' (human-service dog team) pass, may bring a service dog marked in accordance with Section 12e (4) BGG free of charge.
- Persons without a severely disabled person's pass but with a notice of assessment or a pass identifying them as part of a 'human-service dog team' may bring an identified service dog with them.
Travelling with a guide dog
Guide dogs are legally considered service dogs and enjoy special protection in many countries, including when travelling by plane. Nevertheless, there are some important points to note.
In addition, entry regulations for animals are relevant for international travel as these also apply to service dogs:
- tattoo or, for animals that have been newly registered since July 3, 2011, a microchip,
- when travelling from a non-EU country to the Schengen area, a valid rabies vaccination,
- an EU pet passport for animals from the EU or an official veterinary certificate for animals from a non-EU country, in which the microchip number or tattoo is recorded,
- vaccination papers and, if applicable, the results of the rabies antibody test.
Stricter requirements apply to antiparasitic treatments, especially for tapeworms, in the member states of Ireland, Malta and Finland. (…)
Tip: The Your Europe website has a section entitled 'Transport and Disability' containing a wealth of information on travel rights in the EU (information available in several languages).
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