- The US raised Kenya to Level 3 travel advisory on October 19, 2026, citing Ebola among several risks
- Several countries including Canada, the UK, Australia and China have updated their Kenya travel guidance over the outbreak
- El Salvador has imposed an outright entry ban on travellers from Kenya, the only verified active restriction of its kind
Elijah Ntongai is an experienced editor at TUKO.co.ke, with more than four years in financial, business, labour and technology research and reporting. His work provides valuable insights into Kenyan, African, and global trends.
Several countries have updated their travel guidance for Kenya following a confirmed Bundibugyo Ebola outbreak, with one nation imposing an outright entry ban on travellers arriving from the country.
Source: UGC
As of October 21, 2026, Kenya has recorded nine confirmed Ebola cases, all linked to a single cluster, and one death.
The index case was a Kenyan national who had been living in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) before travelling to Nairobi via Uganda, arriving on October 3 and dying two days later.
Kenyan authorities say all subsequent cases trace back to this individual and that there is no evidence of widespread community transmission.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) has advised against blanket travel or trade restrictions given the current epidemiological picture.
Countries That Have Issued Ebola Travel Advisories
The United States issued the most prominent formal response, with the Department of State raising Kenya from Level 2 to Level 3 on October 19, 2026, advising Americans to reconsider travel.
The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has also issued a Travel Health Notice. The advisory is a recommendation, not a legal prohibition on entry.
Canada updated its Kenya guidance on October 9, 2026, instructing travellers to monitor their health for 21 days after leaving the country and to avoid non-essential visits to healthcare facilities in affected areas.
The UK's Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office revised its Kenya travel advice on October 6 to 7, 2026, incorporating information on the outbreak and local screening measures but stopped short of advising against travel to Kenya on Ebola grounds.
Australia's Smartraveller service noted the confirmed Bundibugyo cases and advised strict hygiene practices without changing the overall advice level for Kenya.
China listed Kenya as "temporarily do not travel" in a foreign-affairs risk compilation dated October 9, 2026, with the Chinese embassy in Nairobi issuing a separate health reminder urging nationals to avoid epidemic areas.
Austria and the Netherlands both updated their health guidance sections for Kenya in early to mid-October without recommending against travel altogether.
Trinidad and Tobago issued a "very high caution" advisory covering Kenya alongside eight other African countries, though its enhanced entry protocols apply to travellers from the DRC, Uganda, and South Sudan only, not Kenya.
Countries That Have Imposed Entry Restrictions
As reported earlier on TUKO.co.ke, El Salvador is the only country to have enforced an outright entry ban covering Kenya.
Under Official Letter No. 2026-6000-055, the Salvadoran Ministry of Health bars entry to anyone arriving from or transiting through Kenya, the DRC, Uganda, Angola, Burundi, Ethiopia, the Central African Republic, and Rwanda.
The restriction applies based on travel history rather than nationality, and its reach was confirmed as recently as October 14, 2026, when CNN journalist Larry Madowo was denied a special entry permit.
South Korea, from October 20, 2026, designated Kenya a "focused quarantine management area," requiring arrivals who have been in or transited through Kenya within the preceding 21 days to complete a mandatory health declaration and undergo enhanced screening. The measure does not bar entry.
Israel briefly included Kenya in an Ebola-related entry ban but lifted the restriction on June 15, 2026, following diplomatic protests from Nairobi, and no such measure is currently in force.
The Kenyan government has called on the international community not to isolate the country, stressing that the outbreak remains a limited, traceable cluster.
Advisories and entry requirements may change as the situation develops, and travellers are advised to consult the latest guidance from their destination country's foreign ministry and health authorities before making plans.
Source: TUKO.co.ke