Tanzania has dropped Ebola screening for arrivals from Uganda, but not from DR Congo
What happened
The UK's travel advice for Tanzania was updated on 29 September 2026 with a specific change to health checks at the border. The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office now says heightened health screening measures are no longer in place for travellers arriving into Tanzania from Uganda, but remain for those arriving from the Democratic Republic of the Congo. That is a small sentence with a lot behind it. Both countries have been at the centre of an Ebola outbreak. On 17 May 2026, the World Health Organization declared Ebola disease caused by Bundibugyo virus in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Uganda a public health emergency of international concern, which is WHO's highest level of alarm. The day before the Tanzania change, on 28 September 2026, the FCDO also updated its Nigeria travel advice with new information about Ebola screening. The Nigeria entry requirements now say that travellers entering Nigeria from countries with Ebola virus disease transmission must complete an online Nigeria Health Declaration Form before travel, and may also be required to undergo thermal screening and a travel history check on arrival. So within two days, UK travel advice recorded one country easing a measure and another setting out the paperwork it expects. It is worth being clear what each change is and is not. Tanzania removing screening for Uganda arrivals is a step towards normal. Keeping it for DR Congo arrivals means the outbreak there is still being treated as an active concern. Separately, the FCDO continues to advise against all but essential travel to any area within 20 kilometres of Tanzania's border with Mozambique's Cabo Delgado province, because of the threat from groups associated with Islamic extremism. That advice is unrelated to Ebola and has not changed.
Why this matters
Border health measures are the most visible part of an outbreak response for ordinary travellers, and they change without much publicity. If you are flying into Tanzania from Uganda this week, you can expect a simpler arrival than someone doing the same journey a month ago. If you are arriving from DR Congo, you should expect screening to continue. The Nigeria change matters for a different reason: it involves a form you must complete before you travel. Online pre-travel forms are one of the most common causes of problems at a border, because people only discover them at check-in. There is also a travel insurance angle that catches people out every year. If you travel against FCDO advice, your insurance may be invalid. That applies to the Cabo Delgado border area in Tanzania, and it is worth checking for any destination. For most people reading this in the UK, the realistic risk from this outbreak is low. The value in these updates is practical: they tell you what to expect at the airport and what to arrange before you leave.
What the evidence actually says
It is important not to overstate the threat, and equally important not to dismiss it. The outbreak is serious. WHO declared a public health emergency of international concern on 17 May 2026 for Bundibugyo virus in DR Congo and Uganda. That declaration followed unusually quickly after the outbreak was confirmed. Bundibugyo is one of the Ebola species for which there is no licensed vaccine or treatment, which is part of why the response has been cautious. The risk to people in Europe, though, has consistently been assessed as very low. The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control states that the overall risk for the general population in Europe remains very low, and that modelling suggests the likelihood of a case being imported into the EU or EEA remains very low. ECDC has recorded three cases of Ebola disease linked to this outbreak imported into Europe, all of which were linked to medical or humanitarian work in the affected regions. That pattern is informative. The people at genuine risk are those working directly with patients in affected areas, not holidaymakers in neighbouring countries. What the removal of screening for Uganda arrivals suggests is that Tanzanian authorities judge the risk from Uganda to have fallen. It does not amount to a declaration that the outbreak in Uganda is over, and the FCDO update does not say that. One caution on dates: outbreak measures change frequently and sometimes at short notice. Any statement in this article reflects UK travel advice as updated on 28 and 29 September 2026. Check again before you travel.
Qurexa perspective
We handle prescription logistics, so the part of travel planning we see going wrong most often is medicines. People tend to think about visas and vaccinations and forget that a two-week trip needs more than two weeks of tablets. Flights get cancelled. Screening on arrival can slow things down. Carrying a buffer is not being pessimistic, it is just arithmetic. If you take regular medication and you are travelling to a region where border measures are changing, three things are worth doing. Order your repeat prescription earlier than usual. Keep medicines in their original labelled packaging in hand luggage. And carry a copy of your prescription or a letter from your GP, which makes questions at a border much easier to answer. None of that is specific to Ebola. It applies to any trip where the journey home might not be exactly as planned.
Practical advice
If you are travelling to Tanzania, Nigeria or anywhere in the region, work through this list. Read the FCDO travel advice for your destination, and read it again a day or two before you fly. Sign up for email alerts on the country page so you are told when it changes. If you are travelling to Nigeria from a country with Ebola transmission, complete the online Nigeria Health Declaration Form before you travel. Expect health screening at some borders. Thermal checks and travel history questions are routine and quick. See a travel health clinic, your GP practice or a travel-trained pharmacist six to eight weeks before departure. Some vaccines for the region, including yellow fever where required, need time and certificates. Check your travel insurance covers your whole itinerary, and do not travel against FCDO advice if you want your policy to hold. Avoid contact with wild animals and bushmeat, and wash your hands often. These are the standard precautions in affected regions. If you develop a fever, severe headache, muscle pain, vomiting or diarrhoea within three weeks of returning from an affected area, contact NHS 111 or your GP by phone first and tell them exactly where you have been. Do not just turn up at a surgery without warning. Keep a note of your travel dates and the places you visited. It makes any medical assessment much faster.
What to know
UK travel advice for Tanzania was updated on 29 September 2026 to say that heightened health screening is no longer in place for travellers arriving from Uganda, but remains for those arriving from the Democratic Republic of the Congo. On 28 September, Nigeria's entry requirements were updated to set out that travellers arriving from countries with Ebola transmission must complete an online Nigeria Health Declaration Form before travel and may face thermal screening and a travel history check. The underlying outbreak, Bundibugyo virus in DR Congo and Uganda, was declared a public health emergency of international concern by WHO on 17 May 2026. ECDC assesses the risk to the general population in Europe as very low, with three imported cases so far, all linked to medical or humanitarian work. Check the advice again before you fly. Sources: GOV.UK (Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office), 'Tanzania travel advice', latest update 29 September 2026, https://www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice/tanzania; GOV.UK (Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office), 'Nigeria travel advice: Entry requirements', latest update 28 September 2026, https://www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice/nigeria/entry-requirements; European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control, 'Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo', https://www.ecdc.europa.eu/en/topics-z/ebola-disease/surveillance-and-updates/ebola-outbreak-democratic-republic-congo. This article is for general information and does not replace advice from a doctor, pharmacist, travel health clinic or other qualified healthcare professional.
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