Click on a country below to read more about health and vaccination recommendations before travel.

Required Vaccines for Travel

Similar to showing a passport or visa to enter a country, some destinations require proof of vaccination upon arrival. 

The most common required vaccine is yellow fever.  Currently, 22 countries in Africa require the vaccine for all arriving visitors 9 months and older.  Many other countries may require the yellow fever immunization based on your travel plans.  For example, if you plan to visit multiple countries in South America or Africa in the same trip, it’s possible yellow fever vaccine will be required to cross borders.  The yellow fever vaccine is documented in the International Certificate of Vaccination and Prophylaxis (ICVP), also know as the CDC “Yellow Card.”

The polio vaccine may also be required when countries are experiencing an increased number of cases and the traveler is staying longer than 4 weeks.