US Announces New Health Certificate Rule for All Air Travelers, Gives Reason and Mentions Date

• The US CDC signed an order on October 22, 2026, requiring all international air passengers to carry a health certificate before boarding flights to the US
• The new rule targets prevention against the Ebola epidemic in the Democratic Republic of Congo and covers travelers from all countries, not just Africa
• Passengers making a connection at a US airport are also covered by the rule, which asks travelers to confirm their movements over the 21 days before departure

The United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has announced that all passengers on international flights bound for the US must carry a mandatory health certificate, effective November 2026.

The CDC signed the order on October 22, 2026, and has since published an explanatory page setting out the terms of the new obligation.

The measure is directly linked to the ongoing Ebola epidemic in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

Who the rule covers

The requirement applies to every passenger boarding an international flight to the US, regardless of nationality or departure point. Travellers flying out of France, Belgium, Switzerland, or Canada fall under the same obligation, even if they have never set foot in the DRC.

The rule also covers passengers who are only transiting through a US airport on their way to a third country, meaning a brief connection in an American airport is enough to trigger the requirement.

What passengers must confirm

Each traveller must declare that they were not present in the DRC at any point during the 21 days before their flight. US authorities have clarified that "presence" covers more than overnight stays. It also includes passing through a Congolese airport, even if the traveller never left the plane or stepped outside the transit zone.

The only exception is flying over Congolese airspace without landing. A simple overflight, with no stop on the ground or in any airport facility, is not counted as presence in the country under the new rules.

The CDC's move reflects Washington's broader effort to prevent an Ebola outbreak from crossing into the US through commercial aviation, a route that health officials have long identified as a key transmission risk during disease outbreaks in Central Africa.

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