Ministry of Public Health Escalates Ebola Alert, Orders Mandatory 21-Day Quarantine for All Travelers from Congo and Uganda Entering Thailand, Effective Immediately
Thailand's Ministry of Public Health has implemented mandatory 21-day quarantine for all travelers from Congo and Uganda effective immediately, citing escalating Ebola risks and poor compliance with previous self-reporting protocols.
On May 26, 2025, Dr. Somruk Chrusaman, Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Public Health and chair of the National Communicable Disease Committee's third meeting of 2025, announced the escalation following reports of worsening Ebola conditions in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda. While Thailand maintains surveillance measures, health officials warned that undetected cases entering the country and delayed diagnosis could lead to rapid spread domestically.
Currently, travelers from these two countries arrive via connecting flights, averaging 5-7 daily, with recent increases to 10-19 arrivals per day. The committee voted to upgrade monitoring from a 21-day self-reporting protocol to mandatory 21-day quarantine effective immediately for incoming flights. This decision follows concerns over non-compliance, with some travelers changing accommodations and switching hotels, complicating contact tracing efforts.
Under the new measure, all travelers from Congo and Uganda must enter 21-day quarantine upon arrival in Thailand, regardless of symptoms. The Department of Disease Control will provide initial quarantine facilities, including the Bamrasnaradura Institute. Government will cover costs for the first 72 hours due to lack of advance notice, after which travelers bear all expenses. Thai nationals will not be charged.
Regarding flight coordination and cost estimates, the ministry is coordinating with airlines on expense details. Only travelers directly from the two specified countries require quarantine; those merely transiting through other countries on the same flight do not. Currently, no travel ban exists, though the ministry will continuously reassess the situation. If conditions improve or arrivals decrease, measures may be adjusted accordingly. The escalation was deemed necessary as increasing numbers of travelers failed to cooperate with monitoring, making comprehensive tracking impossible.
