Uganda Covid-19 Travel Restrictions and Guidelines

5 min readAug 22, 2021

For those Traveling to Uganda have to pay attention to the travel restrictions and follow the guidelines: All Vaccinated Travelers are allowed to enter, with vaccination certificates.
Vaccination Requirements: Fully vaccinated travelers coming from the United Kingdom, Ethiopia, Kenya, South Africa, South Sudan, Tanzania, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates and the United States can enter Uganda without testing on arrival.
Tourist Entry: Allowed
Testing: Negative PCR test results are required for all countries. All travelers from the United Kingdom, Ethiopia, Kenya, South Africa, South Sudan, Tanzania, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates and the United States are required to undergo PCR testing at the border at their own expense, including at Entebbe International Airport. The cost of the PCR test will be up $65.

Quarantine Required: Depends
Quarantine Details: Travelers showing symptoms of COVID-19 will be tested upon arrival and required to quarantine until results are in.

Local Restrictions

Lockdown in Effect: Partial
Events: Partially Allowed
Transport: Operational with restrictions (only essential workers, and special needs)
Shopping: only supermarkets and malls but shopping arcades and other shops are closed in the city Centre.
Restaurants and Bars: Open with restrictions
Detailed Travel Advisory.

1. Flights from India are suspended.
– This does not apply to humanitarian, medevac and repatriation flights.
2. Passengers must have a negative COVID-19 PCR test taken at most 72 hours before departure from the first embarkation point.
– This does not apply to passengers younger than 3 years.
3. Passengers arriving from Ethiopia, Kenya, South Africa, South Sudan, Tanzania, Turkey, USA, United Arab Emirates or United Kingdom are subject to a PCR test upon arrival.
– This does not apply to passengers with a COVID-19 vaccination certificate showing that they were fully vaccinated and are asymptomatic.
4. Passengers and airline crew are subject to medical screening; and
– could be subject to quarantine. Detailed Tourist Information

As of 18th June 2021 land borders are restricted to cargo and registered tourist vehicles. Commercial flights are operating. New COVID-19 standard operating procedures (SOPs) are in place for arriving and departing passengers.

If you are travelling to Uganda, you will need to provide a negative COVID-19 test certificate, issued no more than 120 hours before boarding the aircraft or crossing land borders. Foreign nationals without a valid negative test certificate will be denied entry. Infants aged three and under are exempt when accompanying parents arrive with a negative test certificate.

All travellers from the United Kingdom, Ethiopia, Kenya, South Africa, South Sudan, Tanzania, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates and the United States are required to undergo PCR testing at the border at their own expense, including at Entebbe International Airport. As of 11 June 2021 the exemption from testing on arrival for those who have received their full COVID-19 vaccination and show no COVID-19 symptoms has been withdrawn. The cost of the PCR test will be up $65. Travellers from the above countries who arrive by air, will be taken from the airport to a nearby testing site. Test results will take up to 4 hours. Travellers have the option of waiting at the testing site for their results or checking into a designated hotel at their own expense. Anyone who tests positive (including children, with their parent or guardian) will be taken to a Ministry of Health designated COVID-19 isolation facility. Passengers who have been in India in the previous 14 days will not be permitted entry into Uganda unless they are Ugandans returning home.

Passengers arriving or departing from Entebbe International Airport can only be picked up or dropped off by a maximum of two people, including the driver, in order to avoid crowding. Vehicles with more than the authorized number of people will not be allowed access to the airport.
Lockdown Details

New restrictions announced by the Government of Uganda on June 18 include:

All public and private transport is suspended for 42 days, starting June 18, 2021, except for cargo vehicles, registered tourist vehicles, emergency vehicles, and essential workers’ vehicles.

The following are closed for 42 days: Schools, places of worship, sports events, bars, discos, sports betting, and cinemas.

Public gatherings, except for the cabinet and legislature, are banned for 42 days.

Social gatherings (including burials and weddings) must be restricted to core family only and have no more than 20 persons in attendance provided masks are worn and social distancing of two meters is followed. House parties are banned.

A curfew of 7:00 p.m.-5:30 a.m. is in place. Motorcycle taxi (boda-boda) drivers must cease their movements by 5:00 p.m. and prior to that time may carry cargo but no passengers, with the exception of medical patients traveling to healthcare facilities.

Workplaces should ensure that not more than 10 percent of staff work from the office at any one time.

Weekly non-food markets have been suspended for 42 days.

Essential sectors that remain fully functional: agriculture, industry, manufacturing, cargo transportation, tourism, health and medical services, security, and utilities such as water, electricity, retail, media, and banking.

Uganda Covid-19 Travel Restrictions and Guidelines

Written by Gorilla Safaris Uganda Travel