Dominican Republic to US Flights Need Ebola Form Nov 3

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DOMINICAN REPUBLIC · TRAVEL RULES

The Dominican Republic Ebola form is a signed statement that every US-bound passenger must show before boarding from Tuesday 3 November 2026. It covers flights from Punta Cana, Santo Domingo, Santiago and every other Dominican airport, and US citizens must sign it too.

You sign that you were not in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, a central African nation, in the past 21 days. That is a different country from the Dominican Republic, which is not named in the order, so most travellers can sign easily.

What Changes on Tuesday 3 November

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the federal health agency, issued the amended order on Wednesday 28 October 2026. Brian Christine, the Assistant Secretary for Health, signed it, and the Federal Register, the government’s official gazette, printed it on Friday 30 October.

From 11:59 p.m. Eastern Standard Time (EST) on Tuesday 3 November, airlines may not board anyone for the US without a signed attestation. An attestation is a written statement that you sign under penalty of law, on paper or on a screen.

The order covers every aircraft heading to the United States, including private planes and flights that only connect there. Overflights that never land in the US are not affected.

The CDC says the Bundibugyo virus, a rare species of Ebola, is spreading in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. As of 18 October the Congolese authorities reported 9,455 confirmed cases and 4,561 deaths, the order says.

The virus can take up to 21 days to cause symptoms, so an infected traveller can board a plane looking well. The CDC decided that airport screening alone would not be enough, and chose a signed statement that airlines must check.

Who Must Sign and What the Form Says

Everyone boarding a US-bound aircraft must sign, passengers and crew alike. JetBlue, a US airline, says the Ebola form applies to all customers, including US citizens and lawful permanent residents.

Only travellers with a CDC exemption, such as a medical evacuation, are excused. The order grants these on humanitarian or other important government grounds.

A parent or another authorised adult may sign for a child under 18. A travel companion may sign for the party, and JetBlue says one person can complete the Ebola form for the whole booking.

The statement is short: you were not present in the Democratic Republic of the Congo in the 21 days before boarding. The count uses calendar days, day 0 is the day you left, and you may fly on day 22.

Presence means any physical stay, including changing planes at a Congolese airport without leaving the aircraft. Anyone who was there within 21 days cannot board and must wait outside the United States.

Giving false information can bring a delay, a denial of boarding or a ban from future boarding, the order says. The US Justice Department may also prosecute a knowingly false statement under section 1001 of the federal criminal code.

Airlines that skip the checks risk criminal penalties, with fines of up to US$200,000 per organisation. An airline that cannot confirm every statement may also be refused permission to disembark its passengers at a US airport.

How It Works at Dominican Airports

The order does not say where to find the Ebola form, so each airline decides how to collect it. American Airlines, a major US carrier, lets you complete it at check-in on aa.com, in its app or at the airport.

American also offers a PDF that you can print and fill in beforehand. JetBlue asks passengers to complete the CDC form before the flight and have it ready at check-in or boarding.

The airline must keep a copy of every statement for at least 42 days after the flight. A clean, fully signed Ebola form therefore saves time at the gate.

Allow extra time at Punta Cana, Las Américas in Santo Domingo and Cibao in Santiago in the first days of the rule. Agents must review a signed Ebola form for each traveller before the flight can be cleared.

The Time Zone Trap for Late Flights

The order names 11:59 p.m. Eastern Standard Time on Tuesday 3 November. The US East Coast moved to standard time on Sunday 1 November, while the Dominican Republic keeps UTC-4 all year and is one hour ahead.

So the rule applies to flights leaving after 12:59 a.m. on Wednesday 4 November in the Dominican Republic. A plane that departs at 12:30 a.m. that night still leaves before the deadline, at 11:30 p.m. EST.

Treat every US-bound flight from Wednesday 4 November as covered. If your flight leaves around midnight on the night of 3 November, ask your airline and carry a signed Ebola form anyway.

In Plain English: Two Similar Names

DR Congo is the Democratic Republic of the Congo, a country in central Africa far from the Caribbean. The Dominican Republic shares the island of Hispaniola with Haiti and plays no part in the order.

The CDC is the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the federal public health agency in Atlanta. The order lists Ebola travel notices for the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Uganda and Nairobi, and not for the Dominican Republic.

The shared abbreviation DR is the likeliest source of confusion. Read the exact wording on your airline’s Ebola form before you sign.

Tips for US Visitors and Expats

Connecting trips count. A flight from Punta Cana to Miami that continues to London needs the Ebola form, because the first leg lands in the United States.

Puerto Rico, the US Virgin Islands and other US territories count as the United States. Flights to San Juan are therefore covered, as are flights to the mainland.

Flights from the United States to the Dominican Republic are not covered. Neither are arrivals by ship, because the order applies only to aircraft.

Fill in the Ebola form before you leave the resort or your flat, and save a digital copy on your phone. Carry a printed copy as well, in case the signal or the battery fails at the airport.

Dominican residents flying to the US for a visit need the Ebola form too, and a US visa does not replace it. One adult can sign for a whole family, but each traveller must be covered.

US citizens who have been in Uganda or South Sudan face separate rules from other CDC orders, listed on American Airlines’ advisory page. Those rules do not affect a normal holiday in the Dominican Republic.

What Is Not Confirmed Yet

The order runs to Friday 18 December 2026, but the CDC may extend it, narrow it or end it earlier. Any change will depend on case counts, geographic spread and containment capacity in affected countries.

Delta and Arajet, the Dominican low-cost airline, had not published Ebola form instructions on their travel pages on Sunday 1 November. Ask your carrier how it will collect the form before you leave for the airport.

Neither the Dominican government nor the airports have announced how they will handle the US rule. How many flights will see delays in the first days is also not known.

What Comes Next

December is peak season, and our guide to Dominican winter flights shows which US routes add seats. For the city side of a trip, read our Santo Domingo explainer and the Santo Domingo city page.

The same CDC rule applies on every route to the US, as our guide to Colombia flights explains. Check back before Friday 18 December for any extension.

More: Dominican Republic news in English, every day from The Rio Times.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I need the Ebola form to fly from the Dominican Republic to the US?

Yes, if your flight leaves at or after 11:59 p.m. EST on Tuesday 3 November 2026 (12:59 a.m. Wednesday locally). US citizens must sign too.

Does the Ebola form mean the Dominican Republic has Ebola?

No. The form asks only whether you were in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and the CDC order does not name the Dominican Republic.

Where do I get the Ebola form for my flight?

From your airline. American Airlines offers it at check-in on aa.com, in its app or at the airport, and JetBlue links the CDC form on its travel-alerts page.

Sources: US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Notice and Amended Order, Requirement for Attestation by All Persons Arriving in the United States by Aircraft (signed 28 October 2026), 28 October 2026, accessed 1 November 2026; Federal Register, Vol. 91, No. 209, page 68518, Notice and Amended Order, 30 October 2026; JetBlue, Travel Alerts: Ebola-related travel restrictions and entry requirements, updated 31 October 2026, accessed 1 November 2026; American Airlines, Travel alerts and advisories: Ebola-related travel advisory, accessed 1 November 2026; CDC, Travel Health Notices, accessed 1 November 2026.

This article was produced by The Rio Times’ automated newsroom system. How we use AI · Report an error · Editorial responsibility: Matthias Camenzind, Editor-in-Chief