DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF THE CONGO — The Trump administration barred U.S. citizens in the Democratic Republic of the Congo from boarding commercial flights to the United States on July 14, 2025. The restriction, implemented under Title 49 transportation authority, requires affected Americans to spend at least 21 days in a third country outside the Democratic Republic of the Congo before returning to the United States.

The travel ban stems from updated guidance on the Ebola outbreak issued by Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. Reuters first reported the restrictions late on Monday, and Politico independently confirmed the order on Tuesday. Roughly two dozen Americans who had scheduled flights to the United States on Tuesday were blocked from boarding under the new rule.

A U.S. official stated that the State Department will work with the affected citizens on their 21-day waiting period. The same official said the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) will provide medical assessments to Americans in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Many of the U.S. citizens in the country work for nonprofit organizations or are engaged in international business. It remains unclear whether the travel bar applies to U.S. government workers stationed there.

The CDC currently has at least two dozen employees working in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. U.S. health authorities are observing greater community spread of Ebola into the western part of the country. The CDC states that its “do-not-board” lists are intended to bar travelers who are “known or suspected to have a contagious disease.” Ebola transmits via contact with bodily fluids while people are actively sick or recently deceased.

Non-U.S. citizens who had spent time in the Democratic Republic of the Congo were already restricted from traveling to the United States. The World Health Organization (WHO) reported 1,963 confirmed Ebola cases and 719 confirmed deaths in the country as of July 14. On July 15, WHO stated it has less than half the funding needed to properly respond to the outbreak. Last week, WHO reported that four out of every five new Ebola cases have no link to known cases, and officials warned the true scale of the outbreak could be two to four times larger than current case counts.

The travel restriction marks a expansion of U.S. Ebola-related entry controls by applying them to American citizens for the first time in this outbreak. The policy reflects heightened concern over untraceable community transmission, as indicated by WHO data showing most new cases lack epidemiological links to known infections. The 21-day waiting period aligns with Ebola’s maximum incubation period, a standard public health measure used in prior outbreaks.

The involvement of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. in issuing the guidance places the decision within a broader federal health framework, even as implementation relies on transportation and diplomatic authorities. With the CDC maintaining a field presence in the region and WHO warning of severe underreporting and funding shortfalls, the U.S. action occurs documented escalation of the outbreak’s reach and complexity.