Malaria-endemic regions
Canadian Blood Services uses the United States Centers for Disease Control (CDC) malaria information to determine which regions have occurrences of malaria that are high enough to require medications to prevent infection. We have simplified this information using tables and maps.
The tables below are organized by country and geographical areas and highlight where the chances of acquiring malaria may be greatest.
For Mexico, Central America, South America and the Caribbean, only travel spots that you have spent more than 24 hours in would trigger a waiting period for you to donate blood or platelets. For example, if you are on a Caribbean cruise and it stops for a day trip (less than 24 hours) in Haiti, where the chances of acquiring malaria are high, you do not have to wait before donating.
We know that the criteria for malaria eligibility disproportionately affects people who have travelled to or immigrated from regions where malaria is endemic. We truly empathize that being turned away from donating blood may leave donors with a sense of frustration and disappointment.
As our testing platforms and research continues to advance and mature, we remain committed to continuously reviewing our eligibility criteria and removing existing barriers to donation when blood safety is assured. Our efforts are focused on building a more inclusive donation process, while ensuring the safety and sufficiency of the blood supply.
If you have any questions about malaria eligibility criteria or are wondering if you can donate, please call us at 1 888 2 DONATE (1-888-236-6283).
You can also learn more by visiting our Malaria: information for blood and plasma donors page.
List of countries by name
Risk levels and their meanings
For the purpose of blood or platelet donation, malaria risk refers to geographical areas where medication to prevent malaria is recommended for travellers.
- No risk
- There is no malaria risk in the country or area
- All risk
- Whole country or area is a malaria risk
- Partial risk
- Some parts of the country are a malaria risk
Country | Malaria risk level | Notes |
---|---|---|
Afghanistan | All risk | |
Albania | No risk | |
Algeria | No risk | |
American Samoa | No risk | |
Andorra | No risk | |
Angola | All risk | |
Anguilla (United Kingdom) | No risk | |
Antarctica | No risk | |
Antigua and Barbuda | No risk | |
Argentina | No risk | |
Armenia | No risk | |
Aruba | No risk | |
Australia | No risk | |
Austria | No risk | |
Azerbaijan | No risk | |
Azores (Portugal) | No risk | |
Bahamas | No risk | |
Bahrain | No risk | |
Bangladesh | Partial risk | All risk, except no risk in the district and city of Dhaka |
Barbados | No risk | |
Belarus | No risk | |
Belgium | No risk | |
Belize | No risk | |
Benin | All risk | |
Bermuda | No risk | |
Bhutan | No risk | |
Bolivia | Partial risk | Risk areas |
Bonaire | No risk | |
Bosnia and Herzegovina | No risk | |
Botswana | Partial risk | Risk areas |
Brazil | Partial risk | Risk areas |
British Indian Ocean Territory (includes Diego Garcia) | No risk | |
British Virgin Islands (includes Tortola, Virgin Gorda, Anegada, Jost Van Dyke and other small islands) | No risk | |
Brunei | No risk | |
Bulgaria | No risk | |
Burkina Faso | All risk | |
Burma (Myanmar) | All risk | |
Burundi | All risk | |
Cambodia | Partial risk | All risk except no risk in city of Phnom Penh, Siem Reap and the temple complex at Angkor Wat |
Cameroon | All risk | |
Canada | No risk | |
Canary Islands (Spain) | No risk | |
Cape Verde | No risk | |
Cayman Islands (United Kingdom) | No risk | |
Central African Republic | All risk | |
Chad | All risk | |
Chile | No risk | |
China | No risk | |
Christmas Island (Australia) | No risk | |
Cocos (Keeling) Islands (Australia) | No risk | |
Colombia | Partial risk | All risk except no risk in cities of Bogotá Cartagena and Medellin |
Comoros | All risk | |
Congo, Republic of the (Congo-Brazzaville) | All risk | |
Cook Islands (New Zealand) | No risk | |
Costa Rica | Partial risk | Risk in Alajuela province, only near the border of Nicaragua |
Côte d'Ivoire | All risk | |
Croatia | No risk | |
Cuba | No risk | |
Curacao | No risk | |
Cyprus | No risk | |
Czech Republic | No risk | |
Democratic Republic of the Congo (Congo - Kinshasa, formerly Zaire) | All risk | |
Denmark | No risk | |
Djibouti | All risk | |
Dominica | No risk | |
Dominican Republic | Partial risk | Risk areas |
East Timor (Timor-L'este) | No risk | |
Easter Island (Chile) | No risk | |
Ecuador | Partial risk | Risk areas |
Egypt | No risk | |
El Salvador | No risk | |
England (United Kingdom) | No risk | |
Equatorial Guinea | All risk | |
Eritrea | Partial risk | All risk except no risk in city of Asmara |
Estonia | No risk | |
Eswatini (formerly Swaziland) | All risk | |
Ethiopia | Partial risk | All risk except no risk in city of Addis Ababa |
Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas) | No risk | |
Faroe Islands (Denmark) | No risk | |
Fiji | No risk | |
Finland | No risk | |
France | No risk | |
French Guiana | Partial risk | All risk except no risk in Cayenne City |
French Polynesia, including island groups of Society Islands (Tahiti, Moorea, Bora- Bora), Marquesas Islands (Hiva Oa, Ua Huka) and Austral Islands (Tubuai and Rurutu) | No risk | |
Gabon | All risk | |
Gambia, The | All risk | |
Georgia | No risk | |
Germany | No risk | |
Ghana | All risk | |
Gibraltar (United Kingdom) | No risk | |
Greece | No risk | |
Greenland (Denmark) | No risk | |
Grenada | No risk | |
Guadeloupe, including Saint Barthelemy and Saint Martin (France) | No risk | |
Guam (United States) | No risk | |
Guatemala | Partial risk | Risk areas |
Guinea | All risk | |
Guinea-Bissau | All risk | |
Guyana | Partial risk | All risk except no risk in the cities of Georgetown and Amsterdam |
Haiti | All risk | |
Holland (Netherlands) | No risk | |
Honduras | Partial risk | All risk except no risk in the cities of Tegucigalpa and San Pedro Sula. Risk areas include tourist destinations of Roatán and other Bay Islands. |
Hong Kong (China) | No risk | |
Hungary | No risk | |
Iceland | No risk | |
India | All risk | |
Indonesia | Partial risk | Risk areas |
Iran | No risk | |
Iraq | No risk | |
Ireland (Republic of Ireland) | No risk | |
Israel | No risk | |
Italy, including Vatican City | No risk | |
Ivory Coast | All risk | |
Jamaica | No risk | |
Japan | No risk | |
Jordan | No risk | |
Kazakhstan | No risk | |
Kenya | All risk | |
Kiribati (formerly Gilbert Islands), including Tarawa, Tabuaeran (Fanning Island) and Banaba (Ocean Island) | No risk | |
Kosovo | No risk | |
Kuwait | No risk | |
Kyrgyzstan | No risk | |
Laos | Partial risk | All risk, except no risk in the city of Vientiane |
Latvia | No risk | |
Lebanon | No risk | |
Lesotho | No risk | |
Liberia | All risk | |
Libya | No risk | |
Liechtenstein | No risk | |
Lithuania | No risk | |
Luxembourg | No risk | |
Macau (China) | No risk | |
Macedonia | No risk | |
Madagascar | Partial risk | All risk, except no risk in the city of Antananarivo |
Madeira Islands (Portugal) | No risk | |
Malawi | All risk | |
Malaysia | Partial risk | Risk areas |
Maldives | No risk | |
Mali | All risk | |
Malta | No risk | |
Marshall Islands | No risk | |
Martinique (France) | No risk | |
Mauritania | Partial risk | All risk, except no risk in the regions of Dakhlet-Nouadhibou and Tiris-Zemour |
Mauritius | No risk | |
Mayotte (France) | No risk | |
Mexico | Partial risk | Risk areas |
Micronesia, Federated States of; includes Yap Islands, Chuuk, Pohnpei, Kosrae | No risk | |
Moldova | No risk | |
Monaco | No risk | |
Mongolia | No risk | |
Montenegro | No risk | |
Montserrat (United Kingdom) | No risk | |
Morocco | No risk | |
Mozambique | All risk | |
Myanmar (Burma) | All risk | |
Namibia | Partial risk | Risk areas |
Nauru | No risk | |
Nepal | Partial risk | All risk except no risk in Kathmandu |
Netherlands (Holland) | No risk | |
Netherlands Antilles (Aruba, Bonaire, Curaçao, Saba, St. Eustasius and St. Maarten) | No risk | |
New Caledonia (France) | No risk | |
New Zealand | No risk | |
Nicaragua | Partial risk | Risk areas |
Niger | All risk | |
Nigeria | All risk | |
Niue (New Zealand) | No risk | |
Norfolk Island (Australia) | No risk | |
North Korea | All risk | |
Northern Ireland (United Kingdom) | No risk | |
Northern Mariana Islands (United States), includes Saipan, Tinian and Rota Island | No risk | |
Norway | No risk | |
Oman | No risk | |
Pakistan | All risk | |
Palau | No risk | |
Palestine (West Bank) | No risk | |
Panama | Partial risk | Risk areas |
Papua New Guinea | All risk | |
Paraguay | No risk | |
Peru | Partial risk | Risk areas |
Philippines | Partial risk | Risk areas |
Pitcairn Islands (United Kingdom) | No risk | |
Poland | No risk | |
Portugal | No risk | |
Puerto Rico (United States) | No risk | |
Qatar | No risk | |
Réunion (France) | No risk | |
Romania | No risk | |
Russia | No risk | |
Rwanda | All risk | |
Saba | No risk | |
Saint Barthelemy (St. Bart's) | No risk | |
Saint Eustasius | No risk | |
Saint Helena (United Kingdom) | No risk | |
Saint Kitts (Saint Christopher) and Nevis | No risk | |
Saint Lucia | No risk | |
Saint Martin | No risk | |
Saint Pierre and Miquelon (France) | No risk | |
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines | No risk | |
Samoa (formerly Western Samoa) | No risk | |
San Marino | No risk | |
São Tomé and Principe | All risk | |
Saudi Arabia | Partial risk | Risk in the emirates of Asir and Jazan (also spelled Jizan) only. |
Scotland (United Kingdom) | No risk | |
Senegal | All risk | |
Serbia | No risk | |
Seychelles | No risk | |
Sierra Leone | All risk | |
Singapore | No risk | |
Sint Maarten | No risk | |
Slovakia | No risk | |
Slovenia | No risk | |
Solomon Islands | All risk | |
Somalia | All risk | |
South Africa | Partial risk | Risk areas |
South Georgia and South Sandwich Islands | No risk | |
South Korea | Partial risk | Risk areas |
South Sudan (Republic of) | All risk | |
Spain | No risk | |
Sri Lanka | No risk | |
Sudan | All risk | |
Suriname | Partial risk | Risk areas |
Swaziland (now called Eswatini) | All risk | |
Sweden | No risk | |
Switzerland | No risk | |
Syria | No risk | |
Taiwan | No risk | |
Tajikistan | No risk | |
Tanzania | All risk | |
Thailand | Partial risk | Risk areas |
Tibet (China) | No risk | |
Timor-Leste (East Timor) | No risk | |
Togo | All risk | |
Tokelau (New Zealand) | No risk | |
Tonga | No risk | |
Trinidad and Tobago | No risk | |
Tunisia | No risk | |
Turkey | No risk | |
Turkmenistan | No risk | |
Turks and Caicos Islands (United Kingdom) | No risk | |
Tuvalu | No risk | |
Uganda | All risk | |
Ukraine | No risk | |
United Arab Emirates | No risk | |
United Kingdom (England, Northern Ireland, Scotland, Wales, Isle of Man, Channel Islands) | No risk | |
United States | No risk | |
Uruguay | No risk | |
U.S. Virgin Islands (includes St. Thomas, St. John and St. Croix and other small islands) | No risk | |
Uzbekistan | No risk | |
Vanuatu | All risk | |
Venezuela | All risk | |
Vietnam | Partial risk |
Risk in rural areas except no risk in the Mekong and Red River Deltas. No risk in urban areas. (Common no risk destinations are cities of Da Nang, Haiphong, Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City (formerly Saigon), Nha Trang and Qui Nhon.) |
Virgin Islands (British), including Tortola, Virgin Gorda, Anegada, Jost Van Dyke and other small islands | No risk | |
Virgin Islands (United States), including St. Thomas, St. John and St. Croix and other small islands | No risk | |
Wake Island (United States) | No risk | |
Wallis and Futuna Islands (France) | No risk | |
West Bank (includes Palestinian Territories) | No risk | |
Western Sahara | No risk | |
Yemen | Partial risk | All risk except no risk in Sana'a |
Zambia | All risk | |
Zimbabwe | All risk |