Restricted Country List

Faculty/Staff

Individual Faculty/Staff planning travel to a country that is considered restricted by the university must complete a Restricted Travel Petition as part of creating an individual travel record in the Global Safety Network (GSN) system. The GSN system will automatically provide travelers with the required travel petition to complete in GSN when proposing travel that includes a restricted country at the time of creation, or if they are going to a specified region that is considered restricted. As a reminder restricted travel requires prior authorization/approval and individuals should plan to submit their travel in the Global Safety Network (GSN)  more than 30 days prior to their planned departure date. Travelers must receive this approval for travel to restricted countries prior to purchasing airline tickets, hotel accommodations, etc., Please contact Global Safety to confirm if your desired destination(s) are restricted for travel.

The following is the current list of countries restricted for Individual Faculty/Staff travel: 

Restricted Countries for Faculty/Staff as of June 2024
Afganistan	Algeria	Belarus	Burkina Faso
Burundi	Cameroon	Central African Republic  (CAR)	Chad
Colombia	Cote d'Ivore (Ivory Coast)	Cuba	Congo,  Democratic Republic of
Djibouti	Egypt	Eritrea	Ethiopia
Haiti	Iran	Iraq	Israel
Lebanon	Libya	Mali	Mauritania
Mexico	Myanmar (Burma)	Niger	Nigeria
North Korea	Pakistan	Philippines	Russia
Somalia	South Sudan, Republic of	Sudan	Syria
Türkiye	Ukraine	Venezuela	West Bank or Gaza
Yemen	Zimbabwe

Faculty/staff traveling with students are subject to the list of countries restricted for students travel which are outlined in the Students section below. 

Please note that all required documentation for Education Abroad programs  will be included in the study abroad proposal application. Contact Education Abroad with any questions or concerns.

Students

In addition to the countries that are restricted for students, any region within a country with a U.S. Department of State advisory of “reconsider travel” or “do not travel” is automatically restricted for student travel (applies to only that region, not the entire country), and travel to that region requires an approved petition.  The list is reviewed periodically and is subject to change. Travel proposal review and approval are required for student travel to restricted countries. Travelers must receive approval for travel to restricted countries prior to purchasing airline tickets, hotel accommodations, etc. Travel to restricted locations without prior review and approval is prohibited by the university's International Travel Policy.

Please note that students participating in approved Penn State Education Abroad programs do not need to contact Global Safety directly for the petition, as all required documentation will be included in the study abroad proposal application. Contact Education Abroad with any questions or concerns.

The following is the current list of countries which are restricted for all student (undergraduate, graduate, and professional) travel and require an approved petition in advance of making travel plans.

Restricted Countries for Students as of June 2024
Afganistan	Algeria	Armenia	Azerbaijan
Bangladesh	Belarus	Burkina Faso	Burundi
Cameroon	Central African Republic (CAR)	Chad	China
Colombia	Cote d'Ivore (Ivory Coast)	Cuba	Congo,  Democratic Republic of
Djibouti	Egypt	El Salvador	Eritrea
Ethiopia	Guatemala	Guinea	Guinea-Bissau
Guyana	Haiti	Honduras	Indonesia
Iran	Iraq	Israel	Jamaica
Kenya	Kosovo	Lebanon	Liberia
Libya	Macau	Mali	Mauritania
Mexico	Moldova	Mozambique	Myanmar (Burma)
New Caledonia	Nicaragua	Niger	Nigeria
North Korea	Pakistan	Papua New Guinea	Philippines
Russia	Saudi Arabia	Sierra Leone	Somalia
South Sudan, Republic of	Sri Lanka	Sudan	Syria
Tajikistan	Trinidad and Tobago	Turkey	Uganda
Ukraine	Venezuela	West Bank or Gaza	Yemen
Zimbabwe