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Travel safety profile · Middle East

Is Iraq Safe to Visit in 2026?

80 / 100

Very High Risk

Kurdistan region has lower risk. Rest of Iraq has severe security risks. Historical sites incredible but access difficult. Reviewed 24 April 2026 How we score

Live alerts in Iraq Get the iOS app

⚠ Active conflict / rapidly changing situation

Our static profile may lag events. Always verify against the latest FCDO advisory before travel.

What Warnely Is Tracking

Real-time incidents pulled from the Warnely pipeline. The dashboard renders a richer feed.

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Official Travel Advisories

UK FCDO

See travel advice

Check current advice.

View full advisory →

Iraq compared to your home country

Iraq's composite Warnely risk score is 80/100 (Extreme Risk). Here is how that compares to common home countries for English-speaking travellers. Append ?home=GB (or US, AU, CA, DE) to the URL to pin your home.

United Kingdom 22/100

Iraq is materially riskier than United Kingdom (3.6× riskier on the Warnely index).

United States 35/100

Iraq is materially riskier than United States (2.3× riskier on the Warnely index).

Australia 14/100

Iraq is materially riskier than Australia (5.7× riskier on the Warnely index).

Canada 15/100

Iraq is materially riskier than Canada (5.3× riskier on the Warnely index).

Germany 20/100

Iraq is materially riskier than Germany (4.0× riskier on the Warnely index).

Lower scores are safer. Each home country's score is its own composite on the same 0-100 scale. See methodology.

Risk Breakdown

This is the static baseline rating across six dimensions. The Warnely dashboard adds a live 30-day signal alongside.

Crime4/5

Check FCDO/State Dept for current assessment.

Natural Disasters2/5

Check local conditions.

Health3/5

Consult travel clinic before departure.

Terrorism4/5

Check current advisories.

Civil Unrest4/5

Monitor local situation.

Infrastructure4/5

Check transport options.

Quick Facts

Plug type	C/D/G
Voltage	230V/50Hz
Time zone	UTC+3
Driving side	Right
Tap water	Unsafe

Essential Phrases Arabic (Modern Standard)

Hello	مرحبا MAR-hah-bah (or As-salāmu ʿalaikum for Muslim greeting)
Thank you	شكراً SHOOK-rahn
Yes / No	نعم / لا NAH-am / LAH
Sorry / Excuse me	آسف (m) / آسفة (f) AH-sif (m) / AH-si-fah (f)
Help!	النجدة! an-NAJ-dah

Visa & Entry

Type	Visa on arrival
Length	30/60 days
Cost	$75 USD

$75 VOA at Baghdad/Erbil airports for ~30 Western nationalities since 2021. Kurdistan region simpler than federal Iraq.

Verify on IATA Travel Centre →

Summary: Visa on arrival for some nationalities. Kurdistan has separate visa.

Passport: Valid 6+ months; no Israeli stamps.

Customs: Strict. Declare cash over $10,000.

Prohibited: Alcohol in most places outside hotels/Christian areas. Drones banned. Photography of checkpoints/military. Drug laws strict.

Practical Tips

Kurdistan Region (KRG) has separate entry requirements – Erbil e-visa works for Kurdistan only
For federal Iraq: visa-on-arrival for UK/US/EU at Baghdad/Basra/Najaf airports (check current policy)
Tour operators arranging local fixers and drivers are essential
Don't wander in Baghdad alone – concrete barriers and checkpoints everywhere
Mosul is still rebuilding from ISIS damage – access variable

Common Scams & Practical Risks

General warning: Scams are the least of your concerns. Do not travel to active conflict zones.

Solo & Women’s Safety

Solo Travellers

NOT RECOMMENDED. Do not travel.

Women’s Safety Do Not Travel

Extremely dangerous. Do not travel.

LGBTQ+ Travellers

Legal status	Criminalised
Social climate	Hostile

Law passed 2024 criminalising same-sex relations (10–15yr prison). Militias have killed LGBTQ people. No visible community. Travel dangerous.

Verify current law on Equaldex →

Drug Laws

Severity	Severe (long sentences)
Cannabis	Severe penalties

Possession can mean life imprisonment. Active conflict context. Avoid.

Verify on UK FCDO →

Emergency Numbers

police

104

ambulance

122

fire

115

tourist

N/A

If you decide to travel to Iraq

A practical checklist that applies to any trip. Each item links to the part of this guide where the specifics live.

1

Check the live advisory Read the UK FCDO and US State Department pages within a week of departure. Advisories change. View current FCDO advisory →
2

Register your trip US citizens: enrol with STEP. UK citizens: register your itinerary with the nearest British embassy. Both enable consular contact in an emergency.
3

Save the local emergency numbers Police: 104. Ambulance: 122. Pin them in your phone's emergency-contacts screen so they're reachable from a locked phone.
4

Insurance with medical evacuation Travel insurance with a medical-evacuation limit of £10m or more. Cheap policies usually exclude or cap medevac, the single most expensive thing that goes wrong abroad. See the medevac entry in the glossary for what to check.
5

Confirm vaccinations and prescriptions Visit a travel clinic 4-6 weeks before departure for any routine vaccinations and country-specific recommendations. Check any prescription medication against the destination's import rules.
6

Set up a check-in routine before you go Agree a daily or every-other-day check-in time with a contact at home, plus a fallback channel if your primary one fails (WhatsApp goes down in countries that block it). The family communication plan covers the specifics.

Find every foreign embassy and consulate in Iraq in the Warnely embassy directory →

Medical evacuation cost (pre-insurance)

Iraq sits in Band D on Warnely's medevac cost dataset. The figures below are typical pre-insurance ranges in USD, calibrated against published bands from Global Rescue, MedJet, Allianz, and insurance-industry whitepapers.

Remote or specialist extraction

Typical $150,000 to $350,000

Remote, very long distance, or active-risk extraction overheads. Specialist teams and bespoke routing push costs to the upper bound and beyond. Trips here should be supported by a duty-of-care provider, not a standard travel-insurance policy.

For the full methodology, the four-band table, and the downloadable CSV, see /methodology/medevac. Sanity-check your travel insurance limit against the high end of this band before booking.

Embed this score

Drop the Iraq Warnely badge on a blog post, country page, or briefing. The image is served straight from the Warnely API and updates whenever the score changes.

HTML

<a href="https://warnely.com/guides/is-iraq-safe"><img src="https://warnely.com/embed/iraq/badge.svg" alt="Iraq Warnely risk badge" width="360" height="44"></a>

Full embed options including Markdown and iframe variants: /embed/iraq.

Data version v2 · Last reviewed 24 April 2026 · Next review by 23 July 2026 · methodology · Found something out of date? Tell us.

Common questions about Iraq

Is Iraq safe for tourists in 2026?

Kurdistan region has lower risk. Rest of Iraq has severe security risks. Historical sites incredible but access difficult. Warnely's overall safety assessment for Iraq is Extreme Risk (80/100), very high risk. Always check the latest UK FCDO and US State Department advisories before booking.

What's the crime risk in Iraq?

Check FCDO/State Dept for current assessment. Crime category score: 4/5 (extreme).

Are there health risks travelling to Iraq?

Consult travel clinic before departure. Health category score: 3/5. Consult a travel clinic 4-6 weeks before departure for recommended vaccinations.

Is Iraq safe for solo female travellers?

Do Not Travel. Extremely dangerous. Do not travel.

When is the best time to visit Iraq?

Mild Shoulder (Mar-Apr, Oct-Nov). Pleasant (18-28°C), best (nominal) for Erbil, Karbala pilgrimages. Avoid summer heat.

What are the drug laws in Iraq?

Drug penalties: Severe (long sentences). Cannabis: Severe penalties. Possession can mean life imprisonment. Active conflict context. Avoid.

Do I need a visa to visit Iraq?

Visa on arrival. Stay length: 30/60 days. $75 VOA at Baghdad/Erbil airports for ~30 Western nationalities since 2021. Kurdistan region simpler than federal Iraq.

Is the tap water safe to drink in Iraq?

Tap water in Iraq is not safe to drink – use bottled or filtered water. Most travellers should stick to bottled or filtered water for cooking, drinking and ice.

What do governments say about travel to Iraq?

UK FCDO: See travel advice. Read the full advisories on the relevant government sites – links are inside the Official Travel Advisories section above.