Active conflict or extreme danger; travel is strongly discouraged. Civil liberties are tightly restricted and political expression can carry risk.
Regional breakdown
The risk picture in Chad is not uniform. The official advisory guidance warns against all travel to the northern provinces of Borkou, Ennedi Ouest, Ennedi Est and Tibesti. These are remote desert areas where armed groups operate and where state presence is thin. Western Kanem province, including the town of Nokou, sits in the same category, as does the wider Lake Chad region in the south-west. A 30km buffer along every one of Chad's land borders also falls under the strictest warning. That covers the frontiers with Libya, Niger, Nigeria, Cameroon, the Central African Republic and Sudan. The official advisory guidance flags the same border belts because of armed conflict, banditry and unmarked minefields left over from earlier wars. The Sudan border in the east has seen extra pressure since the war in Darfur pushed refugees westward. For the rest of Chad, including the capital N'Djamena, official advisory guidance warns against all but essential travel. N'Djamena itself is calmer than the borderlands, but petty and violent crime still happen. Travellers heading to provincial towns such as Abeche, Moundou or Sarh face long road journeys through areas with limited policing and patchy mobile coverage.
Recent advisory changes
The official advisory guidance last refreshed its Chad guidance on 10 December 2025. The wording keeps the two-tier structure: advise against all travel to the north, the Lake Chad zone. Western Kanem and the 30km border belt, and advise against all but essential travel to the rest of the country. The official advisory guidance also makes clear that international consular support is run remotely from the High Commission in Yaoundé, Cameroon. And that travellers should not count on the UK government to get them out in a crisis. The official advisory guidance reissued its Chad advisory on 18 March 2025 at Level 3, Reconsider Travel. The reissue added detail on violent crime and on the border areas, which sit at Level 4, Do Not Travel. Washington lists crime, terrorism, civil unrest and kidnapping as the main drivers. No ordered or authorised departure of US staff is in place right now. But the embassy stresses that outside N'Djamena it has very limited ability to help travellers in an emergency.
What travellers should know
Insurance is the first thing to check. Most UK policies will not pay out for trips taken against official advisory guidance guidance, which in Chad covers the whole country at some level. Travellers on essential business should confirm in writing that their cover holds, and look for a policy that includes medical evacuation by air. Hospitals outside N'Djamena have very limited capacity, and serious cases are usually flown to Europe or to Nairobi. On the ground, official advisories point to armed robbery, carjacking and kidnapping as real risks. Road travel between cities should be done in daylight, in convoy where possible, and with local guidance on which routes are open. The rainy season from June to October cuts off many unpaved roads. Carry copies of your passport and Chadian visa, expect frequent checkpoints, and register your trip with your embassy before you arrive. Mobile coverage drops sharply once you leave the main towns, so a satellite phone is worth considering for any travel into the interior.