Vaccination and Health Risks

Your doctor can give you important advice and prescribe vaccines and medications to help you stay safe while traveling abroad. The following are vaccinations and medications you and your physician may wish to consider before travel to Australia.

To have the most benefit, see a doctor at least 4-6 weeks before your trip to allow time for your vaccines to take effect. If you are leaving sooner, it is still important to see a doctor as soon as possible for vaccines, medications and information about how to protect yourself from illness and injury while traveling.
Your doctor will make specific recommendations, depending on your health and immunization history, areas of the country you will be visiting, planned activities and other factors. If your travel plans will take you to more than one country during a single trip, be sure to let your health-care provider know. Long-term travelers, such as those who plan to work or study abroad, may also need additional vaccinations as required by their employer or school.
If you have a chronic medical condition, share your travel plans with any doctors who are currently treating you.

Vaccine or Disease	Risk	Vaccination or Treatment Recommendations
Routine		Recommended if you are not up-to-date with routine shots such as, measles/mumps/rubella (MMR) vaccine, diphtheria/pertussis/tetanus (DPT) vaccine, poliovirus vaccine, etc.
Hepatitis A		Recommended because hepatitis A outbreaks occur throughout the world and sometimes in countries with a low risk for hepatitis A. You can get hepatitis A through contaminated food or water in Australia, so talk to your doctor to see if the hepatitis A vaccine is right for you.
Hepatitis B		Recommended, especially for those who have sexual contact, contaminated needles, blood products, get a tattoo or piercing, or have any medical procedures.
Japanese Encephalitis		Depending on what time of year you are traveling, you may need this vaccine if you are visiting certain remote areas of Australia for more than a month, or if you will be spending a lot of time outdoors in those areas during a shorter trip. Your doctor can help you decide if this vaccine is right for you based on your travel plans. Transmission season runs from December-May.
Malaria		Not endemic
Meningococcal Meningitis		Not endemic
Rabies		Recommended, especially for travelers involved in outdoor and other activities in remote areas that put them at risk for bat bites (such as adventure travel and caving) and for people who will be working with or around bats (such as wildlife professionals and researchers).
Typhoid		Not endemic
Yellow Fever		Required for all people over 1 year of age who enter Australia within 6 days of having stayed overnight or longer in a country with risk of YFV transmission, including São Tomé and Príncipe, Somalia, and Tanzania, but excluding Galápagos Islands in Ecuador and limited to Misiones Province in Argentina.

Resource Links

This document is not a complete medical guide for travelers to this region. Conditions change over time and the recommendations for various countries at the time you travel may differ from the recommendations listed here. Consult with your doctor or visit the CDC website for specific information related to your needs and your medical history; recommendations may differ for pregnant women, young children, and persons who have chronic medical conditions.

Be sure to read the information about all the regions you are planning to visit.