Palau Entry Requirements
Visa, immigration, and customs information
Requirements flip overnight. Check the March 2026 info against your embassy and the government site before you fly, no exceptions.
Visa Requirements
Entry permissions vary by nationality. Find your category below.
Palau lets almost everyone in, no visa, 30 days on arrival. The only real exception? Americans. Thanks to the Compact of Free Association, they can live and work in Palau indefinitely. Everyone else signs the Palau Pledge, a legally binding eco-commitment, at the airport.
Show up in Palau and they'll stamp you in, free. Nationals of most countries worldwide may enter Palau without a pre-arranged visa. A 30-day entry permit is issued at the port of entry at no charge. That zero-dollar stamp covers the vast majority of leisure travelers visiting Palau for tourism, diving, and sightseeing.
US citizens walk straight in, no visa, no limit, no paperwork beyond a passport. Everyone else needs six months left on the document, a return or onward ticket, and roughly USD $400 per week in pocket. They'll also sign the Palau Pledge at immigration. Under the Compact of Free Association, Americans can live, work, and stay forever, no questions asked.
A handful of nationalities can't board without a visa. They must phone the Palau Bureau of Immigration and Labor or a Palauan embassy or consulate, where one exists, weeks before departure.
Palau's visa list changes, often without warning. Travelers from countries not clearly confirmed as visa-free must call the Bureau of Immigration and Labor directly or reach their nearest Palauan diplomatic mission before booking flights. No exceptions. Arrive without the correct paperwork and you'll be sent home, no negotiation, no refund.
Arrival Process
Landing in Palau hits different. Even before you reach immigration, you're already hooked. The Airai airport feels like someone's living room, compact, intimate, no wasted space. The immigration process runs tight. Thorough, yes. But it moves. Lines don't stagnate. Here's the twist: every visitor must sign the Palau Pledge. This isn't some optional form. It's a formal eco-commitment, and they stamp it straight into your passport. Permanent. No take-backs. Have every document ready before you approach the counter. They won't wait.
Documents to Have Ready
Tips for Smooth Entry
Customs & Duty-Free
Skip the fruit. Palau's customs regime balances standard Pacific island allowances with unusually strict biosecurity enforcement, no exceptions. This reflects the nation's extraordinary commitment to environmental protection. Palau's reefs and forests rank among the most biodiverse on Earth. The government takes prevention of invasive species introduction extremely seriously. Travelers should expect thorough biosecurity screening and declare all food, plant, and animal products without exception.
Prohibited Items
- Firearms and ammunition, possession without specific written authorization from Palau's government is prohibited.
- Palau doesn't mess around. Possess narcotics here and you'll face prison terms that start at 25 years. Their courts hand down these sentences without exceptions, foreign passport or local ID, the punishment lands the same.
- Take nothing. Coral, shells, any marine product, removal is banned. Palauan environmental law doesn't mess around.
- Pornographic material
- Counterfeit goods of any kind
- Items made from endangered species (CITES-protected) without proper documentation
Restricted Items
- Fresh fruits, vegetables, and plant material, declare them. Most items get confiscated or inspected for pest risk. Biosecurity rules aren't suggestions; they're enforced without exception.
- Soil or items with soil, must be declared due to risk of introducing pests and disease
- Live animals and birds, skip the airport panic. You'll need import permits from the Bureau of Agriculture, and the process drags for several weeks minimum.
- Bring your prescription. Bring a copy too. Keep every pill in its original labeled packaging, customs officers don't negotiate. Quantities beyond a reasonable personal supply may require documentation, so pack smart or prepare for paperwork.
- Spearfishing gear is banned. Period. Check the latest rules with the Palau International Coral Reef Center before you pack a single reel, they'll tell you what you can and can't bring.
- Drones, import and operation may need permits. Confirm current regulations before travel. Rules have shifted in recent years.
Health Requirements
You can skip shots, mostly. Palau doesn't force vaccinations on travelers from non-endemic countries. But the tropical climate makes those recommended jabs smart insurance. Arrive from a yellow-fever zone and you'll need that certificate. Book your travel clinic 4, 6 weeks out. Your doctor won't rush immunity.
Required Vaccinations
- Yellow Fever, you'll need proof if you're arriving from or transiting through yellow fever endemic countries. Immigration won't budge without it. An International Certificate of Vaccination (yellow card) is required at the border. No exceptions.
Recommended Vaccinations
- Hepatitis A? Get the shot. One contaminated salad in a street stall and you'll spend the trip chained to a toilet, $150 vaccine beats a week of misery.
- Hepatitis B, get it. Longer trips or any medical work overseas, you'll need the jab.
- Typhoid, recommended for travelers eating outside major hotels or restaurants
- Tetanus/Diphtheria/Pertussis (Td/Tdap), ensure routine vaccination is up to date
- Measles, Mumps, Rubella (MMR), ensure routine vaccination is up to date
- Rabies? You won't need it for a week of snorkeling. But if you're staying months or will handle dogs, cats, or fruit bats, get the pre-exposure series. Risk in Palau is low. Yet one bite still means a medevac flight you didn't budget for.
- Japanese Encephalitis, get the shot if you'll be poking around rural paddies or sleeping in forested villages for more than a week.
- COVID-19, follow current guidance from your home country's health authority
Health Insurance
Palau's hospitals won't save you. Belau National Hospital in Koror patches routine cuts and stabilizes some emergencies. But anything tricky means a $50,000-plus med-evac to the Philippines, Guam, or mainland USA. Buy complete travel health insurance with medical-evacuation cover, no exceptions. Double-check the fine print: diving injuries need their own clause, and most standard policies quietly exclude them.
Protect Your Trip with Travel Insurance
Comprehensive coverage for medical emergencies, trip cancellation, lost luggage, and 24/7 emergency assistance. Many countries recommend or require travel insurance.
Get a Quote from World NomadsRead our complete Palau Travel Insurance Guide →
Important Contacts
Essential resources for your trip.
Special Situations
Additional requirements for specific circumstances.
Kids need their own passport, no exceptions. Palau immigration will demand a notarized consent letter when a child travels with one parent or a guardian instead of both. The rule matches Pacific island practice and blocks abduction. Single parents, divorced parents sharing custody, and guardians must pack court orders plus every scrap of proof. Children must also sign the Palau Pledge or have it signed for them at immigration.
Palau's Bureau of Agriculture won't let your dog stroll off the plane without a fight. You need advance authorization. The process demands health certificates, vaccination records, rabies, and maybe an import permit. Start 4, 6 weeks before travel. No shortcuts. Pets arriving without proper documentation face quarantine at the owner's expense or immediate return on the next available flight. Most travelers skip the hassle entirely. Palau's biosecurity rules are strict, the logistics brutal. Leave pets at home. Call the Bureau of Agriculture before you book anything, requirements change.
Overstay in Palau and you'll regret it. The Bureau of Immigration and Labor in Koror won't negotiate, extend before your 30-day permit expires or face real consequences. Extensions come in 30-day chunks, each requiring an extension fee. Skip this step and you're looking at fines, detention, and entry bans. No exceptions. US citizens catch a break. Under the Compact of Free Association, they can stay indefinitely, no paperwork, no fees, no hassle. Everyone else planning extended stays for work, investment, or long-term residency needs different permits entirely. Talk to an immigration specialist before you commit.
Palau's reefs and wrecks pull divers in, that's why most people come. Every visitor entering Palau's protected marine areas, Jellyfish Lake (Ongeim'l Tketau) and the Palau National Marine Sanctuary included, must pay the Palau Protected Area Network (PAN) fee. They'll collect it as part of your airport departure tax or through dive operators. Check the current fee structure with your dive operator or hotel when you land. Fee amounts and collection methods change periodically. The PAN fee funds conservation and you can't negotiate it.
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