Iran

Is Iran safe to visit?

Not in 2026. Iran has been at war with the US and Israel since 28 February, when US and Israeli strikes began and Iran answered with missiles and drones at Israel and the Gulf states. A memorandum of understanding on 17 June did not end the fighting for good: the FCDOFCDO travel adviceThe UK government's travel advice for each country, which can advise against all travel or all but essential travel to specific areas.More in the glossary says Iranian attacks across the region resumed from 8 July, and on 30 to 31 August the US and Iran exchanged strikes again.

For visitors there is a second, older risk: arrest. The US State Department rates Iran Level 4 (do not travel for any reason) because of terrorism, unrest, kidnapping, arbitrary arrest and wrongful detention, and the UK advises against all travel. We score Iran 43, close to Lebanon and below Israel, with medium confidence because casualty data is incomplete.

The 2026 war

US and Israeli strikes have hit targets across Iran. By mid-April, Iran's government counted 3,468 people killed, 1,460 of them civilians and 2,008 military personnel, according to the state news agency IRNA (reported by the BBC). The US-based group HRANA counted 3,636 by 18 May and calls its figures absolute minimums. Iranian officials say a US missile hit a school in Minab on the first day, killing 168 people; the US military said it was investigating.

The FCDOFCDO travel adviceThe UK government's travel advice for each country, which can advise against all travel or all but essential travel to specific areas.More in the glossary says strikes have affected ports, roads, railways, bridges, energy and water systems and airports. Communications are disrupted and internet access is limited. Air, sea and land routes are under the control of the Iranian authorities, airspace can close at short notice, and borders may shut without warning.

The latest escalation came after a pause in strikes that President Trump announced on 1 August. On 30 August US forces hit two Iranian missile launchers on Larak Island, and Iran said it struck bases used by US forces in Jordan and the UAE, Al Jazeera reported. Mediators from Oman, Pakistan and Qatar are trying to restart talks.

Arrest and wrongful detention

This is the risk that kept travel advice at the highest level even before the war. The US says Iranian authorities detain US nationals without warning or evidence, including students, journalists, business travellers and academics, and that some have been held for years on false charges, tortured and sentenced to death. A US passport or connections to the United States can be reason enough for arrest, and Iran has imposed exit bans on Americans.

The FCDOFCDO travel adviceThe UK government's travel advice for each country, which can advise against all travel or all but essential travel to specific areas.More in the glossary describes the same risk for British nationals and says that if you are accused of security offences you could face a death sentence. It says Iran executed foreign detainees in 2023, including a British-Iranian national. People at greater risk include those with links to journalism, charities, human rights groups, universities and think tanks, anyone with past links to Israel, and anyone who posts about Iranian politics on social media. Photographing near sensitive sites has led to arrests.

Iran does not recognise dual nationality. A British-Iranian or American-Iranian is treated as Iranian, and foreign diplomats are not told of the arrest or allowed to visit. There is no US embassy; Switzerland normally represents US interests, but its Tehran office is temporarily closed.

Terrorism, unrest and border areas

The FCDOFCDO travel adviceThe UK government's travel advice for each country, which can advise against all travel or all but essential travel to specific areas.More in the glossary says terrorists are likely to try to carry out attacks, and lists the January 2024 suicide bombings in Kerman, claimed by Islamic State Khorasan Province, which killed at least 84 people. Protests are common, can turn violent, and mass arrests include bystanders.

Even British residents are told to stay out of Sistan and Baluchistan province, the area east of Bam and Jask, within 100 km of the Afghan border and within 10 km of the Iraqi border. Banditry and drug trafficking are the risks there, and Zahedan, Zabol and Mirjaveh are named as particularly insecure.

Roads, earthquakes and health care

Away from the war, the biggest risk is the road. WHO estimatedWHO road-death estimateThe World Health Organization's estimate of road traffic deaths per 100,000 people in a country, adjusted for deaths that police statistics miss.More in the glossary 21.5 road deaths per 100,000 people in 2019, and the FCDOFCDO travel adviceThe UK government's travel advice for each country, which can advise against all travel or all but essential travel to specific areas.More in the glossary warns of a high accident rate and of informal roadblocks staffed by young officers.

Iran lies on several active fault systems, and the FCDO warns that quakes in many parts of the country can be strong enough to damage buildings and kill. Spring floods hit Khuzestan, Golestan and Lorestan.

Health care is reasonable in Tehran and other large cities but poor in remote areas, and the FCDO reports shortages of basic medicines. Foreign bank cards do not work, so you cannot pay a hospital with a card.

Ordinary crime against visitors is less of a worry. WHO's model puts homicide at about 2.9 per 100,000 (WHO modelled estimate, 2021); the last national figure is 2.4 (2014, UNODC). The FCDO warns of thieves posing as plain-clothes police and of motorcycle taxis robbing tourists. Alcohol is illegal, and the FCDO says illegal drinks have caused deaths from methanol poisoning.

If you are already in Iran

• Keep a plan to leave that does not depend on your government: the UK says it cannot evacuate you, and the US has no embassy.
• The FCDOFCDO travel adviceThe UK government's travel advice for each country, which can advise against all travel or all but essential travel to specific areas.More in the glossary says the land border with Turkey remains open; contact it before crossing to Turkey, Azerbaijan or Turkmenistan, which need advance arrangements.
• Stay away from protests, military and security sites, and do not use a drone or satellite phone without permission.
• Carry enough euros or US dollars in cash.
• Call 110 for police and 115 for an ambulance.

How we scored it

Conflict (8) is the weakest factor: an unfinished war with thousands killed, renewed strikes in August, and a high risk of detention for foreigners. Roads (42) and natural hazards (45) are also weak, while violent crime (80) and petty crime (68) are moderate. The weighted average is 50. The overall score is capped at 43 (conflict + 35): when conflict is this severe, good roads, health care or low crime cannot lift a country above that.