Smartraveller Lowers Qatar and the UAE to Level 2
Australia lowered its travel advice for Qatar and the United Arab Emirates on 8 October 2026. Both destinations now read exercise a high degree of caution, Level 2 in Smartraveller's four-level system. Both destination pages carry an updated 8 October 2026 stamp and read still current at 14 October 2026.
The Qatar page states the level stands "due to the unpredictable security situation in the region". The United Arab Emirates page states it stands "due to the threat of terrorism and the unpredictable security situation in the region".
Travel Daily reported the change on 8 October 2026 and read the downgrade as a lift for confidence in air travel in the region.
What the Advice Still Warns About
Both pages state that military strikes and reprisal attacks have occurred across parts of the Middle East, and that the risk of further escalation continues. Both name attacks on military, critical and civilian infrastructure as the form that escalation could take.
The Qatar page states that Qatari airspace could close at short notice, impacting flights at Hamad International Airport. The United Arab Emirates page states that UAE airspace may open or close at short notice, impacting flights at Abu Dhabi and Dubai International Airports.
Both pages direct travellers to avoid military sites and bases, government buildings and energy infrastructure, and note that those locations are not always signposted. Both ask travellers to check airport and airline operations before departure and to check the status of any border crossing before travelling by air, land or sea.
Where the Rest of the Region Sits
Bahrain, Israel, Jordan, Kuwait, Oman and Saudi Arabia sit at Level 3, reconsider your need to travel. Iran, Iraq, Lebanon, Palestine, Syria and Yemen sit at Level 4, do not travel.
Smartraveller states that reconsider your need to travel also means reconsider your need to transit, and that do not travel means do not transit. For a Level 3 destination it asks travellers to keep the stay as short as possible and to avoid unnecessary activities.
The Path to Level 2
Qatar and the United Arab Emirates spent part of 2026 at Level 4. On 17 June 2026 the Australian Government lowered Bahrain, Israel, Kuwait, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates from do not travel to reconsider your need to travel. Some areas within Israel remain at do not travel.
Four months later, on 8 October 2026, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates moved to Level 2.
What the Change Means for a Group Itinerary
Doha, Abu Dhabi and Dubai function as connecting hubs for long-haul traffic between Australia and Europe, so the advice level for the two countries reaches a transit decision as well as a destination decision.
The advisory applies to Qatar and the United Arab Emirates as destinations. It names no airline, no airport operator, no hotel group and no tour operator. Carriers and operators publish their own schedules and their own conditions of carriage.
Insurance and the Advice Level
Smartraveller states that travel insurance may not cover a traveller who travels against the advice in force, and asks travellers to check that a policy covers flight delays, cancellations and changes to travel advice levels. The Qatar and United Arab Emirates pages carry that guidance beside the new level.
What a Group Checks Before Departure
Two checks cover a Gulf itinerary built on these destinations: the still current at line on each destination page, and the same line on the advisory for every transit country on the route.
Six regional destinations sit at Level 3 and six at Level 4, so a routing that touches several countries carries the advice level of each one. The destination pages, the printable PDFs and the Middle East conflict page are published at smartraveller.gov.au.