Top 5+ Countries That Still Forbid Women From Traveling Abroad Alone

Afghanistan: The World's Most Restrictive Country for Women

Afghanistan remains the only country where girls and women face total bans from secondary and university education, while also facing significant barriers to employment and freedom of movement. Women who are unmarried or don't have a "mahram" (male guardian) face even tougher restrictions and have been cut off from access to health care, banned from traveling long distances, and pressured to quit their jobs.

The Taliban's mahram rules prohibit women from leaving their home without a male chaperone, often a husband or close relative. Single and unaccompanied women, including an estimated 2 million widows, say they are essentially prisoners in their homes and unable to carry out even the most basic tasks.

In late 2021, the Taliban said women seeking to travel more than 72 kilometers should not be offered transport unless they were accompanied by a close male relative.

Saudi Arabia: Recent Reforms But Restrictions Remain

Saudi Arabia published new laws in 2019 that allow all citizens to apply for a passport and travel freely, ending a long-standing guardianship policy that had controlled women's freedom of movement. Post-2018, women over the age of 21 are allowed to travel internationally alone and can get a passport without male permission.

However, rules still require male consent for a woman to leave prison, exit a domestic abuse shelter, or marry. Women, unlike men, cannot pass on citizenship to their children and cannot provide consent for their children to marry.

The mother can only travel outside Saudi Arabia with the child for a maximum of 90 days per year; any travel exceeding this period requires consent from the father, preventing women from relocating outside Saudi Arabia with their children.

Yemen: War-Torn Country With Increasing Restrictions

Parties to the conflict in Yemen, including the Houthis, the Yemeni government, and the Southern Transitional Council, are systematically violating women's right to freedom of movement by barring women from traveling between governorates, and in some cases from travel abroad, without a male guardian's permission. Yemen requires as a matter of policy that women of all ages need to show permission from their male guardian to obtain a passport.

In the north, Houthi authorities increasingly began requiring women to travel with a male relative after taking control of Sanaa. In 2019, local media reported that Houthi authorities issued directives to local bus transportation companies requiring women be escorted by a male relative when traveling between cities.

Both Houthis and the internationally recognized government don't issue passports to women without permission from their husbands. The Houthis barred women from traveling inside Yemen without a guardian, according to United Nations experts.

Iran: Married Women Face Travel Restrictions

Under Iran's Passports Law, a married woman may not obtain a passport or travel outside the country without the written permission of her husband, who can revoke such permission at any time. In Iran, married women must show their husband's permission to obtain a passport and to travel.

Women engaging in hijab violations risk fines of around $8,000, up to five years imprisonment, a two-year travel ban, and a two-year ban on using social media platforms. Women who are unable to pay fines will be barred from renewing passports and leaving the country.

The country's new compulsory veiling law intensifies these restrictions, making it even more difficult for women to travel freely.

Gaza Strip: Male Guardian Bans on Unmarried Women

Hamas authorities in Gaza issued restrictions in February 2021 that means an unmarried woman, even if able to leave Gaza amid sweeping Israeli and Egyptian movement restrictions, can be prevented from traveling as soon as her male guardian applies for a court-ordered ban. Authorities in Gaza allow male guardians to obtain court orders or simply notify the authorities to issue travel bans on women.

These restrictions trap women in Gaza even further, coming on top of Israeli and Egyptian movement restrictions that have turned the Gaza Strip into what critics call an "open-air prison." The combination of external blockades and internal patriarchal controls creates a double burden for Palestinian women seeking to travel.

Qatar: Age-Based Travel Restrictions

In Qatar, interior ministry rules require unmarried Qatari women under age 25 to show permission from their male guardians to travel abroad, while Qatari men from age 18 do not. Qatar allows male guardians to apply to a court for travel bans against their female relatives or wives.

Guardians can issue exit permits, usually one-year-long, via a government mobile app. Women are not notified of their travel ban and may find out only when they are at the airport seeking to travel abroad.

This creates a climate of uncertainty for women who may believe they have permission to travel, only to discover at the last moment that they've been banned.

Libya: New Documentation Requirements

In May 2023, Libya's Internal Security Agency, a body linked to the Tripoli-based Government of National Unity, began requiring Libyan women traveling without a male escort to complete a detailed form about the reasons for their travel and past travel. This represents a concerning new development in restricting women's freedom of movement.

The requirement creates additional bureaucratic hurdles specifically targeting women, effectively discouraging solo female travel through administrative barriers. This policy affects women's ability to conduct business, visit family, or pursue educational opportunities abroad without male accompaniment.

Prison Release Restrictions: A Hidden Form of Control

In Saudi Arabia and Yemen, women are not allowed to leave prison after completion of their sentences without a male guardian to accompany them upon release. Prison authorities across Yemen keep women who have completed their sentences in jail if there is no male guardian to accompany them on release, or they release them only to women's shelters if their families refuse to receive them.

One former prison official reported that one woman was arbitrarily detained for five years following completion of her sentence, while another was held for two months until her son came from abroad to escort her. One woman was released to her father in 2019 only to be killed by him a week later.

This practice has no legal basis but continues due to social norms and discriminatory customs.

Educational Travel Restrictions

State universities in Bahrain, Iran, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates require women to show male guardian permission before they can go on field trips, or stay at or leave campus accommodations. In Afghanistan, Taliban authorities refused to allow 63 women to travel to the United Arab Emirates to accept scholarships.

These restrictions directly impact women's educational opportunities and career development. Many talented women are forced to forgo international scholarships, conferences, or study abroad programs simply because they cannot obtain male guardian approval or accompaniment.

Impact on Humanitarian Work

Mahram requirements have forced many Yemeni women to leave their jobs at local and international non-governmental organizations and UN agencies because they don't have a male guardian who can accompany them on crucial work travel, losing much-needed income for their families. The mahram requirement became prevalent across Houthi-controlled areas in 2022, making travel of female national staff very challenging for humanitarian agencies and leading to repeated cancellation of humanitarian aid deliveries.

This creates a devastating cycle where women lose employment opportunities while communities lose access to essential services that female aid workers provide. The restrictions particularly affect healthcare delivery, as many beneficiaries are women who can only be served by female staff.

Hotel and Accommodation Restrictions

Hotels in countries like Egypt, Iraq, Kuwait, Morocco, Qatar, and Yemen, either because of state policy or in practice, prevent some women from renting a hotel room without a male guardian. Women may face discrimination when trying to rent apartments where they are not married or without male guardians' permission in Algeria, Egypt, Iraq, Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and Gaza.

These accommodation restrictions create practical barriers that make independent travel nearly impossible for women. Even when women have permission to travel, they may struggle to find places to stay, limiting their ability to conduct business, attend conferences, or visit family.

The Devastating Human Cost

Women face systematic discrimination and are left exposed to domestic violence under male guardianship systems, with few places to turn when they face abuse, leading some women to undertake dangerous escape attempts to flee the country. Under these systems, a man controls a woman's life from birth until death.

As one woman in Afghanistan said, "All doors are closed to us." A women's rights activist told Human Rights Watch, "Psychologically we've been broken down. To speak about women's empowerment feels ridiculous when we can't even move around." The psychological impact of these restrictions extends far beyond the immediate travel limitations, affecting women's sense of agency, independence, and human dignity.

Conclusion

The restrictions on women's travel in these countries represent some of the most fundamental violations of human rights in the modern world. From Afghanistan's total ban on women's movement without male guardians to Iran's requirement for husbands' permission for married women to travel, these policies systematically deny women their basic freedom of movement.

The impact extends beyond individual women to entire societies, limiting economic development, humanitarian aid delivery, and social progress. While some countries like Saudi Arabia have made significant reforms, the persistence of these restrictions in 2025 demonstrates how deeply entrenched patriarchal control remains in many parts of the world.

The women trapped by these laws continue to fight for their freedom, often at great personal risk. As international pressure mounts and women's rights movements persist, the question remains: how long will these barriers to women's fundamental freedom endure?

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