Cuba Visa Requirements (2026): Tourist Card, Cost & Entry Rules

Cuba Entry Documents Beyond the Tourist Card: D’Viajeros, QR Code & Customs Form

Cuba requires more than a tourist card at the airport. Most visitors must also complete an online pre-registration (the D’Viajeros portal), present a QR code on arrival, and fill in a paper customs declaration. Here is the full checklist:

1. D’Viajeros online health and travel declaration (dviajeros.mitrans.gob.cu): Cuba’s Ministry of Transport operates this pre-registration portal. Travelers complete a form with personal details, flight information, accommodation address, and health questions. Upon completion, the system generates a QR code that immigration officers scan on arrival. You can complete this up to 48 hours before your flight. Completion is strongly recommended and effectively required at most international airports — officers may send unprepared travelers to fill it out manually, causing delays.
2. QR code on arrival: Save the D’Viajeros QR code to your phone or print it. Keep it accessible during the immigration queue. The QR code is distinct from your tourist card — you need both.
3. Tourist card (tarjeta del turista): A separate requirement from D’Viajeros. Most nationalities need a tourist card (pink for most countries, green for US travelers via third countries). Buy it from your airline, at the departure airport, or in some cases on arrival. US travelers typically buy the green card from their airline.
4. Cuban customs declaration form (Aduana Cuba): A paper form distributed on the plane or available at the airport. Declare all currency over $5,000 USD, valuable electronics, medication quantities, and any commercial goods. Customs inspections at Havana (HAV) can be thorough — undeclared items may be confiscated.
5. Health screening: Active COVID-era health requirements (temperature checks, PCR tests) were largely lifted in 2023. As of 2026, no health tests are required for entry. The D’Viajeros health questions are informational.

Arriving via Mexico City, Cancún, or Nassau? The D’Viajeros system and tourist card apply regardless of your routing. US travelers using third-country connections must ensure their tourist card is the correct type (green card, not pink) and that they have completed D’Viajeros before the final leg. Non-US travelers connecting through Mexico or the Bahamas follow the same process as direct travelers.

Business Travel & Investor Entry into Cuba: Beyond the Tourist Card

Most nationalities entering Cuba for business or investment purposes use the same Tourist Card (tarjeta del turista) as leisure travelers, but the legal and compliance picture is more complex than the card itself. Here is what investors and business travelers need to understand before arrival:

1. Cuba does not issue a distinct “business visa” for short stays: Nationals of most countries enter on a Tourist Card for visits up to 30 days (extendable once to 60 days). Longer-duration business activity — such as negotiating a joint-venture agreement, attending extended meetings, or conducting due diligence for a capital-intensive project — typically requires a business visa (visado de negocios) or an invitation letter from a recognized Cuban state entity. This is handled through the Cuban embassy or consulate in your home country, not at the airport.
2. For U.S. investors and business travelers, OFAC authorization is the threshold question: The Tourist Card is a Cuban-government document. Whether a U.S. person can legally travel to Cuba at all — and what activities they can conduct — is governed by the Cuban Assets Control Regulations (CACR, 31 CFR Part 515). General licenses authorize 12 categories of travel (education, journalism, support for the Cuban people, etc.). “Doing business” alone is not an authorized category; it must fit within a licensed purpose such as §515.574 (support for the Cuban people / engagement with private-sector MIPYMES). See our full guide on Americans traveling to Cuba for the OFAC compliance checklist.
3. Joint-venture investors and Mariel ZED participants: Foreign companies operating under Ley 118 (Cuba’s foreign-investment law) or inside the Mariel ZED (Decree 313) establish a legal presence through a recognized Cuban entity. Employees and managers of those entities typically receive multi-entry business visas valid for the duration of the joint-venture agreement, separate from the tourist-card regime. The Cuba Ministry of Foreign Trade and Investment (MINCEX) coordinates approvals; the Ministry of the Interior (MININT) issues the actual travel document. Non-U.S. investors face no OFAC layer but should verify whether their home country imposes secondary-sanctions guidance on Cuba exposure.
4. OFAC screening before any investment meeting: Before meeting with a Cuban state entity, joint-venture partner, or local business contact, U.S. and U.S.-nexus investors should screen the counterparty against the OFAC SDN list and the State Department Cuba Restricted List (CRL). Many GAESA subsidiaries and state-owned enterprises appear on the CRL, making direct business transactions with them unlicensed and potentially sanctionable. Use the OFAC Cuba sanctions tracker and the Cuba Restricted List checker before any engagement.

Key rule of thumb: the Tourist Card answers “can I get into Cuba?” OFAC authorization answers “can a U.S. person legally conduct this activity in Cuba?” Both questions must be answered before travel. The tourist-card checker above covers the former; the sanctions and general-license tools linked here cover the latter.

My Nationality Isn’t Listed Above — What Do I Do?

The selector above covers the nationalities we track in detail (United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Mexico, Spain, EU, China, Russia, and UAE). If your passport isn’t one of those — including travelers from India, Nigeria, Kenya, Pakistan, Zimbabwe, Jamaica, the Philippines, Bangladesh, Ethiopia, Iran, Sri Lanka, or South Africa — you very likely follow the same general Tourist Card process most nationalities use worldwide. We deliberately don’t publish a specific validity period, fee, or process for every untracked nationality here, because those details can vary and change; confirm directly with your nearest Cuban embassy or consulate, or your airline, before booking. See our Cuba visa requirements by nationality guide for the fuller comparison, or how to apply for a Cuba visa online for the step-by-step application process.

Booking through a charter operator (e.g. Sunwing)? Canadian charter operators like Sunwing typically bundle the Tourist Card into your package price and hand it out at check-in or on the flight — but you still separately need to complete the D’Viajeros online declaration yourself before arrival (see above). Confirm with your operator whether the card is included before buying one separately.

Studying, working, or just connecting through Cuba? The Tourist Card above is scoped to short-term leisure and general business travel. If you're enrolling in a Cuban university, taking up paid employment, or need a layover transit visa, see our Cuba student, work & transit visa guide for how those categories differ.