# Malaria — Blood donor deferral criteria compared across national blood services

For Malaria, blood service is American Red Cross (US); waiting period is 3 months; condition is after returning from a trip to an area where malaria is found; 3 years after completing treatment for malaria; 3 years after living more than 5 years in a malaria-risk country; outcome is temporary deferral, recorded from its source on 2026-08-06.

- **Criterion:** Malaria _(verified: appears in the quote below)_
- **Blood service:** American Red Cross (US) _(our reading, not quoted from the source)_
- **Waiting period:** 3 months _(verified: appears in the quote below)_
- **Condition:** after returning from a trip to an area where malaria is found; 3 years after completing treatment for malaria; 3 years after living more than 5 years in a malaria-risk country _(verified: appears in the quote below)_
- **Outcome:** temporary deferral _(our reading, not quoted from the source)_

## What the source says

> Wait 3 years after completing treatment for malaria. Wait 3 months after returning from a trip to an area where malaria is found. Wait 3 years after living more than 5 years in a country or countries where malaria is found.

## Source

- https://www.redcrossblood.org/donate-blood/how-to-donate/eligibility-requirements/eligibility-criteria-alphabetical.html

Last verified: 2026-08-06. Review by: 2027-02-02.
Part of [Blood donor deferral criteria compared across national blood services](https://referencesource.org/blood-donor-deferral-criteria/).