The Maldives Monetary Authority (MMA) has reaffirmed foreign currency support for Maldivians travelling abroad for medical treatment, maintaining the USD 1,000 allocation for self-funded patients visiting six countries while keeping the existing USD 2,000 allocation for patients travelling through Aasandha unchanged.
The USD 1,000 allocation is available to eligible Maldivians travelling to India, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore and the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The MMA said the arrangement is intended to ensure that foreign currency provided for medical purposes is used directly for treatment.
The authority said USD 41.1 million had been sold for medical purposes by the end of September 2026, three times the amount recorded during the same period last year. Of this, USD 29.2 million was allocated to Maldivians travelling abroad for medical treatment at their own expense.
Foreign currency support for self-funded medical travel was introduced in August 2025, with allocations distributed through banks. The MMA said the USD 1,000 allocation would continue under the existing arrangement, while the USD 2,000 allocation for patients travelling through Aasandha would also remain unchanged.