Meningococcal vaccination for adults

Who this is recommended for

• Pilgrims travelling for Hajj or Umrah, from age one year, where a valid certificate is a visa requirement
• Adults without a spleen, or with a poorly functioning spleen
• Adults with persistent complement component deficiency, or on complement inhibitor therapy
• Students going abroad, and travellers to the African meningitis belt
• Laboratory staff who handle meningococcal isolates

Schedule

A single dose for most adults. For asplenia or complement deficiency, two doses eight weeks apart, then a booster every five years while the risk continues.

Timing

For Hajj and Umrah the vaccine must be given at least ten days before you arrive in Saudi Arabia. Come six to eight weeks ahead so there is no scramble. See the Hajj and Umrah page for the certificate rules, which catch people out.

What is available, and what we use

Both conjugate products are equally acceptable to Saudi authorities and both give a five-year certificate. We hold Menveo because it costs less for the same result, and use Menactra when Menveo is in short supply. We recommend either conjugate over the plain polysaccharide vaccine, because for a modest extra cost the certificate covers five years rather than three, which matters if you expect to perform Umrah again.

Product names and prices are listed so you know what you are being given and what it costs. They are for identification only and do not constitute a recommendation of any manufacturer. Prices shown are the manufacturer's maximum retail price per dose as at 12 August 2026; manufacturers and the National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority revise these from time to time, and your actual cost is confirmed before anything is administered.

What we will not gloss over

• Your certificate must state the vaccine type. If it does not, Saudi authorities treat it as valid for three years even if you were given a five-year conjugate vaccine. Ours states the brand, the type and the date.
• The serogroup B vaccine is not marketed in India. If you specifically need protection against serogroup B, for example because of complement deficiency or asplenia, we will tell you so rather than pretend the quadrivalent vaccine covers it.
• The conjugate products are licensed to age 55. Above that we will discuss the options with you.