COVID-19: Changes to Travel Restrictions from 17 May
Imelda Reddington of our Immigration team considers the rules introduced by the new traffic light system, and what requirements they impose on those entering England from abroad.
The traffic light system for international travel came into force on 17 May 2021. The system divides countries between three lists (green, amber, red), with different rules applicable to each list.
The Green List Rules:
If you are travelling to England and have only visited or transited through green list countries in the previous 10 days, you will not be required to quarantine on your arrival in England. However, before you travel, you must:
- Take a COVID-19 test
- Book and pay for a day 2 COVID-19 travel test, to be taken after your arrival in England
- Complete a passenger locator form
You will not be allowed to enter the UK if your pre-travel COVID-19 test returns a positive result; as such, you must be prepared to present your negative test result at the border. You must then take your day 2 COVID-19 travel test on or before the second day after your arrival in England. You will only need to quarantine if this day 2 test returns a positive result, or if NHS Test & Trace informs you that you travelled to England with someone who has tested positive for COVID-19.
The Green List Countries:
- Australia
- Brunei
- Falkland Islands
- Faroe Islands
- Gibraltar
- Iceland
- Israel and Jerusalem
- New Zealand
- Portugal
- Singapore
- South Georgia and South Sandwich Islands
- St Helena, Ascension, and Trista da Cunha
The Amber List Rules:
If you are travelling to England and have visited or transited through an amber list country in the previous 10 days, you must:
- Take a COVID-19 test
- Book and pay for day 2 and day 8 COVID-19 travel tests, to be taken after your arrival in England
- Complete a passenger locator form
You will not be allowed to enter the UK if your pre-travel COVID-19 test returns a positive result; as such, you must be prepared to present your negative test result at the border. You must then quarantine for at least 10 days.
You must take your day 2 COVID-19 travel test on or before the second day after your arrival in England. If this returns a positive result, you must quarantine for 10 days from the day after you took the day 2 test. If the day 2 test returns a negative result, you must continue to quarantine and then take your day 8 COVID-19 travel test on or after the eighth day after your arrival in England. If the day 8 test returns a positive result, you must quarantine for 10 days from the day after you took the day 8 test. If the day 8 test returns a negative result, then you will only be expected to quarantine for the initial 10 day period. However, you may be able to end your quarantine early if you pay for a private COVID-19 test through the Test to Release scheme.
It is important to note that if you have visited or transited through any red list country in the ten days prior to travelling to England, then the red list rules will apply to you instead.
The Amber List Countries:
The amber list features all countries not listed on either the green list or red list. These include:
- Belgium
- Canada
- China
- Croatia
- Cyprus
- France
- Germany
- Ghana
- Greece
- Italy
- Japan
- Netherlands
- Nigeria
- Poland
- Russia
- Spain
- USA
For a full list of all of the amber list countries, please see the UK Government guidance: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/red-amber-and-green-list-rules-for-entering-england#amber-list
The Red List Rules:
If you are travelling to England and have visited or transited through any red list country in the previous 10 days, you must:
- Take a COVID-19 test
- Book a quarantine hotel package, including 2 COVID-19 tests
- Complete a passenger locator form
You will not be allowed to enter the UK if your pre-travel COVID-19 test returns a positive result; as such, you must be prepared to present your negative test result at the border. You must then quarantine in your booked managed quarantine hotel for at least 10 days, taking your COVID-19 tests as under the amber list rules. However, the option to pay to end your quarantine early via the Test to Release scheme is not available.
The Red List Countries:
- Angola
- Argentina
- Bangladesh
- Bolivia
- Botswana
- Brazil
- Burundi
- Cape Verde
- Chile
- Colombia
- Democratic Republic of Congo
- Ecuador
- Eswatini
- Ethiopia
- French Guinea
- Guyana
- India
- Kenya
- Lesotho
- Malawi
- Maldives
- Mozambique
- Namibia
- Nepal
- Oman
- Pakistan
- Panama
- Paraguay
- Peru
- Philippines
- Qatar
- Rwanda
- Seychelles
- Somalia
- South Africa
- Suriname
- Tanzania
- Turkey
- United Arab Emirates
- Uruguay
- Venezuela
- Zambia
- Zimbabwe
Travelling to Countries:
You may only travel to countries on the green list. If you choose to travel to a green list country, you should take into account the cost of paying for the day 2 COVID-19 test for your return. You should also consider the possibility of your destination country being moved to the amber or red list following your arrival. In such a situation, you would be obliged to comply with either the amber list or red list rules on your return to England, as appropriate. Countries that are moving to a different list are ordinarily put on a watchlist, to give a heads up of the anticipated change of rules, so we would recommend keeping an eye on this watchlist: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/red-amber-and-green-list-rules-for-entering-england
You must not travel to countries on the amber or red list, unless you are excused by virtue of your occupation. The lists are being reviewed regularly, so please check the FDO website for updates before you travel.
If you have any questions on the content of this article please contact [email protected] in our Immigration team.
