UK lifts quarantine restrictions for fully vaccinated travellers from US
The United Kingdom on Wednesday gave relaxations to fully vaccinated travellers from the United States and European Union (EU) countries by removing the mandatory 10-day quarantine. The new rules will come into effect from Monday. Currently, only people who received their Covid-19 vaccine in the UK can avoid quarantine when arriving from these “amber list” countries under the government’s traffic list travel system.
“We’ve taken great strides on our journey to reopen international travel and today is another important step forward. Whether you are a family reuniting for the first time since the start of the pandemic or a business benefiting from increased trade this is progress we can all enjoy,” said UK Transport Secretary Grant Shapps.
“We will of course continue to be guided by the latest scientific data but thanks to our world-leading domestic vaccination programme, we’re able to look to the future and start to rebuild key transatlantic routes with the US while further cementing ties with our European neighbours,” he said.
While the visitors will no longer have to self-isolate for a period of 10 days as mandated by the previous guideline, they would still be required to present a negative COVID test before their arrival, and take another RT-PCR test on the second day after they reach.
India remains on the red list under the international traffic system, which bans travel and imposes a compulsory 10-day hotel quarantine for returning British residents. The next review of that status is expected by the middle of next week. Travellers from France will have to stick to the 10-day quarantine rules even if they are fully vaccinated upon arrival in the UK as well.
Meanwhile, UK’s top epidemiologist Neil Ferguson has said that the end of the pandemic in Britain could be just months away.
