Travel to London is now a more complex process (photo courtesy Unsplash).
The British government has introduced new rules and tougher quarantine measures for international travel to the UK.
If you are travelling to England you must now have:
A negative Covid-19 test taken within 72 hours of departure;
A passenger locator form completed within 48 hours of departure;
A pre-booked two test package from a government-approved test provider for mandatory testing on days two and eight of quarantine. This will cost GBP210 and must be paid for in advance;
A pre-booked and paid-for government designated quarantine hotel if travelling from a red list country.
All arrivals must quarantine for ten days. Those arriving from a red list country must do so in a government designated quarantine hotel.
A 'test-to-release programme' is available for non-red list arrivals. This means that a privately paid for test can be taken on day five of quarantine and if negative, the quarantiner can exit self-isolation early. The two tests booked before travel must still be taken.
Travellers from red list countries, or those who have been in a red list country during the last ten days, are forbidden from entering the UK unless they are a British or Irish resident.
These regulations will be checked at various stages of your journey by airport staff, UK Border Force and the British police.
Fines of up to GBP10,000 and prison sentences of up to ten years may be enforced for non-compliance.
Countries currently on the UK’s red list include Angola, Argentina, Bolivia, Botswana, Brazil, Burundi, Cape Verde, Colombia, Democratic Republic of Congo, Ecuador, Eswatini, French Guiana, Guyana, Lesotho, Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Portugal, Rwanda, Seychelles, South Africa, Suriname, Tanzania, United Arab Emirates, Uruguay, Venezuela, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
Please note that Scotland requires all international arrivals flying directly into the country to undertake a ten-day mandatory hotel quarantine.
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