All remaining UK covid travel rules end on 18 March

From 4am on Friday 18 March 2022 all remaining Covid-19 travel restrictions will end. All travellers arriving in the UK will no longer need to take a Covid-19 test or complete a Passenger Locator Form (PLF).

No more testing & quarantine rules for travellers arriving in the UK © Oleksandr Dibrova - Adobe Stock Image

Unvaccinated travellers will no longer need to take a pre-return Covid-19 test before travelling to the UK and a day 2 Covid-19 test back in the UK.

Pre-departure Covid-19 testing may still be required for outbound travellers to some destinations around the world. Please check the local travel restrictions with our Covid-19 travel planner.

More about testing >>

New rules for travellers to the UK from 11 February

From 4am on Friday 11 February 2022 travellers to the UK will have new rules based on their vaccination status. All travellers will need to complete the passenger locator form while travellers who are not fully vaccinated will also need to take the necessary Covid-19 tests.

Fully vaccinated travellers arriving after 4am on Friday 11 February 2022 will no longer need to take a Covid-19 test before travelling or after arriving in the UK. No period of self-isolation (quarantine) is necessary.

Unvaccinated travellers must provide proof of a negative Covid-19 test taken within two days prior to travelling to the UK. They must take a Covid-19 PCR test on or before day 2 (no day 8 test or quarantine period required unless they test positive).

Book Covid-19 tests >>

Pre-departure & day 2 PCR tests scrapped for UK arrivals

From 4am on Friday 7 January 2022 travellers no longer need to take a pre-departure Covid-19 test within 48 hours before they travel to the UK. Day 2 PCR tests will be replaced with cheaper antigen lateral flow tests for fully vaccinated travellers.

Fully vaccinated travellers arriving after 4am on Sunday 9 January 2022 from Rest of the World (ROW) countries must take a Covid-19 antigen lateral flow test on or before day 2 (the day of arrival is day 0) but do not need to self-isolate until they receive a negative result.

Unvaccinated travellers must take a Covid-19 PCR test on or before day 2 and on day 8. They must quarantine for 10 days with the option to use the 'Test to Release' scheme to shorten this period (in England only).

All countries to be removed from UK red list

From 4am on Wednesday 15 December 2021, all countries will be removed from the UK red list. If you arrive in the UK after this time you will no longer have to stay in a quarantine hotel for 10 days.

The UK government will remove all 11 countries from the UK travel red list from 4am on Wednesday 15 December 2021 including South Africa, Botswana and Namibia.

Angola
Botswana
Eswatini (formerly Swaziland)
Lesotho
Malawi
Mozambique
Namibia
Nigeria
South Africa
Zambia
Zimbabwe

Travellers arriving in the UK from Wednesday morning will not need to stay in hotel quarantine for 10 days. Day 2 & 8 PCR tests for unvaccinated travellers will remain for international arrivals.

More about testing >>

New rules for travellers arriving in the UK

The 'traffic light system' for international arrivals was replaced with a simpler two tier system with Red list countries and the Rest of the World (ROW) on Monday 4 October 2021. All green and amber list countries were consolidated into the ROW list

Please note: changes have come into force in England. Please be sure to check the specific travel restrictions if you're leaving from/arriving in Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland.

ROW list countries

The rules for those arriving from ROW countries differ for fully vaccinated travellers and non-vaccinated travellers. This includes the requirements for testing and quarantine.

Fully vaccinated & children

The rules for travellers who are fully vaccinated, exempt or under 18 arriving from ROW countries are:

Complete passenger locator form
No pre-departure test in destination - from 11 February
No antigen lateral flow test - from 11 February

Vaccinations must be from the UK vaccine programme or recognised overseas programme at least 14 days before you arrive in England. Proof of vaccination status is required with an appropriate Covid-19 passport or certification.

Not fully vaccinated

The rules for travellers who aren't fully vaccinated arriving from ROW countries are:

Complete passenger locator form
Pre-departure test in destination
PCR test required on or before day 2 (No day 8 test from 11 February)
No quarantine at home from 11 February

Browse ROW list >>

Red list countries

All foreign travellers who have been in or through red-listed countries in the previous 10 days will be refused entry to the UK. All British and Irish nationals, including people with the right to live in the UK, must quarantine in government approved hotels for 10 days.

Complete passenger locator form
No pre-departure test in destination - from 7 January
PCR test required on or before day 2 & day 8
Quarantine in hotel for 10 days required

Browse red list >>

For a full summary of Covid-19 statistics and regulations by country, and to compare destinations around the world, visit our interactive Covid-19 travel planner.

The next UK government review of the UK travel list and testing requirements is due to take place in the last week of Janaury 2022.

Updated on Thursday 17 March 2022

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