LONDON – Travellers vaccinated against Covid-19 will no longer have to undergo any test to return to the country. The Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Boris Johnson, announced all restrictions were being removed.
Therefore the authorities remove all testing requirements for eligible fully vaccinated arrivals from 4 am on February 11. Travellers will only have to fill in a Passenger Location Form (PLF).
“Changes will be seen. Tests will no longer be requested for those fully vaccinated who want to enter”, the Prime Minister has asserted. His announcement means mandatory testing will no longer be required during the first two days after arriving in British territory. This arose from the elimination of the obligation which came into force on December 7 to carry out a test before travellers return to the United Kingdom.
Country open for business and travelers
According to TTG, the president has stressed it no longer makes sense. This is because the entire country is in the “Omicron wave”. With the relaxation of restrictions, the Government wants to send a message that the country is “open for business and travellers”.
In this way, the United Kingdom would end the de-escalation of travel restrictions for those who have received the full schedule of vaccines. They now would only have to meet the requirements of the destination countries. Thus, once the new system comes into force, a vaccinated British person who wants to spend their holidays in Spain will no longer have to pay extra for Covid tests, neither to enter the country nor to return to their own.
However, British nationals who have not received the complete vaccination schedule will not be able to enter Spain. This applies to everyone from the age of 12. At least for the time being and until Order INT/1304/2021, of November 26, remains in force.
Current travel restrictions
As the Government published on their website:
- From 4 am on 11 February the Government will remove all testing requirements for eligible fully vaccinated arrivals. They only have to fill in a Passenger Locator Form (PLF).
- Not fully vaccinated arrivals will only need to take a pre-departure test and a PCR test on or before day 2 after they arrive in the UK.
- Children aged 12-15 in the UK will be able to prove their vaccination status or proof of prior infection. They can do so via a digital NHS COVID Pass from 3 February for outbound travel.
- Travel changes come in ahead of the February half term, and follow the success of the booster programme.
