Jun 4, 2020, 5:57 am
Last edit by: NewbieRunner
Mod note on thread engagement:
A reminder that this thread is about the self-isolation requirements for UK arrivals.
It is a help/Information resource for those travelling or returning to England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland from outside the UK. Let's concentrate on news, questions and answers that are relevant and on-topic and stay away from speculations about the spread of the virus, the performance of politicians and other topics which are more suitable for OMNI.
Please stay within these requirements to avoid issues.
A reminder that this thread is about the self-isolation requirements for UK arrivals.
It is a help/Information resource for those travelling or returning to England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland from outside the UK. Let's concentrate on news, questions and answers that are relevant and on-topic and stay away from speculations about the spread of the virus, the performance of politicians and other topics which are more suitable for OMNI.
Please stay within these requirements to avoid issues.
LATEST UPDATES
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/travel-t...virus-covid-19
18 March travel to the UK changes
If you will arrive in the UK from abroad after 4am, Friday 18 March, you do not need to:
- take any COVID-19 tests – before you travel or after you arrive
- fill in a UK passenger locator form before you travel
This will apply whether you are vaccinated or not.
You also will not need to quarantine when you arrive, in line with current rules.
Other countries still have COVID-19 entry rules in place. You should check travel advice before you travel.
If you will arrive in England before 4am, 18 March, you must follow the current rules as set out in this guidance.
*****
The following historical information is retained for the time being.
The Passenger Locator Form for passengers arriving into the UK can be found here:
https://visas-immigration.service.go...r-locator-form
This can only be completed once you are within 48 hours of arrival in the UK.
Exemption list from quarantine requirements - specific details:
https://www.gov.uk/government/public...k-border-rules
England
Statutory instrument for individual passengers arriving in to England: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2021/582/contents (this html version is updated, but may not have the very latest updates for Statutory Instruments released in the last few days)
Test to release for England only from 15 December, see post 4776 https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/32841066-post4776.html
Statutory instrument for transport providers http://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2.../contents/made
Scotland
Statutory instrument for individual passengers arriving in to Scotland: http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ssi/2020/169/contents (this html version is updated)
Wales
Statutory instrument for individual passengers arriving in to Wales: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/wsi/2020/574/contents (this html version is updated) &
Welsh language version: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/wsi/2...0200574_we.pdf
Northern Ireland
Statutory instrument https://www.legislation.gov.uk/nisr/2021/99/contents (this html version is updated)
PRACTICAL GUIDANCE FOR QUICK RELEASE FROM SELF-ISOLATION (based on November 28th updates)
[This section has been moved lower down in the wiki post following the change in self-isolation rule on 7th January 2022[
Any PCR test noted as a UK Government Day 2 test will be accepted for release from self isolation as soon as you get the negative result. If it is any other PCR test (eg "Fit to Fly") and not advertised specifically as a Day 2 test then it won't be valid.
This means that you can:[list]
- Book a suitable Day 2 PCR test before you travel and use the booking reference for the test on the PLF (Passenger Locator Form).
- On your day of arrival go to your scheduled test.
- Proceed to you place of self-isolation and await the result, which will hopefully be same / next day.
Alternatively:- Book any Day 2 PCR test before you travel even if you do not intend to use this test, and use the booking reference for the test on the PLF to ensure entry to the UK.
- Note that you are not strictly required to have a PCR booking before arrival, but your carrier might not know that so you run the risk of being denied boarding
- On your day of arrival (or before end of Day 2) go to a walk-in test centre and take a different test to the one you booked.
- Proceed to you place of self-isolation and await the result, which will hopefully be same / next day.
If you are leaving the UK before the end of day 2 then you do not need to take a test, but are required to self-isolate for the duration of your trip (since you do not have a negative result). Also, if you are self-isolating while waiting for a result (and hence have not been informed of a positive result and need to isolate) you may travel to leave the country.
If you take a test and it is positive for any variant of COVID you will be required to isolate for 10 days from the date of the test.
Whether you take a test or not you may be contacted by the UK Test and Trace system at any time if it becomes apparent that you have been in contact with another case. This is very unlikely to happen before day 3 if it is in relation to your flight to UK. Depending on the suspected / identified variant for that case and if you are fully-vaccinated by an accepted programme (see below for links to what this means and valid exemptions) :- Omnicron or not fully-vaccinated: You will be required to isolated for 10 days, including a bar on travel to leave the country. A negative Day 2 test does not release you from this requirement.
- Other and fully vaccinated : You will not be required to isolate.
- Book any Day 2 PCR test before you travel even if you do not intend to use this test, and use the booking reference for the test on the PLF to ensure entry to the UK.
- Proceed to you place of self-isolation and await the result, which will hopefully be same / next day.
- On your day of arrival go to your scheduled test.
Test Providers for Day 2/8 tests & Day 5 Test to release
This section is for FTers to post their experience with specific providers (good or bad). Keep it brief and to the point. Please mention how the service is provided and your FT name.
DNA Workplace - Postal - Test kits arrived with me on time. Royal Mail slow for return. 5+ days for Day 2 result. #DaveS
DNA Workplace - Postal - Test kits both arrived on time, video of tests required, results by late evening Day 3 and Day 9. #TSE
ExpressTest Gatwick - Drive through - Tested early at 1000 a few times for TTR. Results came through in evening. #DaveS
NowTest - Postal - Day 2 kit arrived on time, day 8 did not. Will update with result arrival times when applicable. #wilsnunn
Collinson - Postal - Day 5 Test to Release kit arrived in time. Results and release by end of day 6. #tjcxx
CTM - Postal - Days 2/8 kits arrived together in time. Both sent results 2 days after posting. #tjcxx
Qured (Oncologica) - Postal -Day 2/8 kits arrived late. Results 3+ days from posting. #Gagravarr
Qured (Oncologica) - Postal - Day 2/8 kits arrived on time. Day 2 result on Day 5 and Day 8 result on Day 10 - happy customer! #EddLegll
Qured (Ocnologica) - Postal - Day 2/8 kits arrived on time. Day 2 result on Day 5 (after bedtime; ironically after my TTR result). #KSVVZ2015
Anglia DNA - Postal - Day 2/8 kits arrived early. (Both were labelled Day2). Results on Day 4 and Day 9. Cheapest on the list at the time, and good service/result. #tjcxx
Qured - Pre-flight test booked and bought through BA. Very efficient service. Highly recommended. #lhrsfo
Randox - Days 2 and 8. Booked two days before return, using BA discount. Kits already arrived on return. Slightly confusing instructions but manageable. Used Randox dropbox and results next day. Good. #lhrsfo
Randox - Day 2 (also used as pre departure test for a London to Milan flight). Used a drop box and results arrived at midnight the next day. #11101
Randox - Day 2 test centre - 2h30 queues outside the test centre in Waterloo. Results of antigen arrived 45 minutes later. #11101
Collinson - Test to Release at LHR T2. Good trip out! Very efficient service and well organised. Used BA discount. Results by end of day. Excellent. #lhrsfo
DAM - Test to Release in Fulham (they have many locations) - the cheapest fast turnaround TTR we have found. They promise 24 hours but in reality me, my wife, and my son (on different days) have received results inside of 12 hours. Very efficient staff as well. Princes outside of Central London as low as 99 GBP. Fulham is 129 GBP. #KSVVZ2015
Boots/Source Bioscience - days 2&8. Both packs sent in the same mail, waiting at the isolation address. Dropped off at postbox at 4pm, result back next day between 4 and 5 pm, very effective. Bought from Boots, £160, but same package sold directly bu Source Bioscience is just £120. Aaargh! Instructions said nasal and throat swabs, did only nasal and marked accordingly, no issues. #WilcoRoger
Collinsons/Stansted walkin TTR - test taken 1:30 pm, email with results 10:10 pm same day If the BA20OFF doesn't work (didn't work for us) there's another discount on the airport's site #WilcoRoger
Ordered Day-2 kit from Chronomics a week before our return for £18.99. Duly dispatched day we were returning to UK, so arrived on day following return. Reasonably simple process to do test and upload -ve result picture. Not sure where +ve result would have led to... #EsherFlyer
Hale Clinic testing centre (near Oxford Circus) - While not the least expensive, appoint schedules are accurate and results returned in promised timeframe. I've used the clinic for Day 2 tests (twice) and antigen test for US (once). I would def utilize again. #ecaarch
Halo at T5 (Sofitel) - Day 2 PCR spit test. Took the test 7pm, results arrived 7am the next day. No queues but a slightly awkward process to follow.
Useful data sources:
New cases per 100k - 7 days: https://covid19.who.int/table
New tests per 1000 - 7 days: https://ourworldindata.org/coronavirus-testing
Vaccination doses per 100: https://ourworldindata.org/covid-vaccinations
Sequenced samples uploaded to GISAID: https://www.gisaid.org/index.php?id=208
NHS Track & Trace data (positivity rates for arriving passengers are published every three weeks, so if you can't find the data in the current release it will be in one of the previous two) https://www.gov.uk/government/collec...weekly-reports https://assets.publishing.service.go...ut_week_50.ods
UK daily COVID data https://coronavirus.data.gov.uk/?_ga...827.1594116739
Risk assessment methodology to inform international travel traffic light system
Data informing international travel traffic-light risk assessments
Testing Terminology
Notes which may assist with understanding which tests to use and with "reuse" of UK tests for other countries regulations:
- LFT: Lateral Flow Test - A rapid antigen test using nasal / throat swab typically performed by the traveler at home, hotel, etc using simple disposable device. Usually tests the "outer shell" of the nucleus (which causes the symptoms and is reasonably stable across variants) and not the "spikes" (which allow new variants to invade more easily), so gives a positive result for many variants. (See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/COVID-...d_antigen_test)
- PCR: Polymerase Chain Reaction - A laboratory based test which looks at the nucleus of the virus to determine which specific variant it is. After a positive LFT test ("I have some form of COVID") a PCR test ("You have the Gamma variant") allows identification and tracking of new variants to see if they are likely to become a "variant of concern". (See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polymerase_chain_reaction)
- NAAT: Nucleic Acid Amplification Test - A general class of laboratory based tests which includes PCR, LAMP, etc tests. (See https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019...b/naats.html)
UK arrivals - pre-departure, quarantine and post-arrival [currently no requirements]
Aug 19, 2020, 5:06 am
#3256
Join Date: May 2012
Location: Munich, Algarve, Sussex or S.F Bay Area
Programs: Mucci, BA Gold, A3*Gold, AA Plat, HH Gold, IHG Plat Amb, Marriott Plat
Posts: 4,163
It shows the current rolling 7-day average new cases per day per 100,000 inhabitants. So if CWS's table is a rolling 14-day average, that might well explain the differences. Astounding how quickly these values can change. Personally, currently located in the Algarve, a region where the infection rate is really low, I find it hard being forced to quarantine were I to decide to visit family in the UK.
Aug 19, 2020, 5:07 am
#3257
FlyerTalk Evangelist, Ambassador, British Airways Executive Club
Join Date: Jun 2008
Location: Somewhere between 0 and 13,000 metres high
Programs: AF/KL Life Plat, BA GGL+GfL, ALL Plat, Hilton Diam, Marriott Gold, blablablah, etc
Posts: 30,519
He also gives the specifics of how the numbers are calculated. I don't think it would be efficient to repeat that information every day)
Aug 19, 2020, 5:26 am
#3258
Join Date: Jul 2018
Programs: Aadvantage platinum; IHG Spire
Posts: 546
Aug 19, 2020, 5:28 am
#3259
Join Date: Jan 2007
Posts: 4,709
You’re not allowed to leave the house to shop
https://www.gov.uk/government/public...avel-to-the-uk
https://www.gov.uk/government/public...avel-to-the-uk
Aug 19, 2020, 5:29 am
#3260
Join Date: May 2012
Location: Munich, Algarve, Sussex or S.F Bay Area
Programs: Mucci, BA Gold, A3*Gold, AA Plat, HH Gold, IHG Plat Amb, Marriott Plat
Posts: 4,163
Thanks. New to this thread and was honstly too lazy to read back through over 3000 posts. CWS’s reputation preceeds him, however.
Aug 19, 2020, 5:32 am
#3261
Join Date: Nov 2012
Location: Rhineland-Palatinate
Programs: *A Gold (A3), HHonor Gold
Posts: 5,693
Only if it is last way to get food, in first you must ask for assistance.
The entire narrative in this thread that you can leave your house for shopping is a lie that contradict directly the directions from HMG.
The entire narrative in this thread that you can leave your house for shopping is a lie that contradict directly the directions from HMG.
You cannot go out to work or school or visit public areas. You should not go shopping. If you require help buying groceries, other shopping or picking up medication, you should ask friends or relatives or order a delivery.In England, you must only exercise within your home or garden. You cannot leave your home to walk your dog. You will need to ask friends or relatives to help you with this.
NHS Volunteer Responders are also available if you need help collecting shopping, medication or would like a telephone ‘check-in and chat’. Call 0808 196 3646 (8am to 8pm) to arrange volunteer support. You can arrange one-off support, or schedule more regular help whilst you are self-isolating.
In England, you can only leave your accommodation in limited circumstances. These include where:
NHS Volunteer Responders are also available if you need help collecting shopping, medication or would like a telephone ‘check-in and chat’. Call 0808 196 3646 (8am to 8pm) to arrange volunteer support. You can arrange one-off support, or schedule more regular help whilst you are self-isolating.
In England, you can only leave your accommodation in limited circumstances. These include where:
- you need urgent medical assistance (or where your doctor has advised you to get medical assistance)
- you need access to basic necessities like food and medicines, but only in exceptional circumstances such as where you cannot arrange for these to be delivered
Aug 19, 2020, 5:35 am
#3262
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jan 2008
Location: HEL
Programs: lots of shiny metal cards
Posts: 14,105
Aug 19, 2020, 5:36 am
#3263
Ambassador, British Airways; FlyerTalk Posting Legend
Join Date: Apr 2012
Location: Leeds, UK
Programs: BA GGL/CCR, GfL, HH Diamond
Posts: 42,944
You’re not allowed to leave the house to shop
https://www.gov.uk/government/public...avel-to-the-uk
https://www.gov.uk/government/public...avel-to-the-uk
Aug 19, 2020, 5:40 am
#3264
Moderator, Iberia Airlines, Airport Lounges, and Ambassador, British Airways Executive Club
Join Date: Feb 2010
Programs: BA Lifetime Gold; Flying Blue Life Platinum; LH Sen.; Hilton Diamond; Kemal Kebabs Prized Customer
Posts: 63,783
It shows the current rolling 7-day average new cases per day per 100,000 inhabitants. So if CWS's table is a rolling 14-day average, that might well explain the differences. Astounding how quickly these values can change. Personally, currently located in the Algarve, a region where the infection rate is really low, I find it hard being forced to quarantine were I to decide to visit family in the UK.
The use of 14 days cumulative has been mentioned upthread, but given the disease has a 12-16 day lifecycle (typically), someone who tests positive 2 weeks ago may be regarded as still infectious to some degree. It also deals better with one off daily spikes or weekend arrangements. 7 days is also useful, and gives a clue whether the day-to-day changes on 14 days is due to a recent acceleration or indicating a situation which is under control.
Aug 19, 2020, 6:01 am
#3265
Join Date: Oct 2019
Location: clue is in the nym
Programs: BA Gold, TP Gold, VS Gold, Hilton Diamond, IHG Diamond, Hyatt Globalist, Marriott Platinum
Posts: 832
Everything you need to know and were too afraid to ask about the test timing in one image (it is a bit old but I *think* still current):
https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jam...IJ8GJU.twitter
https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jam...IJ8GJU.twitter
Aug 19, 2020, 9:19 am
#3266
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jul 2006
Location: Hong Kong, France
Programs: FB , BA Gold
Posts: 15,555
If you test on arrival only you get 7% of cases that would be confirmed by 14 days. I think we all knew that those countries doing this were wasting their time. If you test on arrival plus 5 days it rises to 85%. If arrival plus 8 days it is 96%. It is worth noting that 14 days self isolation is 98.5%, it is possible but rare to be able to infect after 14 days, though the suspicion is that in those cases the viral load wouldn't be high. Almost all test results not involving the postal service are now being delivered under 24 hours.
The 7% looks quite strange. Typically one gets PCR positive quickly after infection and remain positive for quite a while. Hence the test on arrival would catch not only those who got infected recently but also those who got infected possibly weeks ago and are not very contagious anymore. The only one missed are those who got very recently infected as it might take a couple of days (exceptionally up to 7 days) to get PCR positivity. Contagiosity is high before the symptoms appear (if any) and decreases when symptoms appear.
The statistics you use might be the positive rates one and five days after infection. But pax might have been contaminated a few days ago.
I remember reading quite different number in a Hong Kong article. But I cannot find it as it was part of a broader article.
Hong Kong has been systematically testing all arrivals for months. The system is that everyone goes into strict quarantine after arrival, often with a new test some time before the end of quarantine.
Hence HK should have a massive database.
If you test negative upon arrival and do not undergo an additional test after 14 days, you might become sick but asymptomatic during quarantine but you would not know but would not be contagious when you end quarantine.
To address the mention by 13901 that HK is more "intelligent" than UK, one should remember how strict they are. You have testing on arrival PLUS strict compulsory quarantine (not allowed to go out for any reason and checked by GPS with an electronic prisoner wristband). Pax from high-risk countries further need a test before departure and need to stay in a hotel to avoid family contamination, even though they are HK residents. Numerous Asian countries require both test on arrival and quarantine. The only difference if you test positive on arrival is that you are sent to hospital or a dedicated facility.
Last edited by brunos; Aug 19, 2020 at 9:55 am
Aug 19, 2020, 9:29 am
#3267
Join Date: Jan 2009
Location: London, Sth Africa or LAS
Programs: VS Silver, BA Blue - finally; but hotels.com Gold :)
Posts: 1,858
If you test on arrival only you get 7% of cases that would be confirmed by 14 days. I think we all knew that those countries doing this were wasting their time. If you test on arrival plus 5 days it rises to 85%. If arrival plus 8 days it is 96%. It is worth noting that 14 days self isolation is 98.5%, it is possible but rare to be able to infect after 14 days, though the suspicion is that in those cases the viral load wouldn't be high. Almost all test results not involving the postal service are now being delivered under 24 hours.
My understanding (and it has been a 'ballpark' number for a while), is that you'll be able to hit something like 80% of infectees with decent testing. You lose some to false negatives and a similar number to some of the pre-symptomatic (and probably some asymptomatics), plus a few at the detection margins at the end of the cycle.
With arrivals, one might anticipate testing would have fewer peak symptomatic and late stage symptomatic in the population (one example of the sort of data it could help secure).
There's a whole lot of other scientific and political variables to juggle: speed of the test, accuracy of the test; how hard do you look for asymptomatics; what to do with symptomatics detected; what to do with asymptomatics detected; the extent the focus is on highest transmissibility windows or on case numbers; how or whether to mitigate the 20% (?93%?) detection 'gap'; whether no testing but 14 days isolation is overall an improvement; whether a test + 5 days + re-test(s) hybrid has advantages, ... etc etc.
Aug 19, 2020, 9:39 am
#3268
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jul 2006
Location: Hong Kong, France
Programs: FB , BA Gold
Posts: 15,555
It shows the current rolling 7-day average new cases per day per 100,000 inhabitants. So if CWS's table is a rolling 14-day average, that might well explain the differences. Astounding how quickly these values can change. Personally, currently located in the Algarve, a region where the infection rate is really low, I find it hard being forced to quarantine were I to decide to visit family in the UK.
It gives a better idea of the dynamics but what is relevant here is which indicator the UK uses to determine the exemption list.
BTW, some countries do not trust the statistics reported by some of the countries. For example, Italy included Greece as a high risk country and required a test before boarding a week ago.
Aug 19, 2020, 9:42 am
#3269
Join Date: Nov 2007
Location: LEJ BRU
Posts: 1,156
The data are easy and free to get on the ecdc-website. However, to make something useful out of it apparently exceeds my IT skills by far. That is why I‘m thankful for cws dailyupdate.
Aug 19, 2020, 9:47 am
#3270
Join Date: Jan 2018
Location: London
Programs: BAEC Gold, Accor Live Limitless Gold, Hilton Honours Gold, Avis Preferred Plus
Posts: 1,806
Sensitivity is a measure of a test's ability to correctly classify a subject as positive for the disease (test says positive when subject is actually positive), it is calculated as the probability of receiving a true positive i.e. in a trial, sensitivity is calculated as ( number of true positive results )/( number of true positive results + number of false negative results ) or more simply ( number of true positives )/( number of people in the trial with the disease ).
Specificity, on the other hand, is a measure of a test's ability to correctly classify a subject as negative for the disease (test says negative when subject is actually negative), this is calculated as the probability of receiving a true negative i.e. in a trial, specificity is calculated as ( number of true negative results )/( number of true negative results + number of false positive results ) or more simply ( number of true negatives )/( number of people in the trial without the disease ).
My reading (which comes mostly from here: https://www.bmj.com/content/bmj/369/bmj.m1808.full.pdf) suggests that the COVID PCR test has a sensitivity of approx 70% and a specificity of around 95% suggesting that around 30% of test results are false negatives. On the other hand only around 5% of test results are false positives. It is not possible to make an implication about one from the other.
Edit: Just to point out that the article that was posted actually addresses this:
Here the accuracy is the same as the specificity and the sensitivity is as I described.
Specificity, on the other hand, is a measure of a test's ability to correctly classify a subject as negative for the disease (test says negative when subject is actually negative), this is calculated as the probability of receiving a true negative i.e. in a trial, specificity is calculated as ( number of true negative results )/( number of true negative results + number of false positive results ) or more simply ( number of true negatives )/( number of people in the trial without the disease ).
My reading (which comes mostly from here: https://www.bmj.com/content/bmj/369/bmj.m1808.full.pdf) suggests that the COVID PCR test has a sensitivity of approx 70% and a specificity of around 95% suggesting that around 30% of test results are false negatives. On the other hand only around 5% of test results are false positives. It is not possible to make an implication about one from the other.
Edit: Just to point out that the article that was posted actually addresses this:
Originally Posted by Helsingin Sanomat (translated by Google)
THE performance of a MEDICAL test can be described by two metrics, accuracy and sensitivity. The accuracy of coronavirus nucleic acid detection is excellent: a positive test result indicates true infection. Sensitivity, on the other hand, describes how much of the actual disease is identified by the test. Studies have shown that the sensitivity of coronavirus nucleic acid detection is at most moderate, in the range of 60-80%. Thus, only about two out of three patients with coronavirus infection are identified in one test.
Last edited by wilsnunn; Aug 19, 2020 at 10:40 am Reason: Added reference to original online article