Go Back  FlyerTalk Forums > Travel&Dining > Travel Health and Fitness > Coronavirus and travel
Reload this Page >

UK arrivals - pre-departure, quarantine and post-arrival [currently no requirements]

Old Jun 4, 2020, 5:57 am
FlyerTalk Forums Expert How-Tos and Guides
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.

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.

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)
Print Wikipost

UK arrivals - pre-departure, quarantine and post-arrival [currently no requirements]

 
Old May 9, 2020, 4:33 am
  #91  
 
Join Date: May 2010
Posts: 2,345
When do we know more about this - when is the conference call please?
paulaf is offline  
Old May 9, 2020, 4:33 am
  #92  
 
Join Date: May 2018
Posts: 339
Yesterday the EU decided for one month prolongation of closing eu borders fort he rest of the world
inside schengen etc propably open borders between certain countrys
But off course with a lot of countrys have their own idears about how and when
We made plans to come to europe in august
flying from marrakech to the netherlands
rental car for trip to germany france and swiss
We have dutch pasports but have no residence in europe
Till so far
border germany swiss closed
no flights between maroc and europe or V.V.
guarantine france
Unofficial plans in maroc meaby september
And i am not sure if transavia will fly to maroc 7 days a week it would become less
so interesting times
greetings cornelis
nkob is offline  
Old May 9, 2020, 4:50 am
  #93  
 
Join Date: May 2014
Posts: 7,171
This comes from the same government that allowed bus tours of septuagenarians to roam the country until March 23rd or thereabouts.

The same government that said not to visit pubs and restaurants but left them
open for a week before shutting them down.

The same government that, in SAGE
briefings, made points of showing how the curve was lower than the countries in the Continent before suddenly stopping and saying theres no point in comparing us with anyone as soon as deaths overtook Italy.

The same government that has proven inept at providing PPE to healthcare professionals.

And the same government that counts even the Covid-19 tests that havent yielded results yet in the stats (but fails to reach the 100k target it has set itself for April).
13901 is online now  
Old May 9, 2020, 5:06 am
  #94  
 
Join Date: Jan 2011
Programs: BAEC GGL/CCR, Hilton Diamond, Hyatt Globalist
Posts: 393
Originally Posted by corporate-wage-slave
I hope this makes the logic clearer.
It's one logic. The problem is it's not the only logical policy you can derive from the all the research that has been done on transmission. And looking at it in terms of cost/benefit I don't see any reason to believe this is the right version of the policy. My simple point would be - the likelihood of a carrier being on a flight is going to vary by location. So vary the policy by starting location. Don't strangle the entire UK aviation sector and all travel with a blunt instrument.

We could also stop pretending the public are stupid and need to be forced to do the right thing. The message should be clear - if you're ill stay at home. As you said - the vast majority of transmission are via symptomatic cases. Right now I wouldn't go out if I had a temperature/cough. The social judgement + some sensible temperature checking at the entry to shops/workplaces would be enough to prevent that, but I also think it's a reasonable responsibility that most willingly accept already. We shouldn't be so cynical of people to make common sense changes to how they behave. Data on cases seems to suggest that the public already did in fact do this before a lockdown was even forced on them. There will not be millions of people arriving at Heathrow magically on June 1 all with zero sense of social responsibility. We should not be preparing a policy to deal with this imaginary scenario.

Assuming the government's goal is to make those cost/benefit decisions on how we go forward (and not just pander to public fear) there are many other things we should be talking about now. Perhaps consider locking down nursing homes and reopening primary schools. Children are vastly not transmission vectors. And nursing homes are the real source of the majority of deaths in Europe.
littlefish and Silver Fox like this.
clearedforlanding is offline  
Old May 9, 2020, 5:38 am
  #95  
 
Join Date: Feb 2010
Location: London
Programs: BA GGL (for now) and Lifetime Gold, Marriott fan thanks to Bonvoy Moments
Posts: 5,112
Originally Posted by clearedforlanding
It's one logic. The problem is it's not the only logical policy you can derive from the all the research that has been done on transmission. And looking at it in terms of cost/benefit I don't see any reason to believe this is the right version of the policy. My simple point would be - the likelihood of a carrier being on a flight is going to vary by location. So vary the policy by starting location. Don't strangle the entire UK aviation sector and all travel with a blunt instrument.
which is what some other countries are doing. High risk area = quarantine, low risk area and youre ok to follow same rules as locals.
lorcancoyle is offline  
Old May 9, 2020, 5:42 am
  #96  
 
Join Date: Jan 2009
Location: London, Sth Africa or LAS
Programs: VS Silver, BA Blue - finally; but hotels.com Gold :)
Posts: 1,856
Originally Posted by corporate-wage-slave
You may want to cast your eye on this piece of research via St. Andrews University (22 step thread, you have to click through):
https://twitter.com/mugecevik/status...92347010215947

Dr. Cevik's analysis essentially shows that generally speaking two thirds to three quarters of infections come via symptomatic patients spreading the disease to their partner, to their family and in health care settings. Casual contact, contact via door handles, supernarket squeeze passing, joggers - particularly if outdoors, particularly with asymptomatic cases - doesn't cause infection on any scale. Unforutnately our lockdown doesn't greatly help with those cases that are happening and it's not easy to resolve.. RIght now, in the UK, the majority of cases are heath care settings, if we include care homes. In other words community infection in the community is now very low., particularly in London When you have approximately 7,000 a day landing at Heathrow, even if 1% are symptomatic, way over a plausible level, having self solation as an added restriction makes no sense since 70 x R is statistically unmeasureable when N = 66 million. Dr. Cervik puts transport related infections at around 11%, so aviation would be tiny. But this is in a context when arriving travellers and the public are both suposed to be mainly staying at home and greatly reducing personal contact. Going forward, imagine a situation - for example early June - when the lockdown could be reduced, there won't be a presumption of staying at home, working from home, the context therefore changes and lockdown won't be the norm. Therefore with a low level of community infection as a baseline, even 70 x R becomes an issue and hence the suggestion that arriving passengers are treated differently. Or rather these passengers would continue to do what they are supposed to be doing now.
I hope this makes the logic clearer.
As ever, thanks C-W-S for the insights and some commentary.
To me, the logic falls the moment the start point seems to be symptomatic cases. Well, if there are symptomatic cases arriving at Heathrow then it goes without saying they can't and mustn't enter the community. So if Heathrow (or any port of entry) isn't geared up to identify / help / safely handle symptomatic cases then that is a huge problem and needs dealing with as a basic pre-step.

The trickier issue, surely, is the pre-symptomatic and asymptomatic cases. By definition, these are harder to pick out (just as they are in the wider community!!).
How is that risk assessed for total expected arrivals (is the potential number of carriers AND their future actions too much?) and then managed? and reduced to an achievable non-NIL level. A starting point for that approach might be to not allow flights from origins with high Covid-19 caseloads &/or poor data &/or sub-par pre-flight screening.

What I don't currently see is the logic of the response aligning to the actual risk(s) to the wider UK population.

Standing back, as I've mentioned in other threads, it is the actions of the individuals in the post lockdown community which keeps the R <1.
I'm not so sure the 'traveller individual' is inherently less able to practice good Covid-19 hygiene, mask wearing, social distancing, self-diagnosis, in the community, than the average citizen.
littlefish is online now  
Old May 9, 2020, 6:18 am
  #97  
 
Join Date: May 2010
Posts: 2,345
DM reports quarantine will go onto early autumn, might as well give up completely now on thoughts of any holidays now until the end of the year!!!
paulaf is offline  
Old May 9, 2020, 6:57 am
  #98  
 
Join Date: Jul 2019
Posts: 457
It insane now to late to do it, they should close border 2 months ago ...now then some European Countries will open from.1 June we will be forceing restrictions
Wonder as a key worker I can test my family any time now so if I return from abroad I need go to qurantain I'm happy with this but after 6 days I should have option to exit it if all family members was testing negative....if not go for 2 weeks holidays in August is no that now... and I already moved my 4 weeks Australia trip from.April 2020 to 2021....
Sorry but our Gov make moves 2 months delayed....
Garimi is offline  
Old May 9, 2020, 7:15 am
  #99  
 
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: 4,127
Originally Posted by southlondonphil
This move, should it happen as touted (and the promised return of contact tracing) is less an admission that the UK has bungled its responses to the coronoavirus so far (obvious even to a blind corona-bat in a cave by now!) and should have been quarantining incomers/returnees 2 months ago, and more a case of attempting to persuade other governments not to impose a blanket ban on travellers from the UK entering other countries due to a belief that the UK is a diseased 'leper colony' that has absolutely no idea what proportion of its citizenry are infected, is doing insufficient to contain/minimise the threat, and is thus a danger to other nations, which, stark language aside, is pretty much how the UK (and Trumpia) will be viewed by many right now.
I think its too late.

Watching the news here in Germany, where I have now been stuck for 7 weeks, you really do get the impression that the UK has become the basket-case of Europe. My access to UK TV channels does nothing to change that impression. Watching happy-go-lucky street parties yesterday on TV news, newspapers cheering the assumed lockdown relaxation impending, while the country is registering over 4,000 new cases and 600 deaths daily is just plain silly. And that coupled with not even a modicum of humility from political leaders.

I am sure that travellers from the UK will not only face quarantine on their return, but also at their destinations. And probably very soon.
Tafflyer is online now  
Old May 9, 2020, 7:26 am
  #100  
 
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: 4,127
Originally Posted by Dan1113
And there are a LOT of vigilantes these days ensuring compliance, so if the people around you - whether from social media, your neighbours noticing you are away etc - see you out and about and driving to work or a shop, there sure are a lot of people willing to 'turn you in' these days anyway.
This for me, coming from the UK is one of the most shocking and disappointing things about this pandemic. Isnt this one of the things the UK most despised of the opposition in the last war?
Tafflyer is online now  
Old May 9, 2020, 9:21 am
  #101  
Moderator: Hyatt Gold Passport & Star Alliance
Original Poster
 
Join Date: May 1998
Location: London, UK
Programs: UA-1K 3MM/HY- LT Globalist/BA-GGL/GfL
Posts: 12,034
Originally Posted by paulaf
When do we know more about this - when is the conference call please?
Sunday morning now it seems.
Markie is online now  
Old May 9, 2020, 12:52 pm
  #102  
 
Join Date: May 2010
Posts: 2,345
Thanks, didnt glean much from the press briefing other than Boris will update us tomorrow so there is something to say.
paulaf is offline  
Old May 10, 2020, 6:37 am
  #103  
 
Join Date: May 2010
Posts: 2,345
Originally Posted by Markie
Sunday morning now it seems.
Do we have to wait until Boris's speech tonight or will we have an update before then?
paulaf is offline  
Old May 10, 2020, 7:22 am
  #104  
 
Join Date: May 2014
Posts: 7,171
Originally Posted by paulaf
Do we have to wait until Boris's speech tonight or will we have an update before then?
Well at the moment we know we must be alert. To what, and why we werent before, who knows.
paulaf likes this.
13901 is online now  
Old May 10, 2020, 7:29 am
  #105  
Senior Moderator, Moderator: Community Buzz and Ambassador: Miles & More (Lufthansa, Austrian, Swiss, and other partners)
 
Join Date: Jun 2005
Location: 150km from MAN
Programs: LH SEN** HH Diamond
Posts: 29,503
Originally Posted by 13901
Well at the moment we know we must “be alert”.
But not if you are in Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland.
Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales to stick with 'Stay home' message rather then new slogan
13901 likes this.
NewbieRunner is offline  

Thread Tools
Search this Thread

Contact Us - Manage Preferences - Archive - Advertising - Cookie Policy - Privacy Statement - Terms of Service -

This site is owned, operated, and maintained by MH Sub I, LLC dba Internet Brands. Copyright © 2024 MH Sub I, LLC dba Internet Brands. All rights reserved. Designated trademarks are the property of their respective owners.