UK plans to drop amber country quarantine: Can Britons abroad benefit?

The UK has announced it plans to drop quarantine-on-arrival rules for fully vaccinated residents returning from amber-listed countries, such as France, as a first stage.

A UK government announcement made on June 24 states:

“In recognition of our successful domestic vaccination programme...our intention is that later in the summer, arrivals who are fully vaccinated will not have to quarantine when travelling from amber list countries. We expect this to occur in phases, starting with UK residents.”

The government has not clarified how this rule will be enforced in practice and what documents travellers returning from amber-listed countries will need to supply to travel authorities or border agents to prove they are UK residents.

It has not been explained how the authorities will verify that the travellers are UK residents, especially in the case of UK passport holders living abroad who are visiting.

No official date has been set for when the new rule will begin, although there has been press speculation it will be July 26 - nor what could be covered in subsequent stages.

A spokesperson for the UK’s Department for Transport confirmed to The Connexion yesterday (July 2) that the change will not initially apply to UK passport holders living abroad, and that it will be limited to UK residents.

The spokesperson said, “all other details around how this will be operationalised are being finalised”.

What are the current rules for people travelling from France to the UK?

Currently, everyone, whether a UK passport holder, fully vaccinated or otherwise, needs to take a pre-departure Covid-19 test and quarantine for 10 days on arrival in the UK. They must also take Covid-19 tests on days two and eight, with an option for early release on day five if they take another Covid-19 test.

Once this planned ruling comes into place, UK residents returning to the UK after a visit to France will not need to quarantine and will only need to take a pre-departure Covid-19 test and another one on day two after arriving.

The quarantine rules will remain for everyone else.

The UK government spokesperson said details about how the change will be enforced will be announced in “the coming weeks”.

She said: “Further detail will be set out in the coming weeks, including the rules which will apply to children, vaccine clinical trial volunteers and those unable to be vaccinated, how we will operationalise this approach at the border, and the dates on which any changes will come into effect.”

The UK is set to review its traffic light travel rules around mid-July. The reviews take place approximately every three weeks, with the last one held on June 24.

France could be added to the UK’s green list on the next update, as most Covid-19 indicators show the situation to be under control in France.

If this is the case, then no one travelling from France to the UK will need to quarantine on arrival, and will only need a pre-departure Covid-19 test and then a second one on day two after arrival.

For travel from the UK to France, people in the UK who are fully vaccinated against Covid-19 can visit France for tourism or leisure reasons, as long as they have proof of a negative Covid-19 test. They do not need to quarantine on arrival.

People who are not fully vaccinated against Covid-19 can only enter if they have an essential reason, most of which involve having the right to live or work in France. For people with an essential reason, they will need to self-isolate for seven days on arrival.

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