As the UK moves forward with plans to lift most domestic restrictions on COVID-19, on July 19, Britain will lift quarantine restrictions for fully vaccinated UK residents coming from amber-listed countries.
Under the new measures, England will no longer require that fully vaccinated arrivals from amber or medium-risk countries be quarantined for 10 days after arrival, starting on 19 July. Instead, they will take a PCR test on the second day of their return, in addition to the pre-trip test. The rules also apply to those who have been cured of the virus. However, the relaxed entry rules only apply to UK residents returning to England who have been “fully vaccinated with a vaccine administered by the NHS in the UK”.
UK Transport Minister Grant Shapps has confirmed that children will also need to take a PCR test on the second day, and said unvaccinated and even partially vaccinated travelers will be required to be quarantined for 10 days when returning from an amber country.
Arrivals to Amber must show their vaccination status to the carrier before departure, either through the NHS app on their smartphone, or with an NHS COVID Pass letter.
The government will consider mitigating quarantine rules for residents of non-UK countries coming from amber countries later this year, but for now they will be required to quarantine them. The rules remain unchanged in Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales, but the BBC reports that Wales and Northern Ireland may follow in England’s footsteps.
Most countries are classified as amber according to the UK traffic light system, including hotspots such as France, Italy, Greece and Spain, as well as mainland Portugal.
There are no changes in the rules of arrival from the green list – countries where the level of infection is low and the level of vaccination is high. They also need to undergo PCR before and after the trip. Newcomers from the red list or high-risk countries will still be required to undergo mandatory quarantine in hotels at their own expense.
On July 19, the UK government plans to reopen the country, repealing almost all COVID-19 rules, despite the continuing increase in the number of cases due to Delta options. While the British Medical Association (BMA) has called for continued use of face masks, the government’s mandate to use masks will be abolished, along with recommendations for social distancing. Nightclubs called “Freedom Day” will open, concerts and festivals will return, sports games will be allowed to run at full capacity, and life will more or less return to the times before the pandemic.