Quarantine for travellers testing Covid negative cut to five days Grant Shapps announces


Quarantine for travellers is cut to just five days for anyone who tests negative for Covid, Grant Shapps announces

  • Grant Shapps unveiled new ‘Test to Release’ service starting on December 15
  • Means travellers not from corridor countries only need five day self-isolation if they test negative for Covid
  • Botswana and Saudi Arabia have recently been added to the travel corridors list
  • But the Canary Islands is being removed from exemption over rising cases 

Travellers coming to the UK from locations not on the travel corridor list will only need to self-isolate for five days if they test negative for coronavirus, the Transport Secretary has announced.

Currently, people coming from countries not on the safe list need to self-isolate for 14 days. 

But in a boost for tourists and business travellers, Grant Shapps on Thursday unveiled the new ‘Test to Release’ service, which will come into effect on December 15.

Writing on Twitter, he said passengers could ‘opt-in’ to shorten the self-isolation period to just five days if they receive a negative test result from ‘specific providers’.   

Announcing the shortened self-isolation time for some, the Transport Secretary wrote: ‘From Tues 15th, the new ”Test to Release” service for passengers arriving in England starts. 

Travellers coming to the UK from locations not on the travel corridor list will only need to self-isolate for five days if they test negative for coronavirus, the Transport Secretary has announced

In what is a boost for tourists and business travellers, Grant Shapps unveiled the new 'Test to Release' service, which will come into effect on December 15

In what is a boost for tourists and business travellers, Grant Shapps unveiled the new ‘Test to Release’ service, which will come into effect on December 15

‘This means that all passengers from any location NOT in a Travel Corridor may “opt-in” to shorten self-isolation to 5 days with a negative COVID-19 test result from specific providers. 

However, in what is a major blow for the travel industry, he added that the Canary Islands are being removed from the exemption list because of rising weekly cases and tests.

It means anyone arriving from the popular Spanish resort islands after 4am on Saturday, December 12 will need to go in to self-isolation. 

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Writing on Twitter, he said passengers could ‘opt-in’ to ‘shorten self-isolation’ to just five days if they receive a negative test result from ‘specific providers’

Mr Shapps wrote: ‘Data indicates weekly cases and positive tests are increasing in the CANARY ISLANDS and so we are REMOVING them from the #TravelCorridor list to reduce the risk of importing COVID-19.

‘From 4am Sat 12 Dec, if you arrive from these islands you WILL need to self-isolate.’ 

Many firms recorded a surge in bookings for the Canary Islands when they were added to the travel corridors list in October.

Mr Shapps said their removal was due to a rise in weekly cases and positive tests of the virus.

Travellers to mainland Spain already have to isolate on their return to the UK.

Paul Charles, chief executive of travel consultancy The PC Agency, said: ‘It’s utterly devastating news for the thousands of British travellers who booked to go to the Canaries for Christmas and New Year.

However, in what is a major blow for the travel industry, he added that the Canary Islands is being removed from the exemption list because of rising weekly cases and tests

However, in what is a major blow for the travel industry, he added that the Canary Islands is being removed from the exemption list because of rising weekly cases and tests 

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Mr Shapps wrote: ‘Data indicates weekly cases and positive tests are increasing in the CANARY ISLANDS and so we are REMOVING them from the #TravelCorridor list to reduce the risk of importing COVID-19’

‘It’s also a body blow for travel firms who’d seen an uplift in bookings for the winter after the Canaries were added to the travel corridor list.

‘It now means thousands of refunds and lost bookings for a sector that needed the Canaries to help them recover.’

Botswana and Saudi Arabia have been added to the travel corridors list, the Transport Secretary also announced.  

England has also introduced a quarantine exemption for certain categories of travellers, including people making high-value business trips, sports stars and performing arts professionals.

Many firms recorded a surge in bookings for the Canary Islands when they were added to the travel corridors list in October

Many firms recorded a surge in bookings for the Canary Islands when they were added to the travel corridors list in October

Countries, territories and regions on the travel corridor list 

Anguilla

Antigua and Barbuda

Aruba (arrivals before 4am 28 November need to self-isolate)

Australia

the Azores

Bahrain

Barbados

Bermuda

Bhutan (arrivals before 4am 28 November need to self-isolate)

Bonaire/St Eustatius/Saba

Botswana (arrivals before 4am 12 December need to self-isolate)

British Antarctic Territory

British Indian Ocean Territory

British Virgin Islands

Brunei

Cambodia

the Canary Islands (will be removed from this list at 4am 12 December)

Cayman Islands

the Channel Islands

Chile

Cuba

Dominica

Falkland Islands

Faroe Islands

Federated States of Micronesia (arrivals before 4am 28 November need to self-isolate)

Fiji

Finland

Gibraltar

Greek islands: Corfu, Crete, Kos, Rhodes, Zakynthos

Greenland

Grenada

Hong Kong

Iceland

Ireland

the Isle of Man

Israel and Jerusalem (read about the UK position on Jerusalem)

Japan

Kiribati (arrivals before 4am 28 November need to self-isolate)

Laos

Macao (Macau)

Madeira

Malaysia

Maldives

Mauritius

Mongolia (arrivals before 4am 28 November need to self-isolate)

Montserrat

Namibia

New Caledonia

New Zealand

Northern Mariana Islands

Norway

Pitcairn, Henderson, Ducie and Oeno Islands

Qatar

Rwanda

Samoa (arrivals before 4am 28 November need to self-isolate)

Saudi Arabia (arrivals before 4am 12 December need to self-isolate)

Seychelles

Singapore

Solomon Islands (arrivals before 4am 28 November need to self-isolate)

South Korea

South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands

Sri Lanka

St Barthélemy

St Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha

St Kitts and Nevis

St Lucia

St Pierre and Miquelon

St Vincent and the Grenadines

Taiwan

Thailand

Timor-Leste (arrivals before 4am 28 November need to self-isolate)

Tonga (arrivals before 4am 28 November need to self-isolate)

Turks and Caicos Islands

United Arab Emirates

Uruguay

US Virgin Islands

Vanuatu (arrivals before 4am 28 November need to self-isolate)

Vietnam

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