The UK made a major U-turn from the Government by moving France back to the amber list. This means that Brits who have been fully vaccinated are now able to avoid quarantine on their return to Britain.
French arrivals can now return to the UK without any fear of quarantine, after British officials announced they will align France with its “amber list”.
New arrivals in Britain are protected against self-isolation as long as there are records of immunizations with an approved vaccine administered inside the UK, Europe or the US.
It comes just two weeks after France was suddenly dragged onto the newly created “amber plus list”.
The amber plus list was created two days before the quarantine rules were to be lifted for those who had been fully vaccinated and came from countries on the amber list.
Travellers returning from France were faced with both quarantine and testing requirements on day two and eight of their arrival, regardless if they have been vaccinated or not.
Secretary of State for Transport Grant Shapps was reported to be ” absolutely furious” after the decision, according to travel expert Simon Calder.
The details of the recent re-classification for France were said to be determined by a group of ministers who were informed about the latest data and analysis from JBC (Joint Biosecurity Centre).
Now, those returning from France will only be required to take a pre-departure test before their flight to the UK. A test on or before day two of their arrival will also be required.
You must book your tests before you travel so the corresponding reference codes can be applied to passenger locator forms.
In response to the recent announcement, Mr Shapps said the reopening of travel was thanks to the “successful vaccination programme” in the UK.
He said, in a statement, “We are committed to opening up international travel safely, taking advantage of the gains we’ve made through our successful vaccination programme, helping connect families, friends and businesses around the world”.
“While we must continue to be cautious, today’s changes reopen a range of different holiday destinations across the globe, which is good news for both the sector and travelling public”.
The Secretary of Health and Social Care, Sajid Javid said “As we learn to live with this virus, we are continuing to take steps to safely reopen international travel, based on the latest data and expert public health advice”.
“The vaccines have already prevented around 60,000 deaths and 22 million infections in England, and with over seven in 10 adults in the UK now double jabbed we are building a wall of defence against the disease”.
“As well as moving more countries to the green list, today’s announcement also demonstrates the need for continued caution”.
“Further countries have been added to the red list to help protect the success of our vaccine rollout from the threat of new variants”.
France is not the only country to see changing travel rules.
The Government also announced seven new countries to be added to their green list. These include Germany, Latvia, Austria, Slovakia, Norway, Slovenia and Romania.
