People arriving in England from abroad will need to show proof of a negative Covid-19 test, taken up to 72 hours before their departure from abroad.
The new rules will be coming into force from 4am on Friday (January 15) and will apply to all international arrivals, including UK citizens, who have arrived in England whether by plane, boat or train.
Anyone caught breaking the rules could face fines starting from £500.
The Department of Transport said that it would be establishing what standards tests must meet – for example, that a test would need to be a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test and “could in some cases include LAMP and lateral flow tests within set limits”.
All those who are arriving from places not on the government’s travel corridors will still need to quarantine for 10 days, regardless of their Covid-19 test result.
For those hoping to cut their quarantine short, you can ‘Test to Release’. This means that after five days of self-isolation you can pay for a private Covid-19 test and, if this is negative, you can be released from quarantine early.
Passengers travelling to England from the Common Travel Area (the UK, Ireland, Isle of Man, Jersey and Guernsey), will not be affected by the new regulations.
England is currently in a third national lockdown which bans international travel except for legally permitted reasons – holidays will not fall under this.
You can find out more in the FCDO travel advice – and check the travel corridors list here to see if a destination is in there.
Anyone arriving into England from Friday will need to show evidence of a negative Covid-19 test taken up to 72 hours before their departure
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