March 15, 2022 12.00 pm This story is over 23 months old

All COVID-19 travel restrictions to be removed in the UK this week

No more pre and post-arrival testing or hotel quarantines

By Local Democracy Reporter

The government is removing all travel restrictions in the UK from this week, meaning COVID-19 tests will no longer be required for people entering the country.

The remaining restrictions will be lifted from 4am on Friday, March 18, as announced by the Transport Secretary on Monday.

It is hoped that this will provide a tourism boost ahead of the Easter holidays, as the Passenger Locator Form for new arrivals in the UK will be scrapped, as well as testing for passengers who do not qualify as vaccinated.

This means that unvaccinated passengers will not need to take a pre-departure test and a day two post-arrival test, as the government aims to set out its Living with COVID-19 plan.

Remaining managed hotel quarantine capacities will also be fully stood down by the end of March, making the UK one of the first major economies in the world to end all COVID-19 international travel rules, but contingency plans have been put in place to manage any further variants of the virus.

Transport Secretary Grant Shapps said: “The UK is leading the world in removing all remaining COVID-19 travel restrictions, and today’s announcement is a testament to the hard work everyone in this country has put in place to roll out the vaccine and protect each other.

“I said we wouldn’t keep travel measures in place for any longer than necessary, which we’re delivering on today – providing more welcome news and greater freedom for travellers ahead of the Easter holidays.

“I look forward to continuing to work with the travel sector and partners around the world to keep international travel moving.”

Passengers are being asked to remember that different countries are at different stages of the pandemic, so may still have certain requirements for entry into their country.

You can keep up to date with entry requirements of countries across the world on the government website, which has travel guidance from the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office.