UK travel rule changes: remaining countries come off red list and more passengers are exempt from quarantine

English UK welcomes the further travel changes announced on Thursday 28 October which will make it easier for more international students to travel to the UK.

These changes will apply to arriving passengers in all four nations: England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. 

No countries on red list from Monday 1 November

From 4am on Monday 1 November, the seven remaining countries will come off the UK's red travel list. They are Panama, Colombia, Venezuela, Peru, Ecuador, Haiti and the Dominican Republic.

Anyone arriving after this date from any country will not need to enter the managed hotel quarantine system. They will need to quarantine in their accommodation for ten days, unless they meet the conditions to be exempt from quarantine (see details below).

Note, the red list has not disappeared entirely - the government will review the red list every three weeks and countries may be added.

Passengers from 30 more countries to be exempt from quarantine if eligible

Also on Monday 1 November, 30 more countries will be added to the UK's approved vaccine programme list, bringing the total number to over 135 countries.

Eligible* vaccinated adults (who have had a UK-approved vaccine) and all under 18s from a list of over 135 countries will not need to quarantine on arrival to the UK. The only requirement is to take a day two Covid test.

Some of the countries that are joining this list on 1 November are Angola, Argentina, Cambodia, Costa Rica, Honduras, Nepal, Panama, Mongolia, Peru and Uruguay.

All EU countries are already on the list, and also Brazil, Chile, Oman, Saudi Arabia, Thailand, Turkey, UAE, Ukraine, Vietnam and more.

*Unfortunately, not all vaccinated adults are 'eligible' to avoid quarantine. Passengers must be fully vaccinated with an approved vaccine, in a country with an approved vaccination programme. For UK travel purposes, a passenger is considered 'fully vaccinated' if: 

• They have had a complete course of the Pfizer BioNTech, Oxford/AstraZeneca, Moderna or Janssen vaccines, or a combination of these, at least 15 days before arrival AND

• They received their vaccine in a country on the list of approved vaccination programmes.

• All passengers under 18 years old from these countries follow the same rules as fully vaccinated adults, so they do not need to quarantine.

Passengers who are exempt from quarantine also have reduced Covid test requirements. Before travel, they just need to book a Covid test for day two after arrival, and they need to complete the UK passenger locator form.

Rules for students who need to quarantine

Students who are not considered 'fully vaccinated' under the UK government travel rules must quarantine for 10 days on arrival.

If they have not been in a red list country in the ten days before travel, they can complete their quarantine period in their UK accommodation. Language schools are able to provide appropriate homestay or student residence accommodation so that students can follow the quarantine rules, and start their English courses online.

If students are travelling to England, they may be able to end quarantine as early as day six if they pay for an additional private Covid test through the Test to Release scheme.

Read more details about the rules they need to follow on the English with Confidence website. 

English UK's response to the changes

English UK welcomes these changes as a step in the right direction for the UK ELT industry, and we hope more national vaccination programmes will be recognised in the near future. 

Do you have questions?

If you have any questions about the UK travel rules, please contact the English UK team who will be happy to help.