4 August 2021
Following the Prime Minister’s decision to abandon plans for an Amber Watchlist, we have put together a handy guide on what the remaining categories in the traffic light system mean for your next holiday.
- RED: Travel to the UK from a red list country is banned for non-UK nationals. British citizens returning to the UK must take a pre-departure test and book a ten-day hotel quarantine stay including tests at a cost of £1,750. Countries currently on the Red List include Turkey, India, Kenya and the UAE.
- AMBER: A pre-departure test is required for everyone before heading to the UK. Those who have been fully-vaccinated do not have to isolate on their return, but they do have to book a day two test. Those who are not vaccinated are currently required to quarantine at home for ten days and book tests on day two and day eight of their return. They also have the option to pay for a day five test under the ‘test to release’ scheme. Countries on the Amber List currently include Italy, Spain, Portugal and Greece.
- AMBER PLUS: This category currently only features France and means everyone returning from the country, including the fully-vaccinated, must quarantine at home for 10 days and take tests on day two and day eight.
- GREEN WATCHLIST: This is a category for countries which are at risk of losing their green status. The countries on this list are as follows: Anguilla, Antarctica/British Antarctic Territory, Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Bermuda, British Indian Ocean Territory, Cayman Islands, Croatia, Dominica, Grenada, Israel and Jerusalem, Madeira (mainland Portugal is amber), Montserrat, Pitcairn, Henderson, Ducie and Oeno Islands, Taiwan, and Turks and Caicos Islands.
- GREEN: Returning travellers must take a pre-departure test and book a day two test as well. Quarantine is not required for anyone whether vaccinated or not, unless they test positive for Covid-19. Countries on this list are as follows: Brunei, Bulgaria, Falkland Islands, Faroe Islands, Gibraltar, Hong Kong, Iceland, Malta, Singapore, South Georgia and South Sandwich Islands, St Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha.
Travel experts believe Ministers are preparing to scrap the Amber Plus and Green Watchlist categories following the axe of the Amber Watchlist. Scrapping the Amber Plus list would mean reopening travel to and from France. Travel chiefs are also pushing the Government to replace the whole system with a single Red List of banned countries.
