Following a row between India and the United Kingdom over differences in COVID-19 quarantine rules for travellers, the UK has announced it will be dropping the 10-day quarantine requirement for fully-vaccinated travellers from India and 36 other countries.
"No quarantine for India travellers to United Kingdom fully vaccinated with Covishield or another UK-approved vaccine from 11 October. Thanks to Indian government for close cooperation over last month," British High Commissioner to India Alex Ellis tweeted today.
Eligible travellers vaccinated in over 37 new countries, including India and Pakistan, will be treated the same as returning fully vaccinated UK residents, so long as they have not visited a red list country or territory in the 10 days before arriving in England, the Department for Transport said.
Those arriving before the cut off date of October 11 would still need to follow the rules for unvaccinated travellers.
Of the vaccines administered in India, only the Covishield and Moderna vaccines are recognised in the UK. Those not fully vaccinated with one of the four UK-recognised vaccines (Oxford/AstraZeneca, Pfizer BioNTech, Moderna, Janssen) or any formulation of these vaccines, including Covishield, must take a pre-departure test, and must take a Covid19 test on or before day 2 and on or after day 8, and self-isolate for 10 days.
India will be added to the UK's list of countries and territories with approved proof of vaccination at 4am on Monday, October 11.
The move comes after India imposed mandatory quarantine on UK nationals travelling to India in what was seen as a "tit-for-tat" move. India had opposed the UK's failure to recognise vaccination certificates delivered through India's CoWIN system, even though both India and the UK widely use the same vaccine formulation: AstraZeneca's (manufactured as Covishield in India by the Serum Institute of India). In retaliation, India on October 1 imposed a mandatory 10-day quarantine on UK travellers coming to India even if they were fully vaccinated.
"With half-term and winter sun around the corner, we’re making it easier for families and loved ones to reunite, by significantly cutting the number of destinations on the red list, thanks in part to the increased vaccination efforts around the globe," Transport Secretary Grant Shapps said.
The "red list" has been reduced to seven countries (Colombia, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Haiti, Panama, Peru and Venezuela) with 47 countries and territories removed. Only British or Irish nationals and those who have UK residence rights are allowed to enter the country after travelling from a red listed destination.
The UK had added India to the red list in April following the devastating second wave of COVID-19 and the spread of the Delta variant. India was removed from this list in August--however, restrictions on Indian travellers remained
The UK has now extended inbound vaccinated arrivals system to a further 37 countries and territories across the globe including India, South Africa and Turkey, meaning eligible vaccinated passengers arriving from rest of world countries only need to take a day 2 test in England.
With inputs from PTI
