India Remains On UK Travel Red List, Saudi Arabia Threatens 3-year Ban Too: What We Know So Far

Fully vaccinated travellers from the US and European Union (EU) countries will be able to avoid a 10-day compulsory quarantine when they arrive in England, however, travellers from India will still remain on the red list.

10-day quarantine for Indians

Travellers from France and India will have to stick to the 10-day quarantine rules even if they are fully vaccinated upon arrival in the UK. Currently, only people who received their Covid-19 vaccine in the UK can avoid quarantine when arriving from these "amber list" countries under the government¡¯s traffic list travel system.

AP

India remains on the red list under the international traffic system, which bans travel and imposes a compulsory 10-day hotel quarantine for returning British residents. The next review of that status is expected by the middle of next week.

However, with the Delta variant first detected in India continuing to be the dominant variant in the UK, India¡¯s status on the travel advisory remains uncertain.

Quarantine lifted for vaccinated EU, US travellers

These amber list arrivals who have been fully vaccinated in the US and EU countries will still be required to complete a pre-departure test before arrival into England, alongside a PCR test on or before Day 2 after arrival. France continues to remain outside this ambit amid a surge in Beta variant cases in the country.

Image For Representation/Twitter

Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia will impose a three-year travel ban on citizens travelling to countries on the kingdom's 'red list' in efforts to curb the spread of coronavirus and its new variants, state news agency SPA said on Tuesday.

The country has banned travel to or transit to a number of countries, including India, Afghanistan, Argentina, Brazil, Egypt, Ethiopia, Indonesia, Lebanon, Pakistan, South Africa, Turkey, Vietnam and the United Arab Emirates.

"Banned from travelling directly or via another country"

"The Ministry of Interior stresses that citizens are still banned from travelling directly or via another country to these states or any other that has yet to control the pandemic or where the new strains have spread," the official said.

File

The kingdom, the largest Gulf state with a population of some 30 million, on Tuesday recorded 1,379 new Covid-19 infections, bringing its total to 520,774 cases and 8,189 deaths. It saw daily infections fall from a peak above 4,000 in June 2020 to below the 100 mark in early January.

Even Etihad Airways has stopped flights from India to the UAE till further notice, a spokesperson of the airline said. The move came after the UAE government banned flights from India amid the COVID-19 pandemic.