England unlocks travel with 59 countries — but not the US
England has unlocked travel to and from 59 countries by lifting quarantine requirements, but visitors from the United States will still be subject to restrictions, the UK government said Friday.
Officials have revealed a new “travel corridor” list, with travelers from 59 nations — including France, Germany, Italy and Spain — and 14 British Overseas Territories no longer having to self-isolate for 14 days on arrival.
The list, which comes into effect on July 10, will open foreign travel to English holidaymakers after four months of lockdown, just in time for the peak travel period, provided there are no restrictions in place at the destinations.
“The government is satisfied that it is now safe to ease these measures in England and has introduced travel corridors for some countries and territories,” the UK’s Department for Transport said Friday in a statement.
“This applies to all travel to England, by train, ferry, coach, air or any other route,” the statement added.
‘Red list’
The United States was not included in this list of “travel corridors,” meaning its travelers will have to self-isolate for 14 days after entering the UK. This follows a decision earlier in the week by the European Union to omit the United States from its list of nations approved for entry.
The UK government is expected to designate the United States as a “red list” travel destination over concerns that it has a “very high” infection rate, UK Transport Secretary Grant Shapps said Friday.
“Here, we’ve got things under control, but we know that [the virus] is still raging in parts of the world… so I’m afraid there is a red list,” Shapps told BBC Radio 4.
“The US, from a very early stage, banned flights from the UK and from Europe, so there isn’t a reciprocal arrangement in place,” he added.
The United States has the highest number of coronavirus cases and deaths in the world, with more than 2.7 million confirmed cases, and a death toll of more than 128,000, according to figures from Johns Hopkins University.
More than 52,000 new US cases of the virus were reported on Thursday, a new daily record, surpassing one set the previous day.
While arrivals from the designated countries will not be required to self-isolate on arrival to the UK, the government has confirmed that travelers from the UK must comply with coronavirus requirements in the country they travel to.
For instance, while New Zealand is on the UK government list, it requires UK arrivals to quarantine for 14 days. Greece, also on the list, has banned flights from the UK until July 15.
For now, the so-called travel corridors will only apply to England, with information for travel into Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland will be published in due course, the UK government said.
Here are the countries and territories that are part of the “travel corridor” list:
Andorra, Germany, New Zealand, Antigua and Barbuda, Greece, Norway, Aruba, Greenland, Poland, Australia, Grenada, Réunion, Austria, Guadeloupe, San Marino, Bahamas, Hong Kong, Serbia, Barbados, Hungary, Seychelles, Belgium, Iceland, South Korea, Bonaire, Sint Eustatius and Saba, Italy, Spain, Croatia, Jamaica, St Barthélemy, Curaçao, Japan, St Kitts and Nevis, Cyprus, Liechtenstein, St Lucia, Czech Republic, Lithuania, St Pierre and Miquelon, Denmark, Luxembourg, Switzerland, Dominica, Macau, Taiwan, Faroe Islands, Malta, Trinidad and Tobago, Fiji, Mauritius, Turkey, Finland, Monaco, Vatican City, France, Netherlands, Vietnam, French Polynesia, New Caledonia
