UK to decide May 17 on permitting international travel

The UK government’s Global Travel Taskforce

says it will announce in early May which countries will fall into
red, amber or green categories in new traffic-light system based on
covid risk
says it will confirm in early May whether international travel can
resume from May 17
says restrictions for inbound passengers such as 10-day hotel
quarantine, home quarantine and testing will apply differently for
arrivals from red, amber or green countries
says there will be a “green watchlist” identifying
countries most at risk of moving from green to amber, to warn
travellers of potential changes in advance
says key factors in assessing countries will include percentage of
population vaccinated, rate of infection, prevalence of variants of
concern
recommends removing “permission to travel form”, meaning
passengers would no longer need to prove valid reason for leaving
country
says it will work with travel industry and private covid testing
providers to try and reduce the cost of travel while ensuring travel
is safe
says efforts to reduce costs could include cheaper tests when
holidaymakers return home, and looking at whether government could
provide pre-departure tests
says UK will play a leading role in developing international
standards around a digital travel certification system
says UK government working on certification for outbound as well as
inbound international trave