Amber List has been scrapped off in 2023 and all the restrictions are taken off. FEB 2023 UPDATED
Starting on July 19th, people who live in the UK and have gotten all of their shots won’t have to stay by themselves when they come back from a trip to a country on the “amber list.” Here’s some more information about what the amber list means and how it will affect your plans to travel.
2023 UPDATED INFO: THE AMBER LIST HAS BEEN SCRAPPED OFF AND ALL THE RESTRICTIONS ARE TAKEN OFF.
On May 17th, people who lived in England, Scotland, and Wales were allowed to start traveling to other countries again. Northern Ireland started on May 24th.
The countries are divided into three groups – red, amber, and green – based on how many people have gotten sick, how many different kinds of sicknesses there are, and how many people have been vaccinated.
The list of countries gets checked and updated every three weeks. You can find the most up-to-date information on the website of the Department for Transport.
The leader of the country, Prime Minister Boris Johnson, said that they will still keep their strict rules at the border, including the red list countries.
And because getting two shots of the vaccine can protect you, they will work with people who help plan trips to try to stop fully vaccinated travelers from having to stay by themselves when they come back from a country on the amber list.
On July 19th, people in England were really happy because all of the rules about the sickness called COVID were lifted.
It’s even more exciting because from now on, people who have gotten all of their shots and children under 18 won’t have to stay by themselves when they come back from a country on the “amber list.” This means that people who have gotten their two shots will have more chances to travel to other countries and can even go on a summer vacation.
But, a new kind of sickness called the Beta variant was discovered first in South Africa. It’s causing a lot of people to get sick in France. So, the government created a new group called “amber plus” under the traffic light system. Right now, France is the only country on this list.
As more and more popular places people like to visit are added to the amber list, this is going to be really big news for the companies that help people travel by airplane and for the places people go to for vacation.
These businesses haven’t been doing very well for the past year, but now they can start to get better again.
Here’s some information about the countries on the amber list, the “amber plus” group, and how it could impact your travels.
Here’s some information about the countries on the amber list, the “amber plus” group, and how it could impact your travels.
Starting on July 19th, people who live in the UK and have gotten all of their shots won’t have to stay by themselves when they come back from a country on the “amber list.”
However, they still have to take a test. The rules for the countries on the amber list differ from those for the “amber plus” group. It’s important to know what safety measures you must follow when traveling to these Amber list countries.
What is Amber List?
The amber list is in the middle between the green list, which is considered very safe, and you don’t have to stay in a hotel for 11 nights even if you haven’t gotten the vaccine, and the red list, which is considered very dangerous.
The amber list means that the country is at moderate risk of bringing the virus back to the UK. Most of the world falls into this category.
The rules for coming back to the UK from a country on the amber list depend on whether you’ve got all your vaccine shots.
If you’ve had all your shots at least two weeks before you travel, you can skip staying in a hotel for 11 nights when you come back to the UK from an amber list country. You must take a test before you leave and another on the second day after arrival.
But if you still need to get all your shots, you will have to stay home for 10 days and take two tests after arriving in the UK.
ALSO READ: Covid-19 Travel Advice for International Students Visiting UK
Amber List Rules
Everyone who travels has to take a test 3 days before they leave and another test when they return. If you haven’t gotten all of your shots, you have to stay by yourself for 10 days and take another test on the 8th day.
Okay, so imagine you’re going on a trip and haven’t gotten the vaccine yet. To keep everyone safe, the government wants you to stay in your room for a certain time after arriving. But, there’s a way to get out of that room faster!
You can take a special test on the 5th day after you arrive. If the test shows you don’t have the virus, you won’t have to stay in your room anymore.
But, no matter what the first test results are, you still have to take another test on the 8th day after you arrive. This test is called a PCR test, and it’s important to ensure everyone stays healthy. So, even if the first test showed you’re okay, you still have to take this one.
If you’re either fully vaccinated or a child under 18, and you’re returning to the UK from a country on the amber list, you won’t need to stay home for two weeks. However, if your test result comes back positive, you’ll have to follow certain guidelines.
Before your trip to England, make sure to complete a form called the passenger locator form.
Amber Plus Rules
Before you travel, you must take a test to ensure you’re not carrying any germs. You have to take this test 3 days before your trip. And when you come back from your trip, you need to take another test to make sure you’re still healthy.
This test must be done the second day after you return. While waiting for the test results, you must stay in your home for 10 whole days. This is to ensure you’re not spreading germs to other people.
When you travel, you must take two tests to ensure you’re not carrying any germs. The first test is three days before you leave, and the second is on the second day after you return.
If you’re not vaccinated, you can take an additional test on the fifth day, and if it’s negative, you don’t have to stay in your home for 10 days. But even if you take this extra test, you still need to take another test on the eighth day.
If you’re fully vaccinated, and you go through a place that’s on the “amber plus” list on your way to England from a place on the green or amber list, you still have to follow these rules.
Before going to England, you need to fill out a special passenger locator form.
ALSO READ: Church Nursery Guidelines for Covid-19 – Updated 2023
Amber List Countries
All countries start on the amber list. To be on the green list, a country has to be considered very safe, and to be on the red list, and it has to be considered very dangerous.
If a country is not safe enough for the green list or dangerous enough for the red list, it stays on the amber list. If you go to a red-list country, you must stay in a hotel for 11 nights and pay for it yourself.
| Akrotiri and Dhekelia | Estonia | Lithuania | San Marino |
| Albania | Fiji | Luxembourg | Sao Tome and Principe |
| Algeria | Finland | Macao | Saudi Arabia |
| Andorra | France* | Madagascar | Senegal |
| Armenia | French Polynesia | Malaysia | Serbia |
| Aruba | Gabon | Mali | Slovakia |
| Austria | The Gambia | Marshall Islands | Slovenia |
| Azerbaijan | Georgia | Martinique | Solomon Islands |
| The Bahamas | Germany | Mauritania | South Korea |
| Belarus | Ghana | Mauritius | South Sudan |
| Belgium | Greece (including islands) | Mayotte | Spain, including the Canary Islands and the Balearic islands (Formentera, Ibiza, Mallorca, Menorca) |
| Belize | Greenland | Mexico | St Kitts and Nevis |
| Benin | Guadeloupe | Micronesia | St Lucia |
| Bhutan | Guatemala | Moldova | St Maarten |
| Bonaire, Sint Eustatius and Saba | Guinea | Monaco | St Martin and St Barthélemy |
| Bosnia and Herzegovina | Guinea-Bissau | Montenegro | St Pierre and Miquelon |
| British Virgin Islands | Honduras | Morocco | St Vincent and the Grenadines |
| Burkina Faso | Hungary | Nauru | Sweden |
| Cambodia | Iran | Netherlands | Switzerland |
| Cameroon | Iraq | New Caledonia | Syria |
| Canada | Italy | Nicaragua | Tajikistan |
| Central African Republic | Jamaica | Niger | Thailand |
| Chad | Japan | Nigeria | Timor-Leste |
| China | Jordan | North Korea | Togo |
| Comoros | Kazakhstan | North Macedonia | Tonga |
| Congo | Kiribati | Norway | Turkmenistan |
| Cook Islands, Tokelau and Niue | Kosovo | The Occupied Palestinian Territories | Tuvalu |
| Côte d’Ivoire | Kuwait | Palau | Ukraine |
| Curaçao | Kyrgyzstan | Papua New Guinea | United States (USA) |
| Cyprus | Laos | Poland | Uzbekistan |
| Czech Republic (Czechia) | Latvia | Portugal (including the Azores) | Vanuatu |
| Denmark | Lebanon | Réunion | Vietnam |
| Djibouti | Liberia | Romania | Wallis and Futuna |
| El Salvador | Libya | Russia | Western Sahara |
| Equatorial Guinea | Liechtenstein | Samoa | Yemen |
Currently, France is categorized as “amber plus”.
Can You Travel Freely to an Amber List Country?
The rules have changed, and now it’s easier for people in the UK to travel to other countries for fun, work, or to visit family.
The UK government has a list of countries and places that are safe to travel to, and you won’t have to stay in your home for 14 days when you return. These places are on the green or amber list, which was updated on July 19th.
Before you plan your trip, it’s important to check the rules for the country you want to go to. You can find this information on a website called the Foreign Office’s travel advice.
They will tell you what you need to do and what papers you need to show to be allowed into the country. They will also tell you if the country is open to visitors from the UK or not.
Before you book a trip to another country this summer, here’s what you need to do:
- Check if the country you want to visit is on the green or amber list.
- Read the advice from the Foreign Office about what you need to do when you’re there.
- Find out what papers you need to show when you get to the country, like proof of vaccinations or a negative test result, and if you need to stay in your home for 14 days when you arrive.
- If the country you’re visiting needs you to be vaccinated, find out how long you need to wait after getting your shots before you’re considered fully vaccinated. Usually, it’s 4 weeks after your second shot.
Will The Amber List Countries Turn Green?
The UK government checks the COVID situation in other countries every 3 weeks. They look at things like how many cases there are if there’s a new kind of the virus, how many people are getting vaccinated, and if they can do tests to see what type of the virus it is.
Based on all this information, the UK government decides which countries should be on the green list, the amber list, or the green watchlist.
If a country on the amber list is doing a good job of keeping the number of cases low and getting more people vaccinated, and there’s no new kind of the virus to worry about, the UK government might move it to the green list or a green watchlist.
Green List V/S Amber List?
Countries on the amber list are considered to be at a higher risk for bringing back the virus compared to the countries on the green list. This is because they usually have more people with the virus and may not have given as many people the vaccine. But this is not always true.
There’s a list between the green and amber list called the green watchlist. This list is for countries that might become riskier soon. Some countries on this list include Croatia, Israel, and many Caribbean countries.
If you’ve had all your vaccine shots, the rules for entering the UK are the same whether you’re coming from a green list country or an amber list country.
You will need to take some tests and might need to stay by yourself for a little while, but the rules will be the same no matter which country you’re coming from.
Things to Keep in Mind While Planning The Holidays
When you’re considering going on a trip, remember that the green, amber, and red list might change every 3 weeks. This means that your trip might not be guaranteed.
To be safe, it’s a good idea to book your trip with a company that you trust, and that is flexible. If the country you’re going to change from green or amber to red while you’re there, you might have to stay in your room for 14 days.
Also, make sure you know if you’ll get your money back if the government (FCDO) warns people not to visit the country you’re planning to visit.
What Happens if The Country I’ve Traveled to Moves From the Amber List to the Red?
If a country is on the red list, it’s considered very dangerous for Covid-19, and people who visit, even if they just stop there for a little while, must stay in a hotel for 11 nights.
This means they can’t leave the hotel for any reason. The cost for one person to stay in the hotel for 11 nights is £2,285; if there are two or more people, the cost is £1,380 per person. So, it’s important to think carefully before you visit a country on the red list.
If a country’s risk level changes, you’ll usually know about it at least 72 hours before it happens. This gives you time to return to the UK if needed.
In the past, airlines have been nice and let travelers change their flights for free if they need to because of the risk level changes. So, it’s good to keep an eye on the risk levels before you travel and be ready to come back if you need to.
Travel insurance might not help you if travel rules change because of the Covid-19 pandemic. That’s why it’s important to check before you go on your trip.
