Your FAQs on travel to UK answered!

With a considerable number of students traveling to the UK for their higher education abroad, many queries have emerged regarding the UK COVID-19 protocol and procedures. Through these FAQs, we attempt to address most of the concerns presented by students.

India has been marked by the UK as a Red List country owing to the spike in coronavirus cases. Students traveling to the UK will have to follow the protocols outlined for incoming travelers from red list countries.

What are the protocols of traveling from a red list country like India including quarantine and test rules etc.?

Before you leave for the UK

Everyone traveling to the UK must:

• book at least one coronavirus (COVID-19) test for after you arrive.
• provide your contact details by completing the online passenger locator form.
• provide proof of a negative COVID-19 test taken in the 3 days before you leave for the UK.
• follow the testing and quarantine rules in England, Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland.

COVID-19 testing and quarantine in England

What you need to do depends on where you have been in the 10 days before you arrive. If you have been in a country or territory on the:

• green list – you must book a COVID-19 test to take after you arrive
• amber list – you must book 2 COVID-19 tests to take after you arrive and quarantine in the place you’re staying
• red list – you must book a hotel quarantine package, which includes 2 COVID-19 tests

You must follow the red list rules if you arrive in England either:

• directly from a red list country
• from a red list country via a green or amber list country, if you’ve spent less than 10 full days outside the red list country
• The day you arrive in the green or amber list country and the day you arrive in England do not count towards the 10 full days.

Complete the passenger locator form

• You need to provide your journey and contact details in the 48 hours before you arrive in the UK. You must do this by completing the online passenger locator form.
• You’ll need to show your completed passenger locator form when you check in to travel or board your plane, train or ferry.
• You’ll also need to show proof that you’ve completed the form when you arrive at the UK border.

Rules for Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland:

Scotland: You must enter ‘managed isolation’ and quarantine in an approved hotel for 10 days. Please see this gov.scot information for further details.

Wales: Since the 15 February it has not been possible to travel directly to Wales from a red list country. Instead, you must travel to England or Scotland, following their rules on managed quarantine. Once you have completed your 10 days of managed quarantine you can then travel on to Wales. You can find further information on the gov.wales guidance.

Northern Ireland: If you are arriving in Northern Ireland have been in or passed through a red list country you must also enter ‘managed isolation’ and quarantine for 10 days. Similar to England and Scotland, there are certain listed job exemptions listed on nidrect.gov who are not required to enter managed hotel isolation.

Which airports can the students land on?

London’s busy Heathrow Airport opened a dedicated new terminal for arrivals from countries designated as “red list”, such as India, for higher risk of COVID-19 transmission. Travelers on direct flights from such destinations will now go through Terminal 3 and then move directly to a government-approved quarantine facility booked at the passengers’ own expense.

Source:https://www.business-standard.com/article/current-affairs/uk-s-heathrow-airport-opens-terminal-for-red-list-countries-like-india-121060100609_1.html

What will be the expenses, will they be funded for quarantine?

Travel Implications for Indian Students

• A Covid-19 test is required 3 days prior to travel with protocols’
• A travel test package can be booked in advance including a Covid test on Day 2 and Day 8 upon arrival in the UK which may cost around £170 to £575 depending on the provider.
• You can complete the passenger locator form available on the UKVI website prior to traveling.
• A 10-day quarantine is mandatory currently and would cost around £1750 for a stay at a managed quarantine hotel
• A student may have to spend approximately £2000 {£1750 + (£170 to £575)} for travel tests and hotel stay

For international students who need to complete a period of quarantine in managed hotel accommodation, a number of UK universities have announced they will reimburse the 10-day hotel quarantine and testing fees, up to the total value of £1,750.

List of UK Universities covering quarantine costs owing to travel from red list country:

• University of Bristol: the university will reimburse the cost of hotel stay (currently £1,750)
• Cranfield University: introduced the Cranfield International Arrivals Bursary available to students who meet all three criteria: you are an international student traveling to the UK from overseas; you will be studying full-time on a taught or research program; you are commencing your studies between 1 June 2021 and 31 October 2021.
• University of Leeds: If students are required to enter managed quarantine in hotels, the University will provide the full government set cost of £1,750 for each self-financing student traveling from a home address in a red-list country. This will be paid through a tuition fee reduction after students arrive in Leeds.
• University of Lincoln: To help support students who have traveled from, or through, a Red List country, the University of Lincoln will reimburse the cost of the managed quarantine hotel (£1,750) after enrolment. The University will also provide free transfer service from the quarantine hotel to Lincoln.
• Oxford Brookes University: If you are a new student traveling to join the University for the first time and are required to pay the cost of quarantine, Oxford Brookes will provide you with a tuition fee discount of up to £1,750. This amount will be discounted from the second semester of your tuition fees.
• Regent’s University London: Prospective students from red list countries can apply for a package of up to £3,010, which may include:
• Hotel quarantine costs: £1,750
• Cost of PCR tests: £210
• Flight supplement: up to £1,000 Collection from quarantine accommodation to London address: £50
• University of York: Managed quarantine hotel accommodation (£1,750 + any additional days, ‘Red’ arrivals only) – Managed quarantine hotel accommodation is only required for students who travel from, or through, a country on the Government banned travel list (‘red list’). York will only refund the cost for the student, not for any partners, spouses, or dependents.

To know further information and check updates on travel restrictions and protocols to the UK, kindly check the official sites including https://www.gov.uk/uk-border-control

The information given in the article has been sourced from official sites. However, owing to the dynamic nature of the situation, the information is subject to change. We request you to please check official sites for continuing updates.

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