Beautiful Virgin Islands

Monday, Sep 01, 2025

COVID-19: Pre-departure tests return for all UK arrivals to tackle Omicron - as Nigeria added to red list

COVID-19: Pre-departure tests return for all UK arrivals to tackle Omicron - as Nigeria added to red list

The health secretary acknowledges that the measures are "hugely unfortunate" for people who already had travel plans but insists they will be "temporary".

All international arrivals to the UK will again be required to take pre-departure COVID-19 tests to tackle the spread of the new Omicron variant, the health secretary has announced.

The rule applies to all travellers over the age of 12 visiting the UK or returning from a holiday, regardless of vaccination status, and will come into force from 4am on Tuesday 7 December.

Tests must be taken a maximum of 48 hours before the departure time.

Sajid Javid said it was because of an "increasing number of cases linked to travel".

In addition, Nigeria is being added to the travel red list - joining several southern African nations which were put on it after the Omicron variant was first detected late last month.

It means that only UK citizens and residents will be able to enter the country from Nigeria, and they will have to pay to stay in a quarantine hotel for 10 days.

That change comes in from 4am on Monday, with Mr Javid saying Nigeria is "second only to South Africa for cases linked to Omicron".

He added that there are "27 cases already in England and that's growing".

Overall, there are now 160 confirmed cases of Omicron in the UK, with British scientists having suggested that it could have a "shorter incubation period" than other variants.

Mr Javid acknowledged that the measures are "hugely unfortunate" for people who already had travel plans, but insisted they would be "temporary".

"We want to remove them as soon as we possibly can," he added, saying that "vaccines remain our first line of defence".

Transport Secretary Grant Shapps said "additional caution" was required until the Omicron "picture is clearer".

Travel rules are a matter for the devolved administrations, but measures introduced by Downing Street are usually replicated elsewhere, and Scotland quickly announced the same testing requirements.

Scotland's Transport Secretary Michael Matheson said: "We have always said it may be necessary to quickly implement fresh measures to protect public health in Scotland, particularly with regards to international travel, and these restrictions are proportionate and necessary to that aim."

Regarding the pre-departure test, Shadow Home Secretary Yvette Cooper tweeted: "Finally! But why on earth is this still only being brought in nearly TWO WEEKS AFTER Omicron was identified?"

Shadow Health Secretary Wes Streeting questioned why pre-departure tests are being allowed "up to 48 hours before flight?".


Rapid changes to UK entry requirements have made it "impossible" for the travel industry to plan ahead, the CEO of Airlines UK said.

Tim Alderslade added: "It is premature to hit millions of passengers and industry before we see the full data.

"We don't have the clinical evidence. The red list extension made complete sense - that's what it's there for - but we know from experience that blanket restrictions do not stop the importation of variants."

The Airport Operators Association agreed, saying that pre-departure tests will be a "devastating blow for aviation and tourism".

Chairman and CEO of British Airways Sean Doyle said the move was a "devastating blow".

He said: "The blanket re-introduction of testing to enter the UK, on top of the current regime of isolation and PCR testing on arrival is completely out of step with the rest of the world, with every other country taking a measured approach based on the science.

"Our customers will now be faced with uncertainty and chaos and yet again this a devastating blow for everyone who works in the travel industry."

The NHS has said more than one million people have booked an appointment for a booster jab this week after the public were urged to have the shot following the emergence of the new variant.

The speeding up of third jabs in England will happen no later than 13 December, bosses have said.

From that date, or earlier, the online booking system will be updated in order to allow people to book their booster jab three months after their second dose rather than six.

Newsletter

Related Articles

Beautiful Virgin Islands
0:00
0:00
Close
Chinese and Indian Leaders Pursue Amity Amid Global Shifts
European Union Plans for Ukraine Deployment
ECB Warns Against Inflation Complacency
Concerns Over North Cyprus Casino Development
Shipping Companies Look Beyond Chinese Finance
Rural Exodus Fueling European Wildfires
China Hosts Major Security Meeting
Chinese Police Successfully Recover Family's Savings from Livestream Purchases
Germany Marks a Decade Since Migrant Wave with Divisions, Success Stories, and Political Shifts
Liverpool Defeat Arsenal 1–0 with Szoboszlai Free-Kick to Stay Top of Premier League
Prince Harry and King Charles to Meet in First Reunion After 20 Months
Chinese Stock Market Rally Fueled by Domestic Investors
Israeli Airstrike in Yemen Kills Houthi Prime Minister
Ukrainian Nationalist Politician Andriy Parubiy Assassinated in Lviv
Corporate America Cuts Middle Management as Bosses Take On Triple the Workload
Parents Sue OpenAI After Teen’s Death, Alleging ChatGPT Encouraged Suicide
Amazon Faces Lawsuit Over 'Buy' Label on Digital Streaming Content
Federal Reserve Independence Questioned Amid Trump’s Push to Reshape Central Bank
British Politics Faces Tumultuous Autumn After Summer of Rebellions and Rising Farage Momentum
US Appeals Court Rules Against Most Trump-Era Tariffs
UK Sought Broad Access to Apple Users’ Data, Court Filing Reveals
UK Bank Shares Dive Over Potential Tax on Sector
Germany’s Auto Industry Sheds 51,500 Jobs in First Half of 2025 Amid Deepening Crisis
Bruce Willis Relocated Due to Advanced Dementia
French and Korean Nuclear Majors Clash As EU Launches Foreign Subsidy Probe
EU Stands Firm on Digital Rules as Trump Warns of Retaliation
Getting Ready for the 3rd Time in Its History, Germany Approves Voluntary Military Service for Teenagers
Argentine President Javier Milei Evacuated After Stones Thrown During Campaign Event
Denmark Confronts U.S. Diplomat Over Covert Trump-Linked Influence in Greenland
Starmer Should Back Away from ECHR, Says Jack Straw
Trump Demands RICO Charges Against George Soros and Son for Funding Violent Protests
Taylor Swift Announces Engagement to NFL Star Travis Kelce
France May Need IMF Bailout, Warns Finance Minister
Chinese AI Chipmaker Cambricon Posts Record Profit as Beijing Pushes Pivot from Nvidia
After the Shock of Defeat, Iranians Yearn for Change
Ukraine Finally Allows Young Men Aged Eighteen to Twenty-Two to Leave the Country
The Porn Remains, Privacy Disappears: How Britain Broke the Internet in Ten Days
YouTube Altered Content by Artificial Intelligence – Without Permission
Welcome to The Definition of Insanity: Germany Edition
Just a reminder, this is Michael Jackson's daughter, Paris.
Spotify’s Strange Move: The Feature Nobody Asked For – Returns
Manhunt in Australia: Armed Anti-Government Suspect Kills Police Officers Sent to Arrest Him
China Launches World’s Most Powerful Neutrino Detector
How Beijing-Linked Networks Shape Elections in New York City
Ukrainian Refugee Iryna Zarutska Fled War To US, Stabbed To Death
Elon Musk Sues Apple and OpenAI Over Alleged App Store Monopoly
2 Australian Police Shot Dead In Encounter In Rural Victoria State
Vietnam Evacuates Hundreds of Thousands as Typhoon Kajiki Strikes; China’s Sanya Shuts Down
UK Government Delays Decision on China’s Proposed London Embassy Amid Concerns Over Redacted Plans
A 150-Year Tradition to Be Abolished? Uproar Over the Popular Central Park Attraction
×