India moves to amber list as UK eases travel restrictions

INDIA has been moved from red list to amber list, as per UK government announcement made on early hours of Thursday (5). The move will be effective from Sunday (8).

The move implies that fully-vaccinated Britons and children upto the age of 18 need not quarantine or take the day-8 test after arriving in England from India, provided one have had the final dose of the vaccine at least 14 whole days before the date of arrival in England.

India is joined by Bahrain, Qatar and the UAE that are also being moved to amber list from red list zone.

"The UAE, Qatar, India and Bahrain will be moved from the red list to the amber list. All changes come into effect Sun 8th August at 4 am," UK tansport secretary Grant Shapps tweeted on Thursday (5).

"While it's right we continue our cautious approach, it's great news to open more destinations for people wanting to connect with families, friends and businesses across the globe, all thanks to our successful domestic vaccination programme," he said.

As per the changes in the rules in the UK’s overseas travel plan announced on July 8 by Shapps, double-jabbed Britons travelling from amber list countries are not needed to quarantine themselves.

Only vaccines given by the NHS will count for the new rule, reports said, adding that the rules remain same if a person has been vaccinated in USA or in many EU countries.

The recent move of India to amber list also implies that fully vaccinated passengers from India will no longer be subjected to compulsory 10-day hotel quarantine, which they were subjected to when the country was in UK’s red list zone. 

Indians and people of other nationalities arriving from amber list countries will now have to quarantine for 10 days at the place of their stay in the country instead of mandatory hotel-quarantine stay.

The decision has come as a relief for the Indian diaspora in the UK, who had been demanding the easing of travel norms between India and Britain.