From Aidoghie Paulinus, Abuja
The United Kingdom (UK) has announced that all international arrivals are required to provide negative COVID-19 test results before departure for England or face a fine of £500.
The UK also said that all international arrivals to England, including UK nationals, are required to present a negative COVID-19 test taken up to 72 hours prior to departure.
The British High Commission, Abuja, in a statement made available to Daily Sun on Monday by the Senior Press and Public Affairs Officer, Christopher Olaoluwa Ogunmodede, said:
‘Passengers will be subjected to an immediate fine of £500 if they fail to comply with the new regulations on pre-departure testing.
‘All passengers arriving from countries not on the government’s travel corridor list will still be required to self-isolate for 10 days, regardless of test result.
‘Passengers will still be required to fill in a passenger locator form and be subject to national lockdown restrictions.’
The UK further said passengers arriving from all international destinations will be required to present a negative COVID-19 test result before departing for England to help protect against new strains of coronavirus circulating internationally.
‘Transport Secretary Grant Shapps has announced that from next week, inbound passengers arriving by boat, plane or train will have to take a test up to 72 hours before departing the country they are in, to help protect against the new strains of coronavirus such as those seen in Denmark and South Africa,’ the statement read.
The United Kingdom added that the decisive action was in response to the changes seen in the transmission of the virus both domestically and across the globe.
It added that pre-departure testing will protect travel and will provide an additional layer of safety from imported cases of coronavirus on top of the mandatory 10-day self-isolation for arrivals, helping identify people who may currently be infectious and preventing them from travelling to England.
‘A negative pre-departure test reduces the risk of someone travelling whilst infectious, acting as another safeguard to prevent imported infections. Passengers arriving from countries not on the government’s travel corridor list must self-isolate for 10 days regardless of their pre-departure test result to provide further robust protection from those travelling from high-risk countries.
‘Prior to departure passengers will need to present proof of a negative COVID-19 test result to carriers, as well as their passenger locator form. The UK Border Force will conduct spot checks on arrival into England to ensure that passengers are fully compliant.
‘The move further bolsters existing protective measures which helped to safely enable international travel last year, with self-isolation for new arrivals and travel corridors remaining critical in reducing the risk of imported cases from high-risk countries,’ the UK also said.
