People arriving in Wales from abroad will not need pre-departure test

PEOPLE arriving back in Wales from overseas will no longer need to take a test before departing, it has been confirmed.

Fully vaccinated travellers arriving in Wales will not be required to take a test on or before day two and unvaccinated arriving travellers will not be required to take a day-eight test or selfisolate for 10 days following arrival.

The Welsh Government has confirmed it will follow changes announced by Boris Johnson for England on Monday. However, again the First Minister has said he is matching them “reluctantly”.

Mr Drakeford said: “We continue to raise our concerns with the UK Government about the speed at which it has removed public health protections in relation to international travel and the progressive erosion of such protections.

“The unravelling of the system of international arrival surveillance in particular leaves a major gap in future protections. We continue to advocate a more precautionary approach towards retaining these public health protections because of the ongoing risk of importing new variants of Covid-19 through international travel.

“However, in view of the significant practical difficulties associated with diverging from the arrangements in England in this area – a significant number of Welsh travellers use English airports and ports – we are reluctantly retaining alignment with the decisions made by the UK Government and agreed by the other devolved governments.”

From 4am on Friday, February 11, fully vaccinated passengers (who have had their full primary courses) will no longer need a pre-departure test two days before travelling to the UK. The only requirement will be for them to complete a passenger locator form.

Unvaccinated travellers or ineligible travellers should complete a passenger location form, a pre-departure test within two days of their scheduled departure, and a PCR arrival test taken on or before day two.

All under-18s, regardless of their vaccination status, can now enter the UK without a pre-departure test. However, anyone travelling abroad with children is urged to check the different requirements for children, including if they need to be fully vaccinated.

Vaccine certificates issued by the vast majority of countries are now recognised, with a further 16 countries being added to this list.

Previous requests for people to only travel abroad if essential are also being downgraded.

Mr Drakeford said: “We have taken a precautionary approach towards international travel because of the risks of contracting coronavirus while abroad and importing new forms of the virus into the UK. As we move beyond the Omicron wave of Covid-19 we will also see a greater opportunity for individuals to return to making decisions based on their own circumstances. On that basis, and because of the vaccination success, we will no longer advise people to only travel overseas if their journey is essential.

“Instead, we are asking everyone considering booking trips abroad to think of their personal and family circumstances and how best they can keep themselves safe if they decide to travel abroad this year. We urge those who are vulnerable to take extra precautions.”

Mr Drakeford said that where any new variant is detected, Welsh Government will “press for fast action to slow spread into the UK”.