New travel regulations have come into force in the UK affecting travellers from Germany.
The announced rule change is for England. If you are travelling to Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland, click on the relevant country link.
The UK government has got rid of the amber list and now classes countries as only green or red – all European countries are on the green list.
For those countries such as Germany, Switzerland, Norway and Austria - which were on the green list under the old system - the rules remain the same for fully vaccinated arrivals but have become more strict for those who are not vaccinated.
READ ALSO: How travel to England from Germany has become stricter
Here’s what the new rules say:
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Vaccinated
Fully vaccinated arrivals will no longer need to take a test in Germany and show it before boarding a flight to England.
Crucially, however, you will still need to book and pay for the Day 2 test, and this must be done before leaving Germany.
At the border you will need to show the Passenger Locator Form, and this cannot be completed without a booking reference number for a Day 2 test.
These tests have a byzantine booking system and are frequently infuriatingly expensive – find the full breakdown on booking HERE.
The Day 2 test is required even if you are spending less than two days in England.
The UK government has said that in the future Day 2 tests could be the cheaper antigen (lateral flow) tests rather than PCR tests, but there is no firm start date for this policy.
READ ALSO: What it was like navigating Covid travel rules to get home to the UK from Germany
Unvaccinated arrivals
People who are not vaccinated (or who do not meet the UK government definition of vaccinated) will have to quarantine for 10 days on arrival, this can be done at a private home and you do not need to go to a hotel.
In addition, they will have to book and pay for both a Day 2 test and a Day 8 test before leaving.
There is an option to pay extra for a Day 5 test and end quarantine early in England, but be warned that quarantine does not end on Day 5, it only ends when the test results arrive. Many readers have reported long delays in getting test results leaving them spending 9 or 10 days in quarantine anyway, but having paid more for an extra test.
Who is vaccinated?
The UK government accepts people as ‘fully vaccinated’ if they have received either Pfizer, Moderna, AstraZeneca or Johnson & Johnson vaccines and received their final dose at least 14 days ago.
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The EU vaccine certificate that you can get in Germany is accepted as proof at the border.
After a confusing period, the UK government now accepts as fully vaccinated people who had a ‘mixed dose’ eg one dose of AstraZeneca and one of Pfizer.
However people who only received a single dose after previously recovering from Covid – as is standard practice in Germany and other European countries – do not count as vaccinated.
READ ALSO:
- UK says European travellers with mixed doses are classed as fully vaccinated
- German words you need to know – kreuzgeimpft
- Are you classed as fully vaccinated in the UK after having Covid and one jab?
From the UK to Germany
The travel rules for people coming from the UK into Germany remain unchanged. Fully vaccinated people need to upload proof of their vaccination to the digital register, while unvaccinated people can only enter if they can prove they have an urgent need to do so.
However, there are some exceptions such as for German citizens or residents and members of their immediate family. These people are allowed to enter the country even if they are not vaccinated.
People travelling into Germany from anywhere in the world also need to show proof of vaccination, proof of recovery or a negative Covid test before being allowed entry. The airline carrier will usually check this, and spot checks around borders may be carried out on drivers.
READ ALSO: Five things to know about Germany's Covid testing rules
Note that all travellers need to fill in the online form before travel from the UK to Germany.
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