France Reimposes Strict Covid Curbs On Travel From UK
Britons and other non-EU arrivals will again have to prove that they have a "compelling reason" to enter France, the foreign ministry said.
France is re-introducing tighter rules on arrivals from UK who are not French residents to curb the spread of Covid, notably its India-dominant variant, the foreign ministry said on Thursday.
Britons and other non-EU arrivals will again have to prove that they have a "compelling reason" to enter France, it said.
The ministry did not define "compelling", but the government has previously said that family, health or professional reasons could be acceptable.
France had relaxed that requirement in March for the United Kingdom, as well as a number of other non-members of the EU, which Britain left last year.
But again from Monday "compelling reasons will be required for non-EU foreigners who are not residents in France and who come to France from the United Kingdom", the ministry said in a statement.
It said in addition those visitors would have to self-isolate for seven days on arrival.
The ministry added, however, that, for now, there would be "no systematic checks" to ensure compliance with the requirement, "given the low incidence of Covid in Britain".
Visitors from Britain will still need a PCR or antigen test less than 48 hours old to be allowed into the country.
The French move comes after Germany said that travellers arriving there from the UK have to submit to a quarantine period of two weeks, regardless of whether they can provide a negative test result for the virus.
A French quarantine order is already in place for arrivals from Brazil, India, Argentina, Chile, South Africa, Colombia, Uruguay, Costa Rica, Bahrain, Turkey, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Nepal, the United Arab Emirates and Qatar.
Police are authorised to carry out random spot checks to ensure that quarantine rules are respected, with non-compliance punished with fines of up to 1,500 euros ($1,800).
The coronavirus variant first detected in India has now been officially recorded in 53 territories, a World Health Organization report showed Wednesday.
Britons and other non-EU arrivals will again have to prove that they have a "compelling reason" to enter France, it said.
The ministry did not define "compelling", but the government has previously said that family, health or professional reasons could be acceptable.
France had relaxed that requirement in March for the United Kingdom, as well as a number of other non-members of the EU, which Britain left last year.
But again from Monday "compelling reasons will be required for non-EU foreigners who are not residents in France and who come to France from the United Kingdom", the ministry said in a statement.
It said in addition those visitors would have to self-isolate for seven days on arrival.
The ministry added, however, that, for now, there would be "no systematic checks" to ensure compliance with the requirement, "given the low incidence of Covid in Britain".
Visitors from Britain will still need a PCR or antigen test less than 48 hours old to be allowed into the country.
The French move comes after Germany said that travellers arriving there from the UK have to submit to a quarantine period of two weeks, regardless of whether they can provide a negative test result for the virus.
A French quarantine order is already in place for arrivals from Brazil, India, Argentina, Chile, South Africa, Colombia, Uruguay, Costa Rica, Bahrain, Turkey, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Nepal, the United Arab Emirates and Qatar.
Police are authorised to carry out random spot checks to ensure that quarantine rules are respected, with non-compliance punished with fines of up to 1,500 euros ($1,800).
The coronavirus variant first detected in India has now been officially recorded in 53 territories, a World Health Organization report showed Wednesday.
AI Disclaimer: An advanced artificial intelligence (AI) system generated the content of this page on its own. This innovative technology conducts extensive research from a variety of reliable sources, performs rigorous fact-checking and verification, cleans up and balances biased or manipulated content, and presents a minimal factual summary that is just enough yet essential for you to function as an informed and educated citizen. Please keep in mind, however, that this system is an evolving technology, and as a result, the article may contain accidental inaccuracies or errors. We urge you to help us improve our site by reporting any inaccuracies you find using the "Contact Us" link at the bottom of this page. Your helpful feedback helps us improve our system and deliver more precise content. When you find an article of interest here, please look for the full and extensive coverage of this topic in traditional news sources, as they are written by professional journalists that we try to support, not replace. We appreciate your understanding and assistance.
