Heathrow and Gatwick: Travel advice relaxed for 32 countries

Travel advice has been relaxed for 32 countries

Travel advice will be relaxed for 32 countries including Madagascar, Malaysia, and Fiji.

The UK government has announced it will stop advising Brits to avoid non-essential travel to countries not on the red list solely because of the pandemic.

The move once again opens up more of the world for Brits and will make it easier for people to get travel insurance.

The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) will no longer advise against travel to non-red list countries because of covid, except in exceptional circumstances such as if the local healthcare system is overwhelmed.

A travel advisory could still be in place for these countries, but it would be for a reason other than the pandemic, such as political instability.

Travel insurance companies often exclude countries with travel advisories against visiting, so the move will help travellers get insurance more easily.

Red list countries will still have a warning against all but essential travel.

A statement from the FCDO explained that the move was made “in light of the improved public health in many countries and territories, better understanding of the virus and the decreased risk to British nationals as a result of the vaccine roll out.”

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Travel rules were already significantly relaxed on Monday October 4 to replace the traffic light system with a single red list and to reduce the testing requirements for the double jabbed.

A further easing of the travel rules is expected tomorrow, when experts hope the number of countries on the red list will be slashed.

The full list of countries for which the FCDO has eased its travel advice is: Algeria; Armenia; Bangladesh; Belarus; Benin; Comoros; Tokelau and Niue; Djibouti; Equatorial Guinea; Fiji; Gambia; Guinea; Kazakhstan; Kiribati; Kosovo; Liberia; Madagascar; Malaysia; Marshall Islands; Micronesia; Nauru; Sao Tome and Príncipe; Senegal; Solomon Islands; Togo; Tonga; Tuvalu; Vanuatu; Congo; America Samoa; French Polynesia; and Ghana. – mylondon.news