Study abroad updates: U.K. has moved India from the ‘Red’ to ‘Amber’ list.

As the pandemic raged on, the United Kingdom (UK) was one of the worst affected countries. The UK was forced to announce a nationwide lockdown to contain the spread of a UK variant of Covid 19. Most universities in UK shifted their operations online so as to not disrupt the administration of its courses.

As India faced a very brutal second wave of infections, the UK put India on a ‘Red List’, which is a traffic light system for international travel. As a Tier 4 (student visa) has residential rights, aspiring Indian students were met with a sigh of relief for their education abroad as they could travel to the country, but however, the cost of quarantine proved to cause financial strain.

On August 5, 2021, the U.K. Transport Secretary tweeted, “The UAE, Qatar, India, and Bahrain will be moved from the red list to the amber list. All changes come into effect Sun 8th August at 4 a.m.”

Based on the rules issued by the UK Government for countries on the ‘Amber List’, here are the guidelines that arriving passengers have to adhere to:

With effect from August 8, 2021, for India:

- Arriving passengers have to take a COVID-19 test, a minimum of three days before departure, and book two Covid tests in advance, which will be taken upon arrival in the UK, and present a complete Passenger Locator Form on arrival.

- Arriving passengers will have to home quarantine at the address mentioned on their Passenger Location Form. They will be required to take a COVID-19 test on or before day two and on or after day eight of quarantine.

- Highlighting relief for fully vaccinated passengers, the UK Government also stated “fully vaccinated in the U.K. or under the U.K. vaccine program overseas; under 18 on the day, you arrive in England and resident in the U.K. or in a country with a vaccination program approved by the U.K. and part of a U.K.-approved vaccine trial”. Covid shield, the India-manufactured Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine, is likely to be covered under this exemption.

This relaxation announced by the UK is a big win for students who want to travel for their study in UK. We strongly advise students to be fully vaccinated before they travel with vaccines approved by the respective study destination as this will exempt them from mandatory quarantine upon arrival.

Students can still apply to courses in UK and achieve their study abroad dreams. For further assistance or queries students can contact us, Edwise International, and avail for our wide range of services for students on destinations like Universities in USA, study in Germany, study in Canada, study in Australia, study in New-Zealand, Study in USA, study in Singapore and many other countries.