Citizens, residents, and visa holders travelling to the UK are legally required to take a Fit to Fly COVID Test to get a certification that shows that they do not have COVID-19 and are safe to travel. Apart from this, they also need to self-isolate upon arrival in England. Self-isolation is crucial to reduce the risk of spreading the coronavirus as it limits an individual’s contact with others before they know they have COVID-19 or have developed symptoms.
Suppose you are travelling to England; in that case, you will need to quarantine for 10 days, either in the place you are staying or in a managed quarantine hotel. While quarantining, you also have to take two COVID-19 PCR tests.
The two coronavirus tests are carried out on day 2 and day 8 of your quarantine period. Here is how they work:
What is Day 2 and Day 8 Testing?
Day 2 COVID-19 Test
- The COVID-19 test taken on or before day 2 of your quarantine is for variant surveillance. It will help identify any potential harmful variants of coronavirus.
- When you receive a negative test result on Day 2, you cannot shorten your quarantine period. You will still be required to continue your self-isolation as you may still develop coronavirus. You will also have to take the day 8 COVID-19 test.
- If you receive a positive test result from your day 2 coronavirus test, you are further required to quarantine for 10 days, beginning the day after the test was taken. People you have travelled with also need to quarantine for 10 days.
- When you test positive for coronavirus on your day 2 test, you are not required to take any further tests, but the people you have travelled with will still need to take a day 8 test.
Day 8 COVID-19 Test
- When you receive a positive result on day 8, you are required to extend your quarantine for 10 additional days.
- If you receive an inconclusive test result, particularly on your day 8 test, you will need to take a replacement test. You also have to stay in quarantine until you receive a negative result.
When you have completed 10 full days of quarantine and received a negative test result on your day 8 COVID-19 test, and you do not have any of the coronavirus symptoms, you are allowed to leave quarantine any time after midnight of day 10. However, suppose you develop one or more of the coronavirus’s main symptoms, even on day 9 or 10 of your quarantine period. In that case, you should avoid close contact with others and phone your hotel reception to take another COVID-19 test.
If you test positive for coronavirus during your quarantine period, you will receive further information on the necessary steps you need to take. As such, you will speak to someone at NHS Test and Trace to identify other people you may have close contact with. You will also receive information on medical support if you need it.
While travellers arriving in England are legally required to self-isolate themselves for 10 days, they can reduce their quarantine period to only five days if they take part in the Test to Release for International Travel scheme. However, this test scheme is not available for every person arriving in the UK.
Test to Release
The Test to Release scheme is not available to travellers who have been in or through any countries included on the UK’s travel ban red list in the previous 10 days before they come to England. Consequently, people not qualified to participate in the program or travellers not opting to take part in the scheme are required to quarantine for 10 full days in a government-approved hotel.
In contrast, if you are qualified to take the Test to Release scheme, you can voluntarily participate in it after arriving in the UK. You will need to complete another passenger locator form to indicate that you will opt for the scheme. You also have to book your Test for Release from a government-approved private test provider before you travel to England so you can enter the details of the test on the passenger locator form.
Here is how the Test to Release scheme works:
- The COVID-19 Test to Release is an additional test people can voluntarily take, apart from the required day 2 and day 8 tests during their quarantine period.
- If you take part in the Test to Release scheme, you must self-isolate upon arrival in England and take a PCR test provided by your booked private test provider on the 5th day of your quarantine period.
- When your test returns negative, you can exit quarantine as soon as you get the result. However, you still have to take the COVID-19 test on or after day 8.
- In contrast, if you receive a positive test result from your COVID-19 test on day 5, you will have to quarantine for another 10 days, starting from the day after taking the test. People you are staying with are also required to quarantine for 10 days.
- When you receive a positive result from your day 5 test, you do not need to take the day 8 COVID-19 test.
Where to get your Day 2 and Day 8 Test and Test to Release?
You must book and arrange your travel test package from a reputable private COVID-19 test provider before you travel or arrive in England.
Harley Medic Global is in partnership with Government approved laboratories and clinics to provide both Day 2 and Day 8 testing and also Test to Release testing.
To book our travel test package, you may contact us today at 0207 629 0253 or 0330 390 3666 or email us at info@harleymedic.co.uk. You can also visit our website at www.harleymedic.co.uk for more details about our services.
