2021 No. 1433 (W. 371)

Public Health, Wales

The Health Protection (Coronavirus, International Travel and Public Health Information to Travellers) (Wales) (Miscellaneous Amendments) (No. 5) Regulations 2021

Made

Coming into force

Laid before Senedd Cymru

The Welsh Ministers, in exercise of the powers conferred on them by sections 45B and 45P(2) of the Public Health (Control of Disease) Act 19841, make the following Regulations.

Title and coming into force1

1

The title of these Regulations is the Health Protection (Coronavirus, International Travel and Public Health Information to Travellers) (Wales) (Miscellaneous Amendments) (No. 5) Regulations 2021.

2

These Regulations come into force at 4.00 a.m. on 15 December 2021.

Amendments to Schedule 3A to the Health Protection (Coronavirus, International Travel) (Wales) Regulations 20202

In Schedule 3A (countries and territories subject to additional measures) to the Health Protection (Coronavirus, International Travel) (Wales) Regulations 20202 omit —

  • Angola

  • Botswana

  • Eswatini

  • Lesotho

  • Malawi

  • Mozambique

  • Namibia

  • Nigeria

  • South Africa

  • Zambia

  • Zimbabwe

Amendments to the Health Protection (Coronavirus, Public Health Information for Persons Travelling to Wales etc.) Regulations 20203

For Part 1 of the Schedule to the Health Protection (Coronavirus, Public Health Information for Persons Travelling to Wales etc.) Regulations 20203 substitute—

SCHEDULE

Regulations 3, 3A and 4

Part 1

The information to be provided for the purposes of regulations 3(2)(a)(i), 3(2)(b)(i), 3(2)(c)(i), 3A(4)(b)(i) and 3A(4)(c) is—

“Essential information to enter the UK from overseas

All persons (including UK nationals and residents) arriving in the UK from outside the CTA must provide proof of a negative COVID-19 test taken within 2 days of departure to the UK. For further information please visit: www.gov.uk/guidance/coronavirus-covid-19-testing-for-people-travelling-to-england.

Fill in your Passenger Locator Form up to 48 hours before arrival. You must declare all countries you have visited or transited through in the 10 days prior to your arrival on your Passenger Locator Form.

Before departure, check the list of red list countries, as the list can change regularly.

Red list passengers (including passengers who are fully vaccinated)

1. Book a managed quarantine package

2. Complete a Passenger Locator Form

You can only enter if you are a British or Irish National, or you have residency rights in the UK. You must enter through a designated port and quarantine in a government approved hotel for 10 days.

Unvaccinated passengers or passengers vaccinated with unauthorised vaccines

1. Book PCR tests to take on or before day 2 and on or after day 8

2. Complete a Passenger Locator Form

3. Make plans to self-isolate in private accommodation for 10 full days after arrival (or full duration of stay if less than 10 days)

Fully vaccinated passengers who are not red list passengers

1. Book a PCR test to take on or before day 2

2. Complete a Passenger Locator Form

3. Self-isolate on arrival and until the result of your day 2 test is known. You may only leave self-isolation if the test is negative.

These measures apply to all persons (including UK nationals and residents) arriving in Wales from outside the common travel area comprising the United Kingdom, Ireland, the Isle of Man, and the Channel Islands. The British Overseas Territories are not in the common travel area. Public health requirements may vary depending upon in which nation of the UK you are staying.

England:https://www.gov.uk/uk-border-control

Northern Ireland:https://www.nidirect.gov.uk/articles/coronavirus-covid-19-international-travel-advice

Scotland: https:/www.gov.scot/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-international-travel-quarantine/pages/overview/

Wales:https://gov.wales/travelrules

Failure to comply with these measures is a criminal offence and you could be fined. There are a limited set of exemptions from these measures. Check the list of exemptions carefully. You may be fined if you fraudulently claim an exemption”.

Eluned MorganMinister for Health and Social Services, one of the Welsh Ministers
EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Regulations)

These Regulations amend the Health Protection (Coronavirus, International Travel) (Wales) Regulations 2020 (S.I. 2020/574 (W. 132)) (“the International Travel Regulations”) and the Health Protection (Coronavirus, Public Health Information for Persons Travelling to Wales etc.) Regulations 2020 (S.I. 2020/595 (W. 136)) (“the Public Health Information Regulations”).

The International Travel Regulations impose requirements on persons entering Wales after having been abroad. Non-exempt persons are prohibited from entering Wales where they have been in a country or territory listed in Schedule 3A (countries and territories subject to additional measures) to the International Travel Regulations in the 10 days prior to their arrival, pursuant to regulation 12E (additional measures applicable to persons travelling from a country or territory listed in Schedule 3A) of the International Travel Regulations. Regulation 2 of these Regulations amends Schedule 3A to remove all countries from the list of countries or territories to which regulation 12E applies.

The Public Health Information Regulations impose requirements on operators of international passenger services coming from outside the common travel area to an airport, heliport or seaport in Wales to provide passengers with specified public health information.

Regulation 3 of these Regulations amends the Public Health Information Regulations to ensure that the information that operators are required to provide to passengers travelling to the UK from outside the common travel area is consistent across the UK.

There has been no regulatory impact assessment in relation to these Regulations due to the need to put them in place urgently to deal with a serious and imminent threat to public health.