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COVID-19

What are the new rules for travel between Sweden and the UK?

With the UK poised to remove all entry requirements, here's what you need to know about travel between Britain and Sweden.

What are the new rules for travel between Sweden and the UK?
People in the arrivals area at Heathrow Airport in London in January 2021. Photo: AP Photo/Matt Dunham

What happened on Friday, and how does it affect travelling from Sweden to the UK?

On Friday, March 18th, the UK will end all of its Covid-related travel restrictions.

That means that people will no longer have to fill in a Passenger Locator Form or upload a negative test or proof of full vaccination before travel. 

The new rules apply for anyone entering the country after 4am on March 18th, regardless of whether they are vaccinated or unvaccinated. 

The so-called ‘Day 2’ tests, which vaccinated people were already exempt from, will also no longer be required for unvaccinated people from this date. 

In other words, people won’t have to take any Covid tests before or after travel. 

Technically, anyone arriving from a ‘red list’ country is still subject to hotel quarantine. However, there are currently no ‘red list’ countries listed by the UK and this rule is also set to be axed by the end of the month. 

Other things to be aware of:

While the removal of travel restrictions is set to apply UK-wide, you may encounter slightly different Covid rules across England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, so be sure to do your research beforehand.

England, for instance, has recently scrapped all Covid restrictions, including the requirement to self-isolate after a Covid infection and mandatory masks on public transport and in other indoor areas. 

However, in Wales and Scotland, some restrictions remain in place – though these could be removed later in the month. Read more about the respective rules and upcoming changes in each country HERE

READ ALSO: Are you classed as fully vaccinated in the UK after having Covid and one jab?

You can also find more information on UK travel rules HERE. Click the following links to read more about travelling to EnglandWalesScotland and Northern Ireland.

What about travel from the UK to Sweden?

Until Sweden ends its entry ban for non-EU arrivals on March 31st, people travelling from the UK, Guernsey, Isle of Man and Jersey, to Sweden still need to meet one of a list of exemptions in order to enter the country.

Since October 11th, anyone with valid certificates proving a completed vaccination against Covid-19 counts as exempted from both the entry ban, and from the requirement to have a negative test on arrival to Sweden.

The UK is on Sweden’s list of “approved countries“, meaning UK vaccination certificates count as valid, so long as vaccination was completed more than 14 days before travel. If you are travelling from the UK but were vaccinated elsewhere, the country where you were vaccinated must also be on the approved list.  

What about driving to the UK from Sweden?

As the UK no longer requires a passenger locator form, you no longer need to keep a record of which countries you have transited through. 

In the other direction, Sweden in February lifted all restrictions on entry from EU and EEA countries, meaning there are no longer any restrictions on travel from all of these countries, including Denmark. 

However, you will want to make sure that you read up on the various rules and entry restrictions in the countries you will be travelling through. In Germany, for instance, you might be stopped and asked to show proof of vaccination, proof of recovery, or a negative Covid-19 test. 

What Covid restrictions are still in place in Sweden? 

None. The entry ban for non-EU arrivals is the last significant Covid-19 restriction still in place in Sweden, after the country lifted almost all restrictions on February 9th

The above information was correct to the best of our knowledge at the time of publication. Please be aware that we are not a government authority and cannot issue any guarantees about whether or not you will be able to travel to Sweden or the UK. We always advise readers to also consult the official information on the Swedish border police’s website and the UK government website before travelling.

If you have any questions, you are always welcome to contact our editorial team at [email protected]. We may not be able to reply to every email, and we cannot advise on individual cases, but we read all emails and use them to inform our future coverage.

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SAS

Scandinavian airline SAS loses half a billion kroner in one month

Scandinavian airline SAS lost 2.3 billion Swedish kronor, around 1.5 billion Danish kroner, in the months November 2023-February 2024, including 500 million kroner in February alone.

Scandinavian airline SAS loses half a billion kroner in one month

The figures come from accounts which the company is obliged to report each month as part of a bankruptcy protection (Chapter 11) process it is undergoing in the United States.

The accounting shows that in February, SAS operated with a loss of 822 million Swedish kronor, which corresponds to 535 million Danish kroner or 835 million Norwegian kroner.

Although the company’s February losses are larger than expected, turnover at the airline is in line with expectations according to analyst Jacob Pedersen of Danish bank Sydbank.

“Revenue in February 2024 is only modestly better than in the same month last year, despite a marked increase in turnover. This progress is naturally positive but also driven by a lift in revenues from the leap year this year, which doesn’t raise costs by the same level,” he said in a written comment.

From November to February, SAS posted a turnover of just under 11.8 billion Swedish kronor, equivalent to just over 7.7 billion Danish kroner.

For February alone, turnover was just under 2.9 billion Swedish kronor, around 1.9 billion kroner.

This means that, compared to February in 2023, SAS has raised revenues by around 400 million Swedish kronor.

Pedersen, who closely follows aviation markets, said that the February figures are evidence “significantly more work” must be done by SAS to catch competitors on revenue.

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