Read news from:
Austria
SHARE
COPY LINK

TOURISM

EXPLAINED: How has Italy changed its rules on travel from the UK?

As the re-introduction of quarantine and testing have changed plans for those travelling to Italy from the UK, here are the latest rules you need to know and what restrictions remain in place.

Published: 7 April 2021 15:47 CEST
Updated: 23 June 2021 13:09 CEST
EXPLAINED: How has Italy changed its rules on travel from the UK?
Quarantine and testing are mandatory for UK arrivals. Photo: Oli SCARFF/AFP

Travel to Italy has got more complicated again, following the news that all UK arrivals will be required to undergo a mandatory quarantine and testing, amid concerns about the spread of the Delta coronavirus variant.

READ ALSO: How much is the Delta variant spreading in Italy?

After dropping the quarantine requirement for UK travellers just over a month ago, Italy is now joining other countries in Europe such as France, Germany, Switzerland and Austria in tightening the rules afresh.

Italy had been open to all travellers from the UK since May 16th without the need for quarantine on arrival, but due to the UK’s worsening health situation, Italian authorities have revised Italy’s entry requirements, effective as of Monday June 21st.

The new rules are in force from June 21st until at least July 30th, the Italian Embassy in London said on Saturday.

Five-day quarantine and testing

Compulsory quarantine now applies to anyone who has been on UK territory in the 14 days before arrival in Italy, regardless of nationality. 

Arrivals from the UK will need to isolate for five days at an address given to health authorities.

The address can be a private one or that of an accommodation provider (if the provider is happy to allow you to quarantine on the premises). Italy is not currently requiring arrivals from Britain to go into supervised quarantine under ‘Covid hotel’ system, as is being used in the UK.

However, you must notify the local health authority in the region of Italy you’ll be staying in within 48 hours of your arrival. Find contact details here.

READ ALSO: How should travellers from the UK quarantine in Italy?

Following quarantine, a negative test result will be required at the end of the quarantine period.

Travellers “must take a rapid antigenic or molecular swab test for Covid-19 and test negative for release,” stated the UK government.

Anyone found not to be following these rules could end up with a €450 fine.

What are the testing rules?

If flying to Italy, you must show the airline proof of a negative test taken no more than 48 hours before travel.

If you arrive without a negative test, you “will need to self-isolate for 10 days and undertake a test at the end of the isolation period,” added the UK authorities.

Anyone entering Italy – not just those flying – must be able to show proof of a negative test result on arrival.

READ ALSO: What Covid-19 tests do I need for travel between Italy and the UK?

Photo: MARCO SABADIN/AFP

Exemptions to the quarantine period

Italy does not have exemptions in place for vaccinated travellers.

The quarantine and testing rules apply equally to people arriving in Italy by car or other means of transport.

The only exemptions are for “specific categories of workers and for stays up to 120 hours for work, health or other urgent reasons,” read a tweet from the Italian Embassy in London.

“In case of symptoms everyone should isolate. 6-year-old or younger children do not have to take tests,” it added.

Travellers transiting Italy in a private vehicle for less than 36 hours are also exempt from the quarantine.

Entry paperwork

People travelling from the UK should fill out this online digital form. This will generate a QR code, which you’ll need to show to your travel provider or the Border Police if requested. There’s a paper form if you cannot access it digitally.

You should also inform the local health authority in the region of Italy to which you are travelling within 48 hours of arrival, stating where you plan to quarantine and how they can reach you. Find regional contacts here.

The UK government advice is to carry proof of your residence when entering Italy if you are a UK national resident in Italy.

Photo: Filippo Monteforte/AFP

Flying to Italy

Many people planning to fly to Italy this month had already reported a lack of flights on many UK-Italy routes, and there have been widespread reports of last-minute cancellations this week.

Further flight cancellations have ensued following the British government’s decision to impose a four-week delay to its so-called ‘Freedom Day’ – when the last remaining Covid-19 restrictions were to be lifted in the country.

The UK government has advised travellers to keep checking if their flights are still running.

TRAVEL:

“Many airlines and airports serving Italy are operating a reduced service and may be subject to change. You are strongly advised to check your airline’s website, as well as the website for the airport you are intending to fly to for the latest information,” stated UK authorities.

The UK’s rules on travel from Italy

Italy is on the UK’s ‘amber’ list for travel, which means travel is possible but the British government has stressed people should not be booking holidays to these countries at the moment.

It is not yet known if Italy may be moved to the ‘green’ list under the British government’s next review.

Passengers who have reasons to want to travel Italy despite the government advice, such as visiting loved ones after postponed trips or to attend weddings, must present a pre-departure test result and then quarantine at home for 10 days upon arrival in England, Wales or Scotland.

In addition, PCR tests are required on days two and eight of quarantine.

Restrictions within Italy are easing

Italy is restarting tourism for summer as the country eases its health measures.

The new travel rules came as Italy opens up to visitors from the US, Canada and Japan and announces the details of its health certificate for travel within the EU.

All Italian regions but one are due to drop Covid-19 restrictions from Monday 21st as the national infection rate has fallen further.

It means that almost all regional authorities are allowed to abandon most of the remaining coronavirus restrictions earlier than planned under the national roadmap for reopening.

EXPLAINED:

Only mask-wearing and social distancing rules must remain in place, the health minister has said. House parties and large gatherings are also forbidden.

Italy’s evening curfew, which doesn’t apply to Italy’s lowest risk so-called ‘white zone’ regions, currently starts at midnight and will be scrapped completely on June 21st.

Find more information about travelling to or from Italy on the Health Ministry’s website (in English).

You can also check the Italian Government’s online questionnaire (in English) for more advice on entry requirements and travel to Italy.

Member comments

Log in here to leave a comment.
Become a Member to leave a comment.

EES PASSPORT CHECKS

EES border checks could undergo ‘soft launch’, UK says as app concerns mount

The UK government is preparing for a "soft launch" of the new EU border system – the Entry/Exit (EES) system - in October but authorities are still waiting for European Commission to confirm the start date, amid concerns over the delay of a new app.

Published: 4 May 2024 09:30 CEST
EES border checks could undergo 'soft launch', UK says as app concerns mount

The government is working on the assumption that the system will go live on October 6th, ministers told a hearing at the House of Commons European scrutiny committee this week.

But the European Commission is expected to confirm the exact launch date of the new biometric checks for non-EU travellers entering the Schengen area at some point this summer, they added.

“We are very much working on a basis whereby this policy will go live on the 6th of October. It is important that we plan for that eventuality. We are expecting to hear definitively from the European Union that ‘go live’ arrangement in the summer,” Tom Pursglove, UK Minister for Legal Migration and the Border told the committee.

The parliamentary committee is conducting an inquiry on the disruptions the system will cause in the UK.

Pursglove also said that “precautionary measures” have been agreed by the EU, that will be put in place in certain circumstances after the start of EES, for example if delays at the borders exceeded a certain length of time.

Guy Opperman, Under-Secretary of State at the Department for Transport, said that in practice this meant a “soft launch” of EES for 6 months before “a full go live”. During that soft launch EU member states and the UK could deploy flexibility measures should problems occur.

“The likelihood is, after multiple delays, that the 6th of October will proceed” and the implementation looks “very different” compared to previous scenarios considering the flexibility allowed in the first 6 months, he argued.

No details were given on what these “flexible” measures would involve however. 

READ ALSO: Your questions answered about Europe’s EES passport checks

He conceded that “a lot of work” still needs to be done but the UK “should be as ready as everybody” and “better be at front of the queue”.

App not ready

During the meeting, it also emerged that a much-anticipated app that would allow remote pre-registration of non-EU citizens subject to the checks will not be available for testing until August “at best”, prompting concerns about the EES launch date.

“You don’t need to be a sceptic about future projects to think that the provision of the app in August for going live in October is optimistic,” Opperman said.

Ministers confirmed that the app will not be ready in time for October and the committee previously stated it might be delayed until summer 2025.

The app will facilitate pre-registration, but photo and fingerprints will still have to be taken at the border in front of a guard, the committee heard.

READ ALSO: How do the EU’s new EES passport checks affect the 90-day rule?

Several MPs asked whether the entry into operation of the EES should be delayed again if technology is not ready. But Under-Secretary Opperman said the app “is not going to be a panacea to fix all problems”.

The main aim of EES is to increase security and to ensure that non-EU nationals visiting the Schengen area for a short-term do not stay more than 90 days in any 180-day period.

The entry into operation of the system has already been delayed several times and there have been calls from certain travel companies and national authorities to delay it again.

Under the new scheme, non-EU/EFTA travellers who do not need a visa will have to register their biometric data (finger prints and facial images) in a database that will also record each time they enter and exit the Schengen area.

Instead of having passports manually stamped, travellers will have to scan them at self-service kiosks before crossing the border. However, fingerprints and a photo will have to be registered in front of a guard at the first crossing and there are concerns the extra time needed will generate long queues, especially in Dover, Folkestone and St. Pancras station in London, where there are juxtaposed French and UK border checks.

Progress in preparations

Minister Pursglove also updated MPs on ongoing preparations. He said some testing of the system will take place within days, 5 kiosks have been installed at St. Pancras station and are available for testing. “You are beginning to see the physical infrastructure appear,” he said.

Kiosks and extra lanes are also being created at the port Dover and it was agreed with the EU passengers travelling by coach will be checked away from the Eastern dock, where controls usually take place, allowing to gain space. The vehicles will then sealed and drive on the ferries.

MPs also discussed the infrastructure cost linked to the introduction of the EES. Opperman said all EU countries will have to make “huge investments” in their ports. In the UK, he argued, this will help “address problems that have existed for some time”. Because of this “massive investment”, in a few years time “Dover will be totally transformed,” he said.

This article is published in cooperation with Europe Street News.

SHOW COMMENTS