07/09/2021
Admin notice!
Please find the current upto date Gov.uk information on current travel requirements leaving the UK for Spain and Spain to Uk all current Information is available on the link below
BUT PLEASE ENSURE YOU HAVE READ THE FULL THREAD HERE AS IT ALSO CLARIFIES THE ISSUE ON CHILDREN etc
https://www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice/spain/entry-requirements
Amber list rules
Traveling from Spain to the uk
What you must do if you have been in a country or territory on the amber list in the 10 days before you arrive in England.
You can read separate guidance on what you need to do if you are travelling abroad from England.
Before you travel to England
Before you travel to England you must:
take a COVID-19 test – you must take the test in the 3 days before you travel to England
book and pay for COVID-19 tests – to be taken after arrival in England
complete a passenger locator form
You must do these things whether you are fully vaccinated or not.
When you arrive in England
If you are fully vaccinated
After you arrive in England you must take a COVID-19 test on or before day 2.
This applies if you’re fully vaccinated under either:
the UK vaccination programme
the UK vaccine programme overseas
an approved vaccination programme in Europe or the USA - not all are recognised in England
Type of test
The test must meet performance standards of ≥97% specificity, ≥80% sensitivity at viral loads above 100,000 copies/ml.
This could include tests such as:
a PCR test
a LAMP test
an antigen test, such as an LFD (lateral flow device) test
You must check with your test provider that the test meets the standards. You may not be able to travel if it does not.
Travel from Spain and its islands
If you are travelling to England from Spain, including the Canary Islands and the Balearic Islands (Formentera, Ibiza, Mallorca, Menorca), you are advised to take a PCR type test before travel.
If you have recently had COVID
If you have recently recovered from COVID but are no longer infectious, you should use a lateral flow device (LFD) test. LFD tests have a lower sensitivity than PCR or LAMP tests, so they are less likely to return a positive result from a historic infection. The LFD test must meet the minimum performance standards as set out above.
When to take your test
You can take the test any time in the 3 days before the service on which you will arrive in England departs.
For example, if you travel directly to England on Friday, you could take a test any time on the Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday or Friday. The test result must be available for boarding.
Where to take your test
You will need to find a private test provider to take a test.
You can choose to take a test:
in the place where you start your journey
in another country on your way to England, if you are travelling through another country
Where possible, the government travel advice pages provide information about finding a testing provider.
Taking a test on your journey to England
If your journey to England is long, and will involve stopping in another country on the way, you should try to take a test in the country you’re travelling through. This is so you take the test in the 3 days before you board the final service to England.
For example, if you’re driving from Germany and you stop for a few days in Belgium, you should take a test in Belgium.
If you’re travelling by plane and changing flights, where possible you should get a test within 3 days of your final departure point to England.
Check that you will be able to get a test
If you plan to take a test in a country on your way to England, you must make sure that this is possible before you set out. Some countries have entry restrictions in place, which mean you may not be able to get tested there.
If you do not have proof of a test because you planned to get tested on your journey, but you were not able to do so because you were not able to enter the country in which you planned to get tested, you will be allowed to board. But you may be fined £500 on arrival in England because you do not have a valid test result.
Taking your test in the UK before travel
If you are returning to the UK within 3 days, you can use the result of a COVID-19 test that you take in the UK before you travel. You must use a private test provider for the test and not an NHS test.
The service on which you will arrive back in the UK must set off for the UK within 3 days of when you took the test.
Positive test results
If your test result is positive, you must not travel. You must follow local rules and guidance for positive coronavirus cases.
If the result is inconclusive, you must take another test.
British nationals who need consular assistance should contact the nearest consulate, embassy or high commission.
Information that the test result must include
Your test result must be in either English, French or Spanish. Translations will not be accepted.
You must provide the original test result notification. It must include the following information:
your name, which should match the name on your travel documents
your date of birth or age
the result of the test
the date the test sample was collected or received by the test provider
the name of the test provider and their contact details
confirmation of the device used for the test, or that the test was a PCR test
If the test result does not include this information you may not be able to board, and may not be able to travel to England. If you arrive without a test result that includes this information, you might have to pay a £500 fine.
How to provide proof of a negative test result
Your test result can be provided as:
a printed document
an email or text message you can show on your phone - make sure your device is charged
If you do not have proof of a negative test result
If you do not present proof you tested negative, you may not be able to board your transport to England.
If you arrive in England without proof you tested negative, you could be fined £500.
NHS tests
NHS tests cannot be used for the purpose of pre-departure testing before travel to England.
You cannot take an NHS test abroad with you to use on yourself before you return.
Exemptions – people who do not need to take a test
Children
Children aged 10 and under do not need to take a pre-departure test to travel to England. There are different age limits for other COVID-19 travel tests.
Read more about children and COVID-19 travel tests.
Job and medical exemptions
You do not need to take a test if you are travelling to the UK:
for urgent medical treatment or are accompanying someone who is travelling for urgent medical treatment, and it is not reasonably practical for you to obtain a negative COVID-19 test in the 3 days before departure
if you have a medical condition which means you cannot take a test – you must present a note from a medical practitioner at check in and to Border Force staff on arrival in England
Some people are exempt from some or all of the requirements because of the job they do
Travel from some countries
You do not need to take a test if you began your journey to England from:
Ireland, Northern Ireland, Scotland, Wales, the Isle of Man, Jersey or Guernsey
Falkland Islands, St Helena or Ascension
Passenger locator form
You must complete a passenger locator form before you travel to England.
Testing and quarantine after you arrive in England
This guidance tells you about COVID-19 testing before you travel to England.
You can read other guidance about what you need to check before you travel, the tests you need to take and if you need to quarantine in England if you:
travel abroad from England
travel to England if you live in another country
Travelling from the UK to Spain
Entry requirements
This page reflects the UK government’s understanding of current rules for people travelling on a full ‘British Citizen’ passport, for the most common types of travel.
The authorities in Spain set and enforce entry rules. For further information contact their embassy, high commission or consulate. You may also check with your transport provider or travel company to make sure your passport and travel documents meet their requirements.
If you are travelling to Spain for work, read the guidance on visas and permits as the rules have changed since 1 January 2021.
Entry rules in response to coronavirus (COVID-19)
Entry to Spain
The Spanish government requires all arrivals to Spain from the UK to present on entry a pre-travel declaration form and one of the following: a negative COVID-19 test; or proof of vaccination.
Testing and vaccination requirements for arrivals from the UK
The Spanish government requires all arrivals to Spain from the UK (excluding children under the age of 12 years old) to present on entry one of the following:
documentation certifying that you have undertaken a COVID-19 nucleic acid amplification test (NAAT - e.g. PCR, TMA, LAMP or NEAR) within 72 hours prior to arrival in Spain and tested negative. Antigen tests can only be used in certain limited circumstances (as outlined in section ‘k’ of the ‘Entry requirements for entry in Spain from third countries’ on the Spanish Ministry of Health ‘Travel and COVID-19’ page) and are not accepted if you are travelling from the UK to Spain for tourism purposes (see Reason for travel to Spain below for further information).
proof of being fully vaccinated at least 14 days prior to arrival in Spain (date(s) of vaccination must be specified), with a vaccine authorised by the European Medicines Agency or by the World Health Organisation.
Spain will accept the UK’s COVID-19 vaccination record. Your NHS appointment card from vaccination centres is not designed to be used as proof of vaccination and should not be used to demonstrate your vaccine status.
Certificates of recovery - a medical document certifying that you have recovered from COVID-19 in the last 6 months prior to travel - is not currently accepted for arrivals from the UK. See the Spanish Ministry of Health ‘Travel and COVID-19’ page for details.
Documents can be in either English, Spanish, French or German and in paper or electronic format. All documents must specify the name and surname of the passenger. See ‘Entry requirements for entry in Spain from third countries’ section ‘k.’ on the Spanish Ministry of Health ‘Travel and COVID-19’ page for details regarding proof of vaccination and the types of diagnostic tests that can be presented when travelling to Spain from the UK.
All passengers (including children under 12 years old) travelling by air or sea must complete and sign an online Health Control Form no more than 48 hours prior to travel. See Arrival by air or sea for details.
Further rules may apply if you have travelled to a country on Spain’s list of ‘risk’ countries in the 14 days prior to travel to Spain. See Testing requirements if travelling from a ‘risk country’.
Reason for travel to Spain
Entry requirements and the type of diagnostic tests you can present may vary if your reason for travel to Spain falls into one of the categories listed on the ‘Entry requirements for entry in Spain from third countries’ - section ‘a’ to ‘i’ - on the Spanish Ministry of Health ‘Travel and COVID-19’ page. This includes residents of Spain. If one of the exemptions listed applies to you, an antigen test taken within 48 hours of arrival can be presented on entry as an alternative to a certificate of vaccination, a negative nucleic acid amplification test (such as PCR, LAMP, TMA etc.) taken within 72 hours prior to arrival, or a certificate of recovery.
Antigen tests are not accepted if you are travelling from the UK to Spain for tourism purposes.
Latest travel advice for Spain, including how to stay safe during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic and information on returning to the UK.
