Foreign travel is expected to resume from May 17 – and there are some new rules to get your head around if you’re planning a summer holiday. 

A risk-based traffic light system will be introduced, where countries will be labelled green, amber or red, with different rules for returning travellers depending on what list their holiday destination is on.

The government is expected to set out which countries fall into which category later this week and, once announced, the full lists will be available on the government’s website. 

On May 4, we had a sneak peak at some possible options, though. The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) updated its advice on visits to Portugal (excluding the Azores), Spain’s Canary Islands and the Greek islands of Rhodes, Kos, Zante, Corfu and Crete, saying it is no longer advising against “all but essential travel” to these destinations.

It’s the first indication that travel to these countries will be permitted after May 17, but it’s yet to be confirmed if these countries will be listed as green or amber destinations. Here’s what else we know about the new travel system so far.  

How the traffic light system will work

Green destinations

These are destinations with the lowest risk. Arrivals to the UK will have to take a pre-departure test at their holiday destination, then another PCR test on or before day two of their return to the UK.

No quarantine or additional tests will be needed unless a positive result comes back. However, if your test comes back positive, you will need to self-isolate at home for 10 days, following the usual self-isolation rules. 

Those coming back from green destinations will be required to book “test packages” from a government list of providers before travelling – you can find the full list here. The rules apply whether or not you’ve been vaccinated. Prices for the test packages start from around £160 and go up to nearly £600.

Amber destinations 

These are places with a moderate risk. You must take a pre-departure test before leaving your destination. Those coming back from amber destinations will also be required to book “test packages” from the government list of providers before travelling, even if they’ve been vaccinated. 

Arrivals to the UK will be required to quarantine for 5-10 days, depending on the testing package purchased. This quarantine can be completed at home. 

Once in the UK, those in quarantine will need to take a PCR test on day two and day eight after their return, with the option to pay for an extra test on day five to end self-isolation early. This is called the ‘test to release’ system. Under the system, you pay for a private PCR test (£60-£100) and can end your isolation as soon as you receive a negative result. If you use the test to release system, you must still complete the day eight PCR test. If you receive a positive test result, your isolation period resets and you’re back at day 0. 

Red destinations 

Travel to these countries will be most heavily restricted. Returning travellers must stay for at least 10 days in a quarantine hotel, at a cost of £1,750 per person.

Travellers will have to take a pre-departure test, plus a further PCR test on day two and day eight of their quarantine. If you get a positive test result from your day-8 test, you will need to quarantine for a further 10 days – the day of the test becomes day 0. You can’t use the early “test to release” scheme if you’ve visited a red listed county. 

Arrivals from red countries will need to book a “quarantine package” before departing on their travels. The rules apply whether or not you’ve been vaccinated. 

Countries may change categories

If you book a green listed country in May, there’s no guarantee it’ll remain in this category later this year. The allocation of countries’ categories will be kept under review and will respond to “emerging evidence”, with a particular focus on variants of concern, the government said.

To help travellers plan ahead, a “green watchlist” will be set up to flag which countries are most at risk of moving into the amber category. However, the government warned it would not hesitate to “act immediately” if data showed a destination’s risk rating had changed.

Covid passports might be used

All arrivals in the UK will be subject to the same testing and quarantine rules, whether or not you’ve been vaccinated. However, some countries have indicated that people will not be required to take outbound testing if they can prove they’ve been vaccinated. 

Transport Secretary Grant Shapps has previously said the NHS app – which is currently used to book medical appointments and order repeat prescriptions – will be able to display evidence that someone in England has been vaccinated or tested. However, Downing Street has admitted the NHS app may not be ready for use as a vaccine passport when international travel resumes.

The Prime Minister’s official spokesman indicated that officials are working on alternative plans for when international travel resumes.

“There are other routes to achieving the same end-goal,” the spokesperson told PA. “We are working on the app at the moment, at pace, to have it ready, and we will be able to confirm ahead of the 17th at the earliest what approaches we will be using.”