From today (Monday, October 4) the rules on international travel to the UK have changed, including the countries on the red list. 

The amber and green lists no longer exist, and while the red list remains, it is considerably shorter.

A four nation approach means the rules are the same regardless of which country you are entering, with the Scottish government confirming last month that its rules would align with the rest of the UK.

Here are all the countries still on the red list for international travel...

Which countries are on the red list for international travel?

 There are 54 countries currently on the red list:

  • Afghanistan
  • Angola
  • Argentina
  • Bolivia
  • Botswana
  • Brazil
  • Burundi
  • Cape Verde
  • Chile
  • Colombia
  • Congo (Democratic Republic)
  • Costa Rica
  • Cuba
  • Dominican Republic
  • Ecuador
  • Eritrea
  • Eswatini
  • Ethiopia
  • French Guiana
  • Georgia
  • Guyana
  • Haiti
  • Indonesia
  • Lesotho
  • Malawi
  • Mayotte
  • Mexico
  • Mongolia
  • Montenegro
  • Mozambique
  • Myanmar
  • Namibia
  • Nepal
  • Panama
  • Paraguay
  • Peru
  • Philippines
  • Réunion
  • Rwanda
  • Seychelles
  • Sierra Leone
  • Somalia
  • South Africa
  • Sudan
  • Suriname
  • Tanzania
  • Thailand
  • Trinidad and Tobago
  • Tunisia
  • Uganda
  • Uruguay
  • Venezuela
  • Zambia
  • Zimbabwe

This list is expected to be reviewed every three weeks, with eight countries removed in the most recent overhaul. 

Which 8 countries were recently removed from the red list?

The countries no longer on the red list as of today are: 

  • Turkey
  • Pakistan
  • the Maldives
  • Egypt
  • Sri Lanka
  • Oman
  • Bangladesh
  • Kenya

Instead, these countries are on the ROW list which stands for the Rest of the World. 

All the countries that are non-red listed are on the so called ROW list. 

What are the rules for red listed countries?

Rules for travel from red listed countries apply to everyone, regardless of your vaccination status. 

If you are travelling from a red-listed country you must:

  • take a pre-departure COVID-19 test – to be taken in the 3 days before you travel to the UK
  • book and quarantine in a specially designated hotel where you will carry out 2 COVID-19 tests
  • complete your passenger locator form – any time in the 48 hours before you arrive in the UK

What about travel from non-red listed countries?

The rules on international travel from non-red listed depends on your vaccination status. 

If you are fully vaccinated, you can travel from any non-red listed country and simply take one test within 48 hours of your arrival in the UK. 

The same rules apply to those under-18. 

However, if you are not fully vaccinated and travelling from a red-listed country, you must: 

take a pre-departure COVID-19 test – to be taken in the 3 days before you travel to UK

  • book, pay and take day 2 and day 8 COVID-19 tests – to be taken after arrival in UK
  • complete your passenger locator form – any time in the 48 hours before you arrive in UK
  • quarantine at home or in the place you are staying for 10 days