Earlier this week, it was announced that Portugal would require all British holiday-makers to undergo a 14-day quarantine upon arrival. However, the announcement sparked two days of confusion over who the new rule applied.
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Brits under 18 will not be required to quarantine in Portugal
Due to fears of the fast-spreading Delta variant, Portugal has announced that British travellers will be subject to 14 days quarantine when entering the country - unless they can prove they have had their second COVID jab a fortnight before arrival.
Children under 18 will also not be subject to quarantine, but those over 12 will have to provide a negative COVID test. This test must either be a PCR test taken within 72 hours of arrival or a lateral flow test within 48 hours of arrival.
The quarantine rules will only apply to mainland Portugal, which just three weeks ago was added to the UK’s amber list. This means that British travellers will also need to undergo ten days of self-isolation upon returning to the UK.
Madeira not included in Portugal’s quarantine scheme
Madeira, which has now moved to the UK’s green list, is not covered in Portugal’s quarantine rule. Instead, those over the age of 12 who wish to enter Madeira will need to provide a COVID-19 vaccine certificate or complete a negative RT-PCR test within 72 hours of arrival. British travellers will also be required to fill in a COVID questionnaire.
If unable to provide a negative PCR test or vaccine certification upon arrival, travellers will then need to take a test in the airport and stay in a government-provided facility until results come through. If the test is positive or inconclusive, the measure will have to be repeated until the traveller receives a negative test result.
Only fully vaccinated Brits allowed to enter Malta
In another update, Malta - which also graces the UK’s green list from today - will only grant entry to fully vaccinated UK travellers with official NHS letters confirming vaccine status.
The Malta Health Ministry has announced that from today, all travellers coming from the UK will need to provide an official paper letter from the NHS stating that the certificate holder is fully vaccinated. The Health Ministry specified: ‘Only the paper version of the NHS Covid letter will be accepted, which can be requested online or by calling 119.’
The vaccination certificate will be not accepted in digital or downloaded PDF form. It must be the printed version issued directly from the NHS.
Malta has specified that only fully vaccinated Brits will be allowed to enter the country, including those aged 12 and over. Travellers under 12 will be granted entry as long as a fully vaccinated adult accompanies them. Those aged between 5 and 11 will also be required to provide a negative COVID test within 72 hours of arrival.
