This is why Mexico is on the travel redlist – and the new rules you’ll need to follow Bedford News

On Wednesday (August 4), the government released the latest update to countries on the traffic light system.

While this update will see a number of countries moved to the Green List, such as Austria, Germany, Norway and Slovakia, a handful of countries are expected to be moved to the Red List, including Mexico. .

That’s all you need to know.

Prior to the travel list update, Mexico was on the UK’s Orange List – however, starting at 4 a.m. on Sunday August 8, it will be added to the Red List.

In the update, the government said that Mexico, and the other countries transferred to the Red List, “pose a high risk to public health in the UK due to known variants of concern, known high risk variants under investigation or due to a very high prevalence of Covid-19 in the country or territory ”.

Along with Mexico, Georgia, Reunion Island and Mayotte are also on the red list.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson has said the government wants people to be able to travel – however, it has to balance that desire with “the need to protect us from new variants.”

On Thursday August 5, Mexico’s health ministry reported that the country had 21,569 new confirmed cases of Covid-19.

The Department of Health has also reported 611 deaths. Mexico has recorded a total of 2,901,094 infections and 242,547 deaths.

The government has said the actual number of cases is likely much higher, with separate data released earlier this year showing the death toll is at least 60% higher than the confirmed figure.

No one can travel to the UK if they have been in a Red List country, unless they are a UK or Irish national, or a person with UK residence rights.

If you visited a Red List country or territory before traveling to England, there are strict rules you must follow, even if you are fully vaccinated.

Before traveling to England you must:

Anyone arriving in England from a Red List country must self-quarantine in a quarantine hotel managed for 10 full days from arrival – the day of arrival in England is considered day zero.

You must agree to book and pay a quarantine package before completing your passenger tracking form.

For those who book before August 11 and after 4 a.m. on August 12, the prices of these packages may vary.

Price for reservations made before August 11:

Price for reservations made from 4 a.m. on August 12:

Regarding the price, the government declares: “For those who face significant financial difficulties due to this charge, it will be possible to request a deferred repayment plan when booking. You will have to repay your debt to the government in 12 monthly installments.

If you need to quarantine yourself at a managed quarantine hotel, you can only arrive in England at certain points of entry, namely:

If you have to quarantine yourself at a managed quarantine hotel and do not arrive in England at one of the designated ports of entry, you risk a penalty of up to £ 10,000 and transport costs. to the nearest designated port will be charged. or entry.

Additionally, if you break the quarantine rules you could face a fine of up to £ 10,000, and fail to provide specific details of the countries you visited before arriving in the UK, you could be fined up to £ 10,000 and even jail for up to 10 years.