From 5 April, travellers flying into England from mainland China will no longer have to provide proof of a negative pre-departure test. The decision comes after the UK government implemented controls following a spike in Covid cases caused by Beijing's relaxation of its zero-Covid policy. This three-month measure has now been lifted thanks to greater transparency from China, including increased data on "testing, vaccination and genomic sequencing results" relating to the country's domestic disease levels.
The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) also reported that the Covid variants seen in China "continue to be the same as those already circulating in the UK." The Chinese Centre for Disease Control and Prevention stated that all regions had passed their infection peak.
The UK Health Security Agency's voluntary on-arrival testing programme of travellers from China to Heathrow airport has also come to an end. This temporary testing programme was implemented in January to improve Covid surveillance of travellers from China and to detect potential new variants. During this time, an average of 99 people per flight were tested, totalling 3,374 passengers. 14 positive cases were identified, but none was deemed to be a variant of concern.
From Friday, 17 March, passengers aged 18 or over travelling from mainland China and arriving at Heathrow Airport will no longer be invited to take a voluntary test on arrival. The DHSC stated that the ending of this enhanced surveillance is in line with international partners such as the EU, who are reducing border measures to monitor new variants from China. However, officials also said the government would maintain contingency measures to "enable detection, and swift and proportionate action, for potential new harmful variants" should the need arise.
In December 2020, the UK government confirmed that passengers arriving in England from China would have to provide a negative Covid test before they boarded their flights. At the time, the Chinese government was reporting around 5,000 cases a day, but analysts believed the numbers were vastly undercounted and that the daily caseload could have been closer to one million. Other countries around the world, such as the US, France, and India, also implemented testing.
Although the decision only affects English airports, the government has assured the devolved administrations that the policy will be applied UK-wide. It is worth noting that there are currently no direct flights from China to Scotland, Wales, or Northern Ireland.
In January, China reopened its borders to international visitors for the first time since it imposed travel restrictions in March 2020. Officials declared later that month that the country's current wave of Covid-19 infections was "coming to an end." China's National Health Commission stopped publishing data on Covid cases and deaths on 25 December after the relaxation of its zero-Covid policy and declared a "decisive victory" over the pandemic in February.
It is hoped that the lifting of this testing requirement will help to facilitate travel between China and the UK. The UK government is continuing to monitor the situation and will maintain measures to protect public health, should they be required in the future.
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