New rules for travellers returning to the UK from “red list” countries mean they will be sent to quarantine hotels for 10 days.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson and Home Secretary Priti Patel have also set out plans for tougher controls on international travel to reduce the risk of importing mutant strains.
People will also be required to fill in a form explaining why their trip is necessary, with enforcement of the ban on leisure travel stepped up at airports.
Travel corridors to the UK were suspended at 4am on January 18.
That means if you arrive in England from anywhere outside the UK, Ireland, the Channel Islands or the Isle of Man you will need to self-isolate for 10 days.
Now, people arriving from 30 destinations will be “met at the airport and transported directly into quarantine”.
Similar measures are expected across the UK, although Wales and Scotland have both indicated they could go further than Mr Johnson’s plan for England.
Here is what we know so far:
Who will have to quarantine in hotels?
The Home Office said the rules will apply to people arriving from countries where non-UK residents are already banned from entering the UK.
These 30 destinations cover all of South America, southern Africa and Portugal.
The full list is:
Angola
Argentina
Bolivia
Botswana
Brazil
Cape Verde
Chile
Colombia
Democratic Republic of Congo
Ecuador
Eswatini
French Guiana
Guyana
Lesotho
Malawi
Mauritius
Mozambique
Namibia
Panama
Paraguay
Peru
Portugal (including Madeira and the Azores)
Seychelles
South Africa
Suriname
Tanzania
Uruguay
Venezuela
Zambia
Zimbabwe
Passengers will be “met at the airport and transported directly into quarantine”, Prime Minister Boris Johnson has explained.
Senior Cabinet minister Michael Gove said a list of nations from which travellers must quarantine in hotels on arrival in the UK is to be reviewed on Thursday, January 28.
What is a valid reason for leaving the UK?
People wishing to travel abroad will also be required to make a declaration stating why they need to make the journey, which will be checked by carriers prior to departure.
Setting out more details of the measures, Home Secretary Priti Patel said: “Despite the stay-at-home regulations we are still seeing people not complying with these rules.
“The rules are clear, people should be staying at home unless they have a valid reason to leave.
“Going on holiday is not a valid reason, so we will introduce a new requirement so that people wishing to travel must first make a declaration as to why they need to travel.
“This reason for travel will be checked by carriers prior to departure.”
Travel operators are expected to face fines if they fail to inspect these forms.
Ms Patel went on to give examples of people who “should simply not be travelling”.
She said: “At St Pancras people have been turning up with their skis, that is clearly not acceptable.
“We see plenty of influencers on social media showing off about which parts of the world that they are in, mainly in sunny parts of the world.
“Going on holiday is not an exemption and it’s important that people stay at home.”
