Guidance

Managed quarantine: what to expect

Updated 3 October 2021

This guidance was withdrawn on 21 March 2022

This guidance has been withdrawn, reflecting the removal of all COVID-19 international travel restrictions for passengers entering the UK from Friday 18 March 2022.

For more information, see Travel to England from another country during coronavirus (COVID-19).

Applies to England

Quarantine is a key part of our fight against coronavirus (COVID-19).

This is a guide for citizens, residents and visa holders who are travelling to England and have been in a red list country in the 10 days before they arrive. See separate guidance if you need to quarantine at home after arriving in England from a country not on the red list.

You will need to quarantine for 10 days in a managed quarantine hotel and take 2 coronavirus (COVID-19) tests.

Support is available to help you quarantine safely, and to make your stay as pleasant as possible. Please follow the advice and directions given by the hotel and security staff. Many of the rules in place for your stay, including mandatory testing, are legal requirements. If you do not follow quarantine rules, there may be consequences, including fixed penalty notices. This document is to support you quarantine. You will find a list of contacts at the end.

Quarantine measures will reduce the risk of a new variant of the virus being transmitted from someone coming into the UK, protecting the UK’s vaccination programme.

You are required to quarantine for 10 days because this is how long it can take to develop the infection after being exposed (the incubation period). While you are quarantining you will be tested on day 2 and again on day 8. Even if these test results are negative, there is still a risk that you will develop COVID-19 during the period of quarantine even if you feel well and have no symptoms.

1. Travel

Before you travel you must:

1. Take a COVID-19 test and get a negative result during the 3 days before you travel. You must take the test in the 3 days before the service on which you will arrive in England departs. For example, if you travel directly to England on Friday, you must take the test on the Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday.

2. Book a managed quarantine hotel where you will quarantine. Your quarantine package will include your managed quarantine hotel, food and drink, quarantine transfers and your travel test package for COVID-19 on day 2 and day 8 of quarantine. You will need to book, and pay for, a quarantine package before you complete your passenger locator form and board your return journey to the UK. You will only be able to book this within the two weeks prior to arriving in the UK.

3. Complete a passenger locator form with details of where you will quarantine when you arrive. You must provide a quarantine package invoice number to complete your passenger locator form.

It is the law that you must wear a face covering when travelling in England on public transport, including on aircraft and in ports.

Only certain airports are designated for managed quarantine arrivals and it is your responsibility to make sure you are travelling to one of these. Your carrier will deny you boarding if you are travelling to a port which cannot receive passengers from ‘red list’ countries.

Before you board your plane to the UK, your passenger locator form will be checked by your carrier. This must include your quarantine package invoice number. If it does not and you can show no other evidence of having booked a package, your carrier will deny you boarding.

If something prevents you from booking in advance of arrival, you will be able to do so at the airport through the online portal or by phone. However, you may face penalties and sanctions if you do not book a quarantine package in advance or attempt to conceal that you have been in a travel ban country.

2. Your 10-day quarantine calendar

Arrival day	Action
day 0	Arrive in the UK (this runs until midnight of the day you land in the UK)
day 1	This starts at 0.01 am on the first day after you arrive in the UK
day 2	Take a COVID-19 test (for variant surveillance). You should receive your test result within 48 hours
day 3
day 4
day 5
day 6
day 7
day 8	Take a COVID-19 test. You should receive your test result within 48 hours
day 9
day 10
departure day	You can leave quarantine when you have completed 10 full days of quarantine and received a negative result to the test you took on day 8 provided you remain well

3. Getting to the hotel

We will meet you at passport control and guide you through baggage reclaim and customs to the dedicated hotel transport. Please follow the signs and instructions you are given at all times.

If you have a car parked at the airport, you will need to extend your parking period and pay the additional charges. If you need assistance with this, ask for that once you get to your hotel.

You will need to wear face coverings at all times (unless exempt). A member of staff will make a note of where everyone is sitting on the bus, so that if someone later tests positive for COVID-19, NHS Test and Trace will be able to identify who has been in close contact.

Your transport and hotel will be wheelchair accessible.

The transfer should take no more than 90 minutes and will normally be much quicker.

4. What to expect at your hotel

Every managed quarantine hotel has clear procedures to reduce the risks of COVID-19.

As you check in you will see the hand sanitiser stations and signs to support social distancing. Keep 2 metres apart from people you are not travelling with.

We have followed clinical advice and introduced measures that will not be immediately visible. Rooms will be left empty for 3 days and deep cleaned between each guest, and the air conditioning will not ‘recirculate’ air between rooms. Hotel and security staff will also be tested regularly for COVID-19.

Hotel and security staff will wear face coverings at all times. You must also wear a face covering when you check-in and at all times when you leave your room.

5. Check-in

You will be spending the next 10 days in your room. Every room has a television and wifi and facilities to make tea and coffee. The ensuite bathroom will already be equipped with basic toiletries. Hotel staff will not enter the room while you are staying, and so there will be some disposable cleaning products available. There will be a laundry service if you need to have clothes washed.

The hotel’s ‘welcome pack’ will provide specific information about hotel services.

Before you travel, you may want to check you’ve packed everything you’ll need, including face coverings, medication (over the counter medicines such as paracetamol and prescription medicines including inhalers), technology accessories (including plugs and adaptors), books and other entertainment, comfort items (including ear plugs) and spare glasses, contact lenses and solution. If you forget anything you can receive personal packages for delivery to you at the hotel – security staff will bring packages to your door. You should not order anything that presents a health and safety risk.

You must not leave your room except in exceptional circumstances (such as an emergency) or with explicit permission from the security staff.

Family and friends cannot visit you while you are staying in quarantine. You are not allowed any visitors and should not allow anyone else into your room, nor can you visit anyone else in the hotel.

You can quarantine with the people you travelled with and hotels will prioritise allocating larger or connecting rooms to families. . However, if you are quarantining with others in interconnected rooms, you will be considered one room if one of the people in the room tests positive.

6. Preventing the spread of COVID-19 while in the hotel

The main way of spreading COVID-19 is through close contact with an infected person. When someone with COVID-19 breathes, speaks, coughs or sneezes, they release particles (droplets and aerosols) containing the virus that causes COVID-19. These particles can be breathed in by another person.

Surfaces and belongings can also be contaminated with COVID-19, when people who are infected cough or sneeze near them or if they touch them.

Maintain good hygiene at all times, by washing your hands frequently and covering your nose and mouth when coughing or sneezing.

You should wear a face covering (unless you are exempt) if you are outside of your room under permitted circumstances. Single use face coverings can be disposed of in the waste bin. Cloth face coverings should be washed regularly following the washing instructions for the fabric. Guidance on face coverings is available.

All contractors have been instructed to ensure their facilities and services are provided in a COVID-secure way, including plastic shields and personal protective equipment (PPE) where necessary. Due to the importance of adequate ventilation, hotel air conditioning systems must not recirculate air. For those without air conditioning, they must provide adequate natural ventilation.

Full board is provided as part of your quarantine package.

You will be provided with 3 meals a day, tea, coffee, fresh fruit, water and soft drinks. The hotel will provide menus so you can choose what you want to eat and you will be able to let them know if you have any dietary requirements (including vegetarian, vegan, halal and kosher) or allergies. Meals will be delivered to just outside your door for contact free delivery.

You can order additional food and drink from the hotel’s 24-hour room service menu, and you can order food and drinks yourself (for example, pizza or other takeaway) to be delivered to the hotel main reception. Please drink responsibly while in quarantine. Staff will try to bring the items to you in a timely manner.

7. Look after your mental and physical wellbeing

Quarantine can be difficult, frustrating and lonely and you may feel low.

Remember to take care of your mind as well as your body and get support if you need it. There are many sources of support and information, such as guidance on looking after your mental health and wellbeing and on supporting children and young people.

Every Mind Matters provides simple tips and advice to take better care of your mental health.

Things that you can do to help make your quarantine easier:

• keep in touch with friends and family over the phone or through social media
• look for online classes or courses that can help you take light exercise in your room
• think about things you can do with your time, such as reading and watching films
• try to eat healthy, well-balanced meals and drink enough water

8. Exercise

You will not as a matter of course be allowed outside to exercise during your stay. In very special circumstances, with specific permission from onsite security staff and where there is an appropriate and safe space to go, you may be able to leave your room for brief periods to go outside for exercise. If this is permitted you will be escorted and supervised by security staff at all times. You will need to wear a face covering and to follow social distancing guidelines. Families with children and people with specific medical needs will be prioritised. If you think you have such a need you should notify the hotel on arrival. You should exercise in your room where possible.

Smoking is not permitted in your room. Needing to smoke is not a reason to go outside. If you are a smoker, you are likely to need nicotine replacement products. You should order nicotine substitute products to your hotel. Smoking or using alcohol to cope in times of stress and disruption can make things worse, including your mental health.

9. You will carry out 2 COVID-19 tests during your quarantine period – if you receive a positive result to your day 2 test, you do not need to take your day 8 test

You will need to take a COVID-19 test on or before day 2. This first test is designed to help identify any potentially harmful variants of coronavirus at the earliest opportunity. You will not be allowed to shorten your quarantine period if you receive a negative test result, as you may still develop COVID-19. You will also need to take a COVID-19 test on or after day 8.

Children aged 4 and under will not be required to take the day 2 or day 8 test.

The hotel staff will leave the test kits outside your hotel door. The kits come with full instructions and there is more information including video demonstrations online. You will need to register an NHS Test and Trace test kit online, or by calling 119. Please take the test promptly, completing the sheet with your personal details, they will be collected by hotel security. If you do not take the tests you may face a penalty of up to £2,000 and have your quarantine stay extended.

You will normally receive your test results 48 hours after taking the test. If your NHS Test and Trace test result does not arrive within 48 hours you should call 119. If you receive an inconclusive test result, you will need to take a replacement test. If this was your day 8 test, you will need to stay in quarantine until you receive a negative test result.

If your COVID-19 test is positive, you will be sent further information on what to do. This will include speaking to someone at NHS Test and Trace to identify other people you have been in close contact with and medical support, if you need it.

A positive test result will also mean that you have to extend your stay in quarantine to avoid passing the infection on to other people.

If you receive a positive test result on day 2, you must quarantine immediately and continue for 10 days. The day of the test counts as day 0. If you are in quarantine with people you have travelled with, they will also need to quarantine for 10 further days. If you receive a positive result for your day 2 test, you will not be required to take any further tests. However, people you are staying with will need to take a day 8 test test if they have received a negative result from their day 2 test and have not developed symptoms. Anyone who develops symptoms should book a free test through NHS Test and Trace. If you receive a positive test result on day 8 you will be required to quarantine for 10 further days.

To extend your stay you will need to phone Corporate Travel Management (CTM) on +44 (0)20 7429 9983 to book the additional days in quarantine. You will not need to pay for your extended stay.

You will not be able to end your managed quarantine early through the Test to Release scheme.

You should avoid close contact with others and phone hotel reception to order an additional (free) test if you develop one or more of the main COVID-19 symptoms at any point, even day 9 or 10:

• a high temperature
• a new, continuous cough
• you’ve lost your sense of smell or taste or it’s changed

10. If you need medicine or medical attention

If you need medical help now, but it’s not an emergency, you should contact your GP (if you have a smartphone, tablet or computer you can go online and complete an online consultation, or you can phone and request a telephone/video appointment). If you are not registered with a GP or they are unable to offer a remote appointment or you are unsure who to contact about an urgent health care matter, a local primary care team will support. Your hotel reception team will have contact details for 24 hours a day, 7 days a week service.

If you need prescription medicines and can order a prescription online or over the phone from your regular GP, the hotel concierge has information about the nearest nominated pharmacy. You should advise your GP of the name of your nearest nominated pharmacy and the hotel concierge will arrange delivery or collection of your prescription. If you are not registered with a GP, the local primary care team can support any need for prescription medication. The hotel reception team can provide you with the relevant local contact details.

If you have any concerns about being in a quarantine hotel on health or wellbeing grounds, you can raise this with a healthcare professional through one of the routes above. This will help us to make sure we can meet your needs and provide appropriate support during your time in quarantine. In the most exceptional cases, you may be allowed to quarantine in an alternative location.

In a medical emergency, phone 999. This is when someone is seriously ill or injured and their life is at risk. You should tell them that you are at a managed quarantine hotel so that the emergency healthcare staff can wear appropriate PPE. You should also phone the hotel reception to inform them that you have called for emergency help. This will facilitate a swift response.

11. Leaving quarantine

You will be able to leave quarantine when you have received a negative result from your day 8 test and have quarantined for 10 full days. You can leave the hotel any time after midnight of day 10. Your quarantine package includes a transfer back to the airport, which will run the following morning.

You will need to show hotel security staff your negative test result notification before leaving. The hotel security team will arrange a time to check your test result. If you do not produce your test result on request by the security staff, you will not be permitted to leave managed quarantine and this may result in an extension of your stay.

If you receive a positive result from either of your tests, you will not be able to leave managed quarantine until you have quarantined for 10 days beginning the day after the test was taken, and you no longer have COVID-19 symptoms. The day of the test counts as day 0.

If, despite a negative test on day 8, you develop new COVID-19 symptoms on day 9 or day 10, you need to take another COVID-19 test and remain until you know the test result.

12. Compassionate or medical leave

You can request permission to leave quarantine for a limited period if a close family member or member of your household is dying. You can also request permission to leave quarantine to attend a funeral - this would be limited to the day of the funeral or, in exceptional circumstances where it is not possible to travel to the funeral and back within one day, it may be possible to receive exemption (with restrictions) to stay overnight elsewhere if you cannot stay in a nearby managed quarantine facility.

You will need permission from security staff. This will include agreeing a specific time with the hotel for returning to your room. You should not use public transport.

If visiting a healthcare or residential setting, the healthcare or residential setting would need to be notified in advance and they should confirm they are content to the security staff in the hotel at the time of being given permission.

12.1 Visiting someone who is dying

If you are permitted to leave to visit a close family member or member of your household who is dying, you should:

• wear a face covering (in some specific circumstances this may need to be a surgical-grade Type IIR face mask)
• wash your hands regularly
• keep distance and follow social contact rules

It is recommended that visits are limited to a single visit on one day.

12.2 Attending a funeral

If you are permitted to leave to attend the funeral of a close family member or member of your household, you should follow the general guidance on attending funerals. You should:

• advise the funeral venue manager and other mourners in advance that you are in your quarantine period
• take extra care to maintain distance and following social contact rules
• wear a face covering to minimise any risk of viral transmission from yourself to others (in some specific circumstances this may need to be a surgical-grade Type IIR face mask)

12.3 Attending a medical appointment

You may also be permitted to leave quarantine to attend a medical appointment if it is necessary and cannot be carried out remotely. You will need to return to the hotel when the appointment has finished. You will need permission from designated security staff to ensure that the arrangements minimise the public health risks.

If you are permitted to leave, you will need to be careful to wear a face covering, wash your hands regularly and maintain social distancing from other people. You should avoid using public transport if possible, and you have to return to the hotel on the same day.

If you have any concerns about being in a quarantine hotel on health or wellbeing grounds, you can raise this with a healthcare professional after check-in under the arrangements described in section 10. If they conclude that there would be very substantial detriment to your health and wellbeing from remaining in hotel quarantine you may be allowed to quarantine in an alternative location.

13. How to provide feedback

In the first place, you should ask questions of the hotel or security staff – they will be able to address most practical issues about your hotel room and services. Hotel staff will be able to escalate your concerns if necessary.

If you need further help or want to make a formal complaint please contact mqs.complaints@dhsc.gov.uk.

14. Who to contact

14.1 Emergencies

For emergencies call 999. When you call 999 you must tell the operator that you are in a managed quarantine facility. You must also immediately inform the hotel that you have done this so they can help you.

For general queries on COVID-19 including about testing, call 119.

For medical issues that are not an emergency, contact your GP practice in the first instance or the local primary care team (contact details are available at the hotel reception).

A mental health emergency is not different to a physical health emergency. If you need help for a mental health crisis, emergency or breakdown, seek immediate advice. Urgent mental health support is available to adults and children any time of day, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Find your local NHS helpline by searching for your postcode or home town in the service finder.

If you have an urgent dental need, please phone the local primary care team (contact details are available at the hotel reception).

14.2 Addiction services

Smoking or using drugs or alcohol to cope in times of stress and disruption can make things worse, including your mental health.

Visit Smokefree for information and advice on stopping smoking. One You provides advice and resources to help with cutting back on alcohol.

If you are currently in drug and alcohol treatment, you can speak to your drug and alcohol service about any concerns you have about attending appointments or getting any medication they may be prescribing to you. If you are unable to access your usual support networks, support is available from organisations such as Alcoholics Anonymous, Narcotics Anonymous, Cocaine Anonymous and Marijuana Anonymous.

14.3 CTM helpline to extend your stay

You may need to extend your stay if you or someone you are travelling with receive a positive test result, if you receive an inconclusive test result or if your test result is delayed.

Call the CTM helpline to extend your stay: +44 (0)20 7429 9983 or visit the website.

14.4 Domestic abuse

Domestic abuse or violence is a crime and should be reported to the police. If you are in immediate danger, you should call 999 and ask for the police. Further information is available. If you are in danger and unable to talk on the phone, call 999 and listen to the questions from the operator and, if you can, respond by coughing or tapping on the handset. If you are deaf or can’t verbally communicate you can register with the emergency SMS service. Text REGISTER to 999. You will get a text which tells you what to do next. Do this when it is safe so you can text when you are in danger.

In a medical emergency, call 999. This is when someone is seriously ill or injured and their life is at risk

14.5 Financial hardship

If you are concerned about your personal financial matters, or your ability to pay for your stay you can seek advice from:

• DWP Income Support: 0800 328 5644
• Citizens Advice Bureau: 0800 144 8848

If you believe you will suffer severe financial hardship if you are required to pay the full cost of your managed quarantine or testing fees before you travel, then hardship arrangements may be available to you.

You can only apply for hardship arrangements if you believe that you’re eligible.

Find out more about hardship arrangements including how to apply.

14.6 NHS Test and Trace

If you have ordered your test kits from NHS Test and Trace and need support, call 119.

14.7 Mental health

Remember to take care of your mind as well as your body and get support if you need it. There are many sources of support and information, such as guidance on looking after your mental health and wellbeing and on supporting children and young people. Every Mind Matters provides simple tips and advice to take better care of your mental health.

NHS volunteer responders are also available if you would like a telephone ‘check-in and chat’. Call 0808 196 3646 (8am to 8pm) to arrange volunteer support. You can arrange one-off support, or schedule a more regular chat.

If you are under 18 you can call Childline on 0800 1111.

The Samaritans offer a safe place for you to talk any time you like, in your own way, about what’s getting to you. Call 116 123.

14.8 If you are pregnant

If you have any concerns relating to your pregnancy, you should contact your GP or the local primary care team (contact details are available at the hotel reception).

14.9 Animals

The only animal you may have in your room is a guide or assistance animal. This will only be applicable to guests with a disability who are accompanied by a guide or assistance animal. Please contact the hotel concierge who will discuss with you what arrangements will be made.