DUE to concerns regarding the new COVID-19 variant, airline passengers travelling to the U.S. from the United Kingdom are required to test negative within 72 hours of departure, by order of the Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
The decision was a turnaround after the Trump administration told U.S. airlines that it was not planning to require any testing for arriving UK passengers.
With the new requirement to take effect on Monday (Dec 28, 2020), the decision follows the emergence of a highly infectious new COVID-19 variant in Britain that has prompted many countries to shut their borders to travellers from there.
The CDC noted that in March, President Donald Trump suspended entry of nearly all foreign nationals who visited the United Kingdom in the past 14 days, which has reduced air travel to the U.S. from Britain by about 90%.
Under the new policy, passengers departing from the UK for the United States must provide written documentation of their laboratory test result (in hard copy or electronic) to the airline, the CDC said.
Airlines must confirm negative test results for all passengers before they board. If passengers choose not to take a test, the airline must deny boarding. – Dec 25, 2020
