The Hong Kong government on Friday will lift its ban on
flights from the United Kingdom and Ireland, citing a "stabilizing local
epidemic situation and the relatively satisfactory vaccination rate in the U.K.
and Ireland."
Flights from the British Isles have been banned since
December, following the detection of the more contagious U.K. variant of
Covid-19. Inbound passengers from the U.K. and Ireland will still face
"the most stringent compulsory quarantine and testing arrangements"
upon arrival in Hong Kong, which includes negative tests before departure and
upon arrival followed by a 21-day stay in a designated quarantine hotel, with
at least three tests during that period, and a final test 26 days after
arrival.
Hong Kong continues to restrict arriving passengers who
recently have stayed in what it deems "extremely high-risk" places,
including India, Brazil, South Africa, Pakistan, the Philippines and Nepal.