UK considers quarantine exemption for Aussies, announces new visa deal

Australians could be exempt from proposed UK quarantine measures in a bid to kickstart the travel industry, as Britain also offered a visa reprieve.

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Australians may be exempt from a proposed 14-day quarantine on entry into the United Kingdom, under plans being debated by Boris Johnson’s MPs.

The success of Australia’s containment of coronavirus, where only 100 people have died, has been hailed as a sign that it would be safe for Britain to allow Australians more travel rights.

News Corp understands that there has been debate in the UK cabinet about whether to give Australian travellers a free pass as some MPs want to help kickstart the travel industry.

Some were strongly of the view that Australia should be granted an exemption, while others did not want to add confusion into the system.

Australia’s Tourism Minister Simon Birmingham said that there were no plans to ease Australia’s border restrictions. Picture: AAP

Australia’s Tourism Minister Simon Birmingham told the News Corp that there were no plans to ease Australia’s border restrictions.

“We welcome any recognition that Australia has led the world in the successful containment of COVID-19, which clearly means that travellers coming from Australia would pose a low risk to the rest of the world,” he said.

“However, transmission from overseas continues to present a risk to Australia’s ongoing suppression of COVID-19 and restrictions on travel in and out of Australia will remain for the foreseeable future.”

A decision on when the UK’s quarantine would start was likely next month, with a review every three weeks.

France had been hoping for a quarantine exemption, even releasing a statement saying that it

was likely until it was later quashed by No. 10 Downing Street.

The UK has lost more than 35,000 people to coronavirus, according to official figures, although the real figure was likely to be more than 44,000 deaths.

Australia’s success in containing coronavirus has been attributed to a travel ban on flights from China, put in place in January, after Wuhan announced its lockdown.

Qantas has been running two flights a week between London and Australia to get people home during the COVID-19 pandemic. Picture: AFP

A ban on Australians leaving the country was put in place on March 24.

Qantas has been running two flights a week between London and Australia to get people home.

The aircraft have been mainly flying to the UK empty, except for travellers on official government business or sanctioned activities.

It was understood that only travellers on those two flights via Perth, would qualify for a quarantine exemption under the UK plan.

Qatar was also offering flights via Doha, with Heathrow Airport starting to pick up some flights after being effectively shut down during lockdown.

Britain has been desperately trying to get travel going again.

Grant Schapps, the UK’s transport secretary, floated the idea of “air bridges” between the UK and some countries, including Greece, which was later dismissed.

The UK was talking about bringing in two-week quarantines in June, while Australia put in place enforced quarantines in March.

Ryanair boss Michael O’Leary, whose low cost carrier has received $1.1 billion in government aid, has attacked the quarantine plan.

He suggested that travellers wear masks as a precaution against COVID-19 but also rejected plans to reduce capacity.

The airline wanted to resume flights in July so people in Europe could have a late summer holiday.

Budget airline EasyJet announced plans to put on limited flights from June 15.

NEW VISA CHANGE FOR AUSSIES IN THE UK

Exclusive: Australians wanting to work in London have been thrown a coronavirus lifeline, with a new deal to extend visas.

The UK government will allow Australians who had already signed up for a Tier 5 visa, allocated for people in their 20s, to delay their arrival for up to a year.

The deal, which was brokered following lobbying from the Australian High Commission in London, means that Australians’ UK dreams will not be cut short.

Travel bans on people leaving Australia meant many of those who had already signed up for a visa feared their two-year stay in the UK would be crimped.

Under the deal, a person who had a visa due to start in May 2020, could delay its start date until May 2021 without penalty.

The two-year clock would start once they had arrived and picked up their British residency permit.

London here we come. Australians who had already signed up for a Tier 5 visa before the COVID-19 outbreak can now delay their arrival for up to a year.

George Brandis, Australia’s High Commissioner to the UK, said the deferral would make a difference to people’s travel plans.

“It’s a great rite of passage for young Australians to live and work in the UK and enjoy its wonderful lifestyle and institutions,” he said.

“That’s why we are very pleased the UK Government are allowing a deferral of 30-day entry windows for Tier 5 visa holders in light of the COVID-19 situation.

“It speaks to the warmth of feeling between our two countries.”

More than 45,000 Australians receive a Tier 5 working holiday visa each year.

Australia and the UK have become closer under Prime Minister Boris Johnson.

A new free trade deal was among the first four that the UK will sign once Brexit has been finalised, with negotiations with the European Union still ongoing.

Any trade deal may include more flexibility for young Australians moving to the UK, with plans under consideration to allow them to split up their time in London.

George Brandis, High Commissioner to the UK, says the new visa deal “speaks to the warmth of feeling between our two countries.” Picture: AAP

A young worker would be able to spend a year in the UK, return to Australia and then come back at a later stage to use up the final year of their two-year allocation.

Under current rules the two-year visa can only be used once, and any unused time was lost.

Thousands of Australians fled the UK when the coronavirus hit, with London being the epicentre of the outbreak with more than 5000 deaths.

More than two million Brits have applied for unemployment benefits as the hospitality industry remains shut under lockdown restrictions.

However, Australians were still likely to be in demand in the UK, particularly those with nursing or medical backgrounds.

To apply for a delay, Australian with a Tier 5 visa must email [e-mail], with the subject line REPLACEMENT 30 DAY VISA.

The email must include their name, nationality, date of birth and GWF reference number.

[e-mail]

Originally published as UK considers quarantine exemption for Aussies, announces new visa deal