Foreign Office advises against non-essential travel to Jamaica

Change in guidance will invalidate most travel insurance

Montego Bay, Jamaica

The UK’s Foreign Office (FCDO) has updated its guidance to advise against all non-essential travel to Jamaica.

The advice was changed on Saturday, and means many holidaymakers will find their travel insurance is now invalidated during a trip there.

The new advice was issued due to the “current assessment of Covid-19 risks” in Jamaica.

The FCDO advisories are separate from the Department for Transport’s (DfT) traffic light lists, which assign countries a colour of red, amber or green with corresponding travel restrictions depending on the risk of inbound arrivals reimporting coronavirus infections into the UK, particularly virus variants of concern.

Instead, the FCDO assesses the risks to the traveller of falling ill while abroad, as well as other threats in terms of security, health and natural disasters.

Despite fears it would turn red in the government’s last travel review on 26 August, Jamaica remained in the amber category.

It means that travellers fully vaccinated in the UK, EU and US – with two jabs of the same vaccine having been administered at least 14 days prior – plus under 18s can dodge quarantine on return to the UK.

They must instead take a PCR test within two days of arrival.

Unvaccinated travellers are required to self-isolate for 10 days and take a second PCR on day eight of quarantine, with arrivals in England having the option to pay for a third, day-five test, to escape early.

All travellers, regardless of vaccination status, must present a negative Covid test before departure for the UK.

It follows the news that the FCDO has lifted its blanket advisory against all non-essential travel to Italy.

It withdrew the former warning due to “the current assessment of Covid-19 risks”.

The lifting of the travel advisory means holidaymakers should be covered by their travel insurance when taking a trip to Italy – most policies are invalidated if the FCDO advises against travelling to a certain destination.