The UAE has been added to the UK’s “red list”…

The UK has extended its travel ban, adding the UAE to the list of countries on its “red list”. From Friday January 29, 1pm UK time, direct travel between the UAE and UK will be suspended.

All non-British travellers from the UAE or who’ve transited through through the UAE will be denied entry to the UK.

The ban does not apply to British and Irish nationals, or passengers with UK residency rights, who may return via indirect flights. These passengers will be required to quarantine at home for 10 days, and must present a negative PCR test and completed passenger locator form before arrival.

UK-UAE travel ban

Emirates Airline has updated its website to say: “Currently, we’re not operating flights from Dubai (DXB) to London Heathrow (LHR)”. A statement on the Etihad website reads: “From 1pm (GMT) on 29 January, all flights to the UK will be suspended. If your plans have been affected, we’ll keep your ticket open for you to book whenever you’re ready. You don’t have to contact us straight away to change your flight.”

In announcing the ban on Twitter, Transport Secretary Grant Shapps said that the ban also included flights from Burundi and Rwanda.

The Department of Transport said: “The decision to ban travel from these destinations follows the discovery of a new coronavirus variant first identified in South Africa, which may have spread to other countries, including the UAE, Burundi and Rwanda. Any exemptions usually in place will not apply, including for business travel.”

Earlier in the month, the UAE was removed from the UK travel corridor, which had allowed for quarantine-free travel between the two countries.

In response, the UAE has announced that it will extend the visit visas of any British travellers who are effected by the UK flight ban for free. Direct passenger flights between the UK and the UAE will be suspended, as of 1pm (UK time) Friday January 29 .

The UAE continues to ramp up its testing and vaccination drives, as a sharp rise in cases has been recorded in the first month of 2021. From January 1, the number of new daily cases has roughly trebled, rising by 80,000 to 289,000 in total.

Wam news agency reported that the UAE is committed to maintaining “its role as an important travel and logistics hub while adhering to the highest standards of health and safety.”