Travelling to the UK

Quarantine and accommodation

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, on 15 February 2021 the UK government brought into force new restrictions on travel to the UK, including refusing entry to the UK for travellers from certain countries and mandatory 10-day quarantine and testing for all others unless travelling from the Common Travel Area.

The university has already made adaptations to learning and teaching for students studying in the 2020-21 academic year and our advice is to continue to engage remotely with online learning until further notice and avoid unnecessary travel to the UK. If you are experiencing unforeseen or difficult circumstances and do need to travel to the UK, we advise that you email our international student advisers on internationaladvice@brighton.ac.uk who will be able to help advise on your individual circumstances.

Quarantine accommodation if travelling from a red list country where travel to the UK is currently banned

The UK government is maintaining a travel ban on a red list of countries. If you have been in or through any of the countries on the list you will not be allowed entry to the UK. You should check this list before you make any travel plans as it will be updated regularly.

There is an exception for British nationals, Irish nationals and those who have residence rights in the UK. You have residence rights in the UK if you have indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR), Pre-Settled or Settled Status, a long-term visa or residence permit such as a Student visa. If you come under this exception you will be able to travel to the UK from a red-list country, but you will have to enter and pay for mandatory hotel quarantine for ten days upon entry to the UK. If you would like advice on whether you can travel to the UK and if so what form of quarantine you will need to undertake you can email our international student advisers on internationaladvice@brighton.ac.uk and they can help you.

You will be required to quarantine in a government managed hotel for the duration of your 10-day quarantine period. You can find out more about how to book a Quarantine package on the UK government website. 

Quarantine accommodation if travelling from a country where travel to the UK is not currently banned

If you are going to be living in university halls of residence you will be able to quarantine in your permanent room but you will need to book a room through us. This is the case even if you will be arriving in the UK after the start of your contract. This is because we need to make arrangements for your arrival, including arranging food and bedding for the 10 days.

If you have been living in halls and will be returning to the UK we do ask that you use the booking system to tell us your arrival date so halls staff can be informed. You will need to make your own arrangements for food to be delivered and we can advise on supermarket deliveries, but during lockdown these can get booked up a long time in advance, so make sure you make arrangements in good time before you travel.

Students who are planning to stay in private accommodation can quarantine there provided they can meet the government advice on self-isolation.  If you will not be able to safely quarantine in your own private accommodation you can book a room through us in university managed halls.

Please note – we need 72 hours’ notice to arrange your booking so make sure you allow for this when you make your arrangements.

What to do before you travel and when you arrive at the airport in the UK

UK border control

What you need to do before you travel and when you arrive in the UK will vary depending on where you are travelling from.

Travel to the UK from a country not banned from entry to the UK

If you are travelling to the UK from a country that is not currently subject to a travel ban you are still required to quarantine for 10 days on arrival in the UK and you can supply details of your own quarantine accommodation including halls of residence. Full details are on the UK Government website.

• You must have proof of a valid negative coronavirus test which you took in the 3 days before the departure of your journey to the UK
• You will need to pre-book and pay £210 for a travel test package which includes COVID-19 tests: one to be taken on or before day 2 and the second on or after day 8 of your period of quarantine
• You must complete a Passenger Locator Form within 48 hours before you arrive in the UK confirming your negative test result and your quarantine address for your travel test package to be sent
• You can still opt into and pay for the Test to Release scheme

The Common Travel Area is an agreement between the UK, Jersey, Guernsey, the Isle of Mann and the Republic of Ireland which allows free movement between countries, if you have remained in the CTA for the full 10 days before travelling to the UK you do not need to take a test.

Travel to the UK from a country banned from entry to the UK

If you are travelling to the UK from a country on the red list of travel ban countries and have been in or through any of the countries on the list in the previous 10 days you will not be allowed entry to the UK, check this list before you make any travel plans as it will be updated regularly.

There is an exception for British nationals, Irish nationals and those who have residence rights in the UK. You have residence rights in the UK if you have indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR), Pre-Settled or Settled Status, a long-term visa or residence permit such as a Student visa. If you come under this exception you will be able to travel to the UK from a red-list country, but you will have to enter and pay for mandatory hotel quarantine for ten days upon entry to the UK. If you would like advice on whether you can travel to the UK and if so what form of quarantine you will need to undertake you can email our international student advisers on internationaladvice@brighton.ac.uk and they can help you.

The following rules will apply before and when you arrive in the UK:

• You must have proof of a valid negative coronavirus test, which you took in the 3 days before the departure of your journey to the UK
• You will need to pre-book and agree to pay the £1,750 fee for a 10-day period of quarantine in a managed quarantine hotel through one of the approved ports of entry, transport to your hotel will be provided
• You must complete a Passenger Locator Form within 48 hours before you arrive in the UK confirming your negative test result and your quarantine package reference
• Take a test on or before day 2 and on or after day 8 of your quarantine, the tests will be provided in your quarantine package
• You cannot use the Test to Release scheme when you arrive in the UK

If you do need to travel please read the instructions on the UK government website carefully because if you break the quarantine rules or do not provide accurate details about the countries you have visited in the 10 days before you travel you could be fined up to £10,000 or imprisoned for up to 10 years or both. Contact our international student advisors on internationaladvice@brighton.ac.uk and they can give you advice on your own personal circumstances.

Additional requirements

You will also need your passport or identity card to enter the UK. If you are from the EEA or Switzerland from the 1 October 2021 you will not be able to use your identity card unless you have settled or pre-settled status under the EU Settlement Scheme or have an EU Settlement Scheme family permit.

You may also need a visa depending on the reason for your visit to the UK.

Make sure you read the UK government guidance on this in advance and be prepared.

Returning to the UK for visa compliance reasons

If you need to return to the UK to satisfy the conditions of a EU Settlement Scheme application or a Graduate Route visa then please check our Brexit pages for further guidance. You should also contact our international student advisers on internationaladvice@brighton.ac.uk who will be able to advise you.

Registering with the UK police

After arriving, students from some countries are required to register with the police within seven days of arrival. If you need to register, this should be written on your visa or Biometric Residence Permit as ‘Police Registration’ or ‘Pol Registration’. In some cases it may only written on the decision letter you received from the Home Office when the supporting documents from your visa application were returned to you, so please do check this as well.

We arrange group police registration sessions for new students. For more information and to book a place on a session visit our Police Registration page.

Visit the Sussex Police website for all information on police registration.

Getting to the University of Brighton

The University of Brighton is based in two cities - make sure you have checked whether your course is based in Brighton or Eastbourne before you leave your home country so that you know which you need to travel to once you arrive in the UK. If you're not sure, you can check with your academic school.

Brighton

Three of our campuses are in the city of Brighton.

• Falmer campus
• City campus
• Moulsecoomb campus

Here is a map of our Brighton campuses.

Eastbourne

The Eastbourne campus is based at two places in the town.

Here is a map of our Eastbourne campus.

If you have not booked quarantine accommodation and transport with us, you should make your own arrangements to travel to the University of Brighton. If you are required to quarantine on arrival in the UK, the rules state that should only use public transport if you have no other option.

There are a number of taxi companies providing an airport collection service, so you may wish to do your own research. Some local companies are:

• Streamline Taxis
• City Cabs Brighton

You can get to Brighton and Eastbourne by train or coach from the airport.

Check the departure times for transport from your airport:

• Train – National Rail
• Coach – National Express

It is compulsory to wear a mask or face covering in shops and on public transport in the UK unless you have an exemption. So please make sure you have one with you.

Once you've made it to Brighton or Eastbourne, you'll need to consider your onward travel to your accommodation. Check which train or bus stop your accommodation is nearest to, alternatively if you have a lot of luggage with you, it might be easiest to take a taxi to your accommodation.

Arrival at your accommodation

If you have a place in University of Brighton halls of residence or managed accommodation, our accommodation team will have sent you information about what to do when you arrive at your accommodation.

If you have any questions about your accommodation please contact accommodation@brighton.ac.uk.

Contacting home

Once you have arrived at your new home, you might like to call your friends and family to let them know you have arrived safely.

Now that you're in the UK you will need to use the international dialling code for the country you are calling in order to get through.

Find out the international dialling code for your country.

If you do not wish to use your mobile phone to call, our halls of residence have pay phones on site that you can use.

Find out more about living in the UK before you get here.

Find out more about what the start of the academic year will look like at Belong at Brighton.