Spain has announced stricter entry rules as of December 1: people from the United Kingdom and Northern Ireland will only be permitted entry if they have been fully vaccinated against Covid-19, and not with negative tests or proof of having overcome the disease.
This new rule has been announced by the Ministry of the Interior, and it affects not only the UK specifically, but the same restriction also applies for all non-essential trips from third countries to the European Union and Schengen associated countries for reasons of public order and public health - the document was published this Saturday in the BOE (the original document is published only in Spanish).
There are however some countries outside the EU that are excepted from this new rule: Argentina, Australia, Bahrain, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Indonesia, Jordan, Kuwait, New Zealand, Peru, Qatar, Rwanda, Saudi Arabia, South Korea, Emirates United Arab Emirates, Uruguay and China, in addition to the regions of Hong Kong and Macao and Taiwan.
This new rule will be in effect from 1 December 2021, until 31 December 2021.
According to Fernando Grande-Marlaska, the Spanish Minister of Interior: "The appearance of new variants at this time forces us to increase travel restrictions", explaining why Spain has temporarily decided to suppress entry for travellers proceeding from the United Kingdom and Northern Ireland, who were arriving with negative tests or documents as proof of recovery from the disease.