British nationals living in the Netherlands will still have to quarantine for at least five days when visiting friends and family in the UK this summer, despite the British government’s relaxation of the quarantine rules for locals from July 19.

The Department for Transport has confirmed that only people who were vaccinated in the UK are exempt from quarantine if they have been in an amber risk country, and that means people living in the Netherlands will still have to self isolate, even if they have been fully vaccinated.

In addition, they will also still have to pay some €200 for a compulsory coronavirus test package for during their quarantine period. In England, people can leave quarantine if they have an additional negative test after five days under the ‘test for release’ scheme, but this is not the case in Scotland.

We just want to see our families. We don’t even want to go on holiday but many of us haven’t seen our relatives for 18-24 mths which feels like a lifetime in a pandemic. We are double vaccinated and coming from countries with fewer cases so why are we excluded? https://t.co/9djaHJ90QF

— British in Europe (@BritishInEurope) July 8, 2021

According to the Guardian, a ministry spokesman said the rule is ‘only “phase one” and that work was ongoing to recognise foreign certification’.

The July changes will ‘prioritise those vaccinated in the United Kingdom,’ transport minister Grant Shapps is quoted by the paper as saying.

‘We want to welcome international visitors back to the UK and are working to extend our approach to vaccinated passengers from important markets and holiday destinations later this summer, such as the United States and the EU.’

Looking forward to the phone call when I tell my mum that my trip home in late August, the one we’ve both been dreaming of for so long, will not be possible because my double Pfizer status is different to her double Pfizer status because the doctor who did mine was Dutch.

— Alison K. Brown (@alisonkatebr) July 8, 2021