The UK Government announced their new public health measures for all UK arrivals at the UK border.
With that announcement came the confirmation of a small exemption list that includes those working on offshore installations (oil and gas, and offshore wind) and those supporting such operations (e.g. helicopter transport, mariners).
Some of the specifics taken from the list of exemptions guidance are:
- “a worker undertaking activities in offshore installations, upstream petroleum infrastructure, critical safety work on offshore installations and wells that are being decommissioned or which are being preserved pending demolition or reuse or activities for the provision of workers, goods, materials or equipment or in the provision of other essential services required to support the safe operation of activities”
- “a worker with specialist technical skills, where those specialist technical skills are required for essential or emergency works to ensure the continued safe and secure operations of the following infrastructure: gas and electricity transmission and distribution networks and system operators, gas terminals and space infrastructure”
- “seamen and masters”
- “crew, as defined in paragraph 1 of Schedule 1 to the Air Navigation Order 2016(h), where such crew have travelled to the UK in the course of their work”
- “a person engaged in operational, maintenance or safety activities of a downstream oil facility that has a capacity in excess of 20,000 tonnes”
- “a person who resides in the UK and who pursues an activity as an employed or self-employed person in another country to which they usually go at least once a week”
Workers who enter the country will need to be carrying a letter explaining why they are exempt. Visit the Government website for the full exemption list.
