People who can proved they’ve had Covid-19 can now travel to the Isle of Man with fewer restrictions.

The government has introduced what is calls a ’natural immunity pathway’.

It means that anyone who has had a positive PCR Covid-19 test on arriving in the Isle of Man can now be made exempt from testing by proving they’ve been infected within the previous six months.

The new immunity exemption began this morning and applies to residents and non-residents who enter this pathway on arrival.

Evidence of previous infection must be provided through PCR test confirmation, and at least 11 days must have elapsed since the previous positive result.

The exemption is applicable only to confirmed cases that have occurred within the common travel area (the UK, Republic of Ireland, the Channel Island and the Isle of Man).

The affected individual must also have remained within the common travel area for the 10 days prior to arrival on the island.

The government says the approach follows guidance issued by the European Centre on Disease Control and mirrors Covid status certification in the UK and other parts of the world. Evidence from a number of studies point towards protection from reinfection for ’a number of months’.

While people can remain positive for 10 days after diagnosis, they are unlikely to carry infectious viral particles after 10 days.

The exemption will not be applicable retrospectively meaning anyone already in isolation or booked for testing will continue to do so.