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Only days after introducing its new Electronic Travel authorization for travelers from countries that don’t need visas to travel to the UK, the UK government has already started changing the rules and hiking prices.
Here’s a breakdown of the news for travelers regarding the UK Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA):
Travelers transiting through London Heathrow and Manchester airports without passing UK border control are temporarily exempt from applying for an ETA if they are taking flights to other countries from the “airside” without actually going through passport control to enter the UK.
However passengers landing at London’s Gatwick airport, which welcomes many flights from the US, WILL have to have ETA prior to travel as Gatwick does not have facilities for changing planes without going through UK customs and immigration first.
Gatwick also has flights arriving from Antigua, Trinidad, Jamaica, Barbados, the Dominican Republic, and St. Lucia that international passengers could be using for connections onwards to Europe or India.
This change follows protests from the aviation industry and will be reassessed regularly.
The UK government is also considering raising the ETA fee from £10 (≃ €13 / $14) to £16 (≃ €19 / $20).
Additional immigration-related fees may also rise, including naturalization as a British citizen (proposed at £1,605) and Certificates of Sponsorship (proposed at £525).
These fee adjustments aim to generate £269 million annually and reduce reliance on public funding.
In addition, mandatory ETA for EU Citizens will start in April 2025 with applications opening on March 5, 2025.
The ETA is valid for two years, allowing multiple stays of up to six months each.
Nationals from 54 countries, including the USA, Canada, Australia, and Singapore, already need an ETA to travel to the UK. They are:
Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, Australia, Bahamas, Bahrain, Barbados, Belize, Botswana, Brazil, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Costa Rica, Grenada, Guatemala, Guyana, Hong Kong, Kuwait, Marshall Islands, Mauritius, Mexico, Micronesia, Nauru, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Oman, Palau, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, Peru, Qatar, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Samoa, Saudi Arabia, Seychelles, Singapore, Solomon Islands, South Korea, Taiwan, Tonga, Trinidad and Tobago, Tuvalu, United Arab Emirates, United States and Uruguay.
Passengers from countries that do need a visa to enter the UK, somewhat paradoxically, do not need ETA. This is because the visa process is much more thorough and requires more backup documentation. So, for example, a person traveling from Haiti would have to be thoroughly investigated at the British Embassy before a visa was issued.
Sources: VisaNews, UK Government.
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