UK’s new ETA travel permit scheme begins today for non-Europeans – here’s what you need to know
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The digital permit scheme to enter the UK will extend to all travellers from 2 April. Non-Europeans visiting or transiting through the UK without a visa will be required to obtain a £10 digital permit from today (8 January). The Home Office is extending the electronic travel authorisation (ETA) system, which was first introduced in November 2023.
An ETA – which is a digital permission to travel – was previously only required for nationals of Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia and Jordan. More than 243,000 Gulf nationals were issued with ETAs in the first half of 2024, Home Office figures show.
Each ETA permits multiple journeys to the UK for stays of up to six months at a time over two years, or until the holder’s passport expires if that is sooner. The ETA will be mandatory for all “non-visa” overseas visitors to the UK, with the exception of Irish nationals, who are allowed free movement under the Common Travel Agreement.
Others who do not need an ETA are British citizens, those who have permission to live, work or study in the UK, people who are travelling with a British overseas territories citizen passport or those who are legally resident in Ireland who are travelling from Ireland, Guernsey, Jersey or the Isle of Man to the UK.
