UK ETA costs £20 and lasts up to two years

A UK electronic travel authorisation (ETA) costs £20 and lasts for up to two years, or until the passport it is linked to expires, whichever comes first, according to GOV.UK.

Most visitors need either an ETA or a visa, depending on nationality and the reason for the trip. Visitors from Europe, the USA, Australia, Canada and certain other countries “usually” need an ETA rather than a visa. Everyone travelling needs their own, babies and children included.

Who does not need one

The exemptions page says an ETA is not needed by anyone who is:

• a British or Irish citizen
• a holder of a UK visa
• a person with permission to live, work or study in the UK, including settled or pre-settled status or right of abode
• a person with permission to live, work or study in Jersey, Guernsey or the Isle of Man
• transiting through a UK airport without passing through border control (airside)
• travelling with a British overseas territories citizen passport
• travelling with a British National (Overseas) passport
• living in Ireland and travelling from Ireland, Guernsey, Jersey or the Isle of Man
• a child travelling on the France-UK school trip travel information form
• exempt from immigration control or not needing permission to enter
• waiting for a decision on an EU Settlement Scheme application

A dual citizen with British or Irish citizenship cannot get an ETA, GOV.UK says, and can prove citizenship at the border with a valid British passport, another valid passport with a certificate of entitlement showing the right of abode, or a valid Irish passport.

People living in Ireland have a separate rule. A traveller from a country that would normally need an ETA does not need one when entering the UK from Ireland, Guernsey, Jersey or the Isle of Man, but anyone aged 16 or over has to bring an original, valid document issued by the Irish government, such as an Irish driving licence. A person from a country that needs a visa still has to get one.

What the permission covers

The guidance on permitted activities allows stays of up to six months for tourism, visiting family and friends, a business trip or short-term study. It also covers up to three months on the Creative Worker visa concession, a permitted paid engagement and transit through a UK airport that involves border control, where the airline can say which applies.

It does not cover staying longer than six months, paid or unpaid work for a UK company or as a self-employed person (apart from a permitted paid engagement or event or Creative Worker concession work), claiming public funds (benefits), living in the UK through frequent or successive visits, or marrying or registering a civil partnership, which needs a Marriage Visitor visa.

An ETA does not guarantee entry. Anyone with a criminal record or an earlier refusal of entry may want to apply for a Standard Visitor visa instead, GOV.UK says.

How to apply

The application guide asks for the passport the traveller will use, an email address and a credit card, debit card, Apple Pay or Google Pay. The UK ETA app scans the passport and face with the phone’s camera, while online applicants upload a photo of each.

A confirmation email carries a 16-digit reference number, and travel must wait until it arrives. If no decision has come after three working days, the spam folder is the first place to look before contacting UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI), which cannot help with ETA enquiries by phone. Once an ETA is issued, the checking service shows whether one exists and when it expires.