The UK's Electronic Travel Authorisation is now fully enforced and costs £20. Here is who needs one in 2026, how long it lasts, how to apply, the transit exemption, and how it compares with Europe's ETIAS and America's ESTA.
Cover image: arrival formalities at united kingdom border control — photo by Diliff, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
The UK Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA) is a mandatory digital travel permit for visitors who do not need a visa to enter the United Kingdom. As of 2026 it costs £20 per person, a price set on 8 April 2026 when the Home Office raised the fee from £16. It is valid for two years, or until the holder's passport expires, whichever comes first, and allows multiple trips of up to six months at a time. Every visa-free visitor needs one, including babies and children; only British and Irish citizens, and people who already hold UK immigration status, are exempt. Applications go through the free UK ETA smartphone app or GOV.UK, most decisions arrive within minutes, and the Home Office advises applying at least three working days before travel. Since 25 February 2026 the scheme has been strictly enforced under a "no permission, no travel" rule: airlines, ferry operators and rail carriers cannot board an ETA-required passenger without a valid authorisation. The Home Office says 24.8 million ETAs were issued between the scheme's October 2023 launch and the end of 2025.
Who needs a UK ETA in 2026?
The ETA applies to nationals who could previously enter the UK visa-free, including all European Union and European Economic Area citizens plus travellers from the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Japan, the Gulf states and dozens of other visa-exempt countries. The scheme was phased in gradually: Qatari nationals came first in late 2023, other non-European visa-free nationalities followed on 8 January 2025, and Europeans were brought in from 2 April 2025.
According to the Home Office, an ETA is required for tourism, visiting family and friends, business trips, short study, certain permitted paid engagements and landside transit. It covers the UK plus Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man.
You do not need an ETA if you are:
- A British or Irish citizen, including dual citizens
- A holder of a UK visa or existing permission to live, work or study in the UK
- A legal resident of Ireland entering from within the Common Travel Area (proof of residence may be requested)
- A national of a country whose citizens need a full UK visa instead
How much does the UK ETA cost and how long is it valid?
The fee is £20, non-refundable whether the application is approved or refused. The price has climbed steadily: £10 at launch in October 2023, £16 from April 2025, and £20 from 8 April 2026, per the Home Office fees order reported by VisasNews. There is no fee waiver for children, so a family of four pays £80.
Once granted, the ETA is electronically linked to the passport used in the application. It permits unlimited entries for stays of up to six months each across its two-year life. A new passport means a new ETA, even if the old authorisation has time left on it.
How do you apply for a UK ETA?
The official channels are the UK ETA app (iOS and Android) and the GOV.UK website; both charge the same £20. Applicants supply passport details, a compliant facial photograph and answers to suitability and criminality questions. Most applicants get an automatic decision in minutes, though the Home Office recommends allowing three working days in case an application needs manual checks. Travellers should avoid third-party lookalike sites that add marked-up "processing" fees.
There is no physical document or passport stamp. Carriers verify the authorisation digitally at check-in, part of the same shift towards paperless borders explored in our report on digital travel credentials going mainstream in 2026.
Do transit passengers need a UK ETA?
Anyone passing through passport control at a UK airport before an onward flight needs an ETA. Passengers who remain airside during a connection are currently exempt, but that exemption only works at London Heathrow and Manchester, the two UK airports with airside international transit facilities.
The practical catch: separate tickets, rechecking bags, an overnight layover or a terminal change that requires leaving the secure area all push a traveller landside, and therefore into ETA territory. The Home Office has also described the airside exemption as temporary and under review, so trade sellers booking UK connections should treat it as a concession that could be withdrawn. That matters for the growing volume of one-stop traffic through London, including new operators such as Riyadh Air, which launched Heathrow service as its first long-haul route.
How is an ETA different from a visa, ETIAS and ESTA?
The Home Office is explicit that an ETA "is not a visa or a tax and does not permit entry into the UK - it authorises a person to travel to the UK". The final entry decision rests with Border Force on arrival, although most ETA nationalities use eGates. A visa, by contrast, involves a fuller application, biometrics at a visa centre and consideration of the trip's specific purpose.
The ETA is one of three major pre-travel authorisation schemes. The European Union's ETIAS, covered in our ETIAS launch timeline update, is due to start in the fourth quarter of 2026 with a roughly six-month grace period before it becomes mandatory around April 2027. The United States' ESTA, examined in our guide to US ESTA entry requirements, nearly doubled in price to $40 on 30 September 2025.
| Scheme | UK ETA | EU ETIAS | US ESTA |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fee (2026) | £20 (all ages) | €20 (free under 18 and over 70) | $40 |
| Validity | 2 years or passport expiry | 3 years or passport expiry | 2 years or passport expiry |
| Max stay | 6 months per visit | 90 days in any 180 | 90 days per visit |
| Status in July 2026 | Live, strictly enforced since 25 Feb 2026 | Launching Q4 2026 | Live since 2009 |
Frequently asked questions
Do EU citizens need an ETA to visit the UK in 2026?
Yes. All EU nationals except Irish citizens have needed one since 2 April 2025, and since 25 February 2026 carriers must deny boarding to anyone who lacks a required ETA.
Do I need a UK ETA for a layover at Heathrow?
Not if you stay airside on a single through-ticketed connection at Heathrow or Manchester. If you must clear passport control, for example to collect and recheck bags, change terminals landside or stay overnight, you need an ETA. The exemption is officially temporary, so check before travelling.
Can I be refused entry to the UK even with a valid ETA?
Yes. The Home Office stresses that an ETA authorises travel to the UK, not entry into it. Border Force officers, or the eGate system, make the final admission decision on arrival, exactly as ESTA works for the United States.
What happens if I get a new passport?
An ETA becomes invalid the moment its linked passport is replaced, because the authorisation is tied electronically to the document used to apply. You must apply again, and pay again, with the new passport details before travelling.
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