UK Scraps ETA For Transit Passengers, Hikes Fee For Others

The UK is in the process of rolling out an Electronic Travel Authorization (ETA) requirement for foreign visitors. This was implemented as of January 8, 2025, for those with passports from many countries (including the United States), and will be added for those with passports from the European Union as of April 2, 2025.

With this, travelers have to complete an application and pay a £10 fee prior to travel, and the ETA is valid for up to two years. Well, the UK is already backtracking on a major aspect of this, and I can’t say I’m surprised…

International transit passengers don’t need an ETA

When the UK introduced its ETA requirement, the government insisted that transit passengers would also need to apply for this. That’s a bit unusual, since the UK allows sterile international transit, and in most countries, you don’t need an ETA if simply in international transit (even if there’s otherwise an ETA requirement).

I have to imagine that this caused some challenges for airlines (particularly British Airways and Virgin Atlantic), since many travelers probably didn’t realize they needed to apply for an ETA, especially if in transit. Well, the government is now backtracking on this requirement:

Following feedback from the aviation industry, the government has agreed a temporary exemption for passengers who transit airside, and therefore do not pass through UK border control.

This move will primarily affect Heathrow and Manchester airports, as the only UK airports which currently offer transit facilities. The exemption will be kept under review.

It’s not entirely clear to me if this exemption is being introduced effective immediately, or if this still requires formal government approval. Also, while this is being described as a “temporary exemption” as of now, many believe that this will be a permanent change, to line up with the policies of many other countries. That brings us to the second point…

UK ETA fee to increase by 60%, from £10 to £16

Clearly the UK is realizing how much revenue it will lose from its ETA scheme if transit passengers are exempt, so now the plan is to increase the fee for those who do have to pay it. The government has proposed a change whereby the cost of an ETA would increase by 60%, from £10 to £16.

This is being voted on at the moment, and it’s not clear when this will be implemented. While that might not be a huge increase in absolute terms, it definitely adds up, especially if you’re traveling as a larger group. And that says nothing of the UK’s very high Air Passenger Duty (APD), which impacts visitors to the country.

The UK has marketed ETAs as being about increasing safety, and being able to screen travelers before they arrive. Also, obviously there’s some significant cost to administering this program. But still, one wonders if this increase is to actually cover the cost of the program, or to simply boost the profit margin from this scheme.

Bottom line

It seems that the UK’s widespread rollout of ETAs isn’t going as smoothly as planned. The government is now backtracking on the requirement for transit passengers to get an ETA, assuming they plan on staying airside. I’m not surprised to see this change, given that I imagine this ended up being quite complicated for airlines.

However, obviously the UK doesn’t want to lose out on much revenue, so now the plan is to increase the ETA fee from £10 to £16, for those who do need it.

What do you make of the changes to the UK ETA scheme?