16 September 2024

The Home Office has published a new Statement of Changes to the Immigration Rules, notably confirming the long-awaited dates for the rollout of the Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA) scheme to all non-visa nationalities (nationalities which do not require visitor permission before travelling to the UK).

The ETA scheme is a form of advance digital permission to travel to the UK, broadly equivalent to the ESTA system in the US. Until now, the ETA scheme was open only to nationals of the Gulf countries of Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia. Now, the scheme is being rolled out to all other non-visa nationalities.

Visitors to the UK from countries in Asia, North America, South America, Africa and Oceania who previously did not require a UK visa, will require an ETA for UK travel from 8 January 2025 onwards, and can apply for their ETA from 27 November 2024.

UK visitors from EU/European Economic Area countries will require an ETA from 2 April 2025, and are able to apply for one from 5 March 2025.

The phased roll-out dates for the ETA scheme are as follows:

This means that those who do not need to apply for a visa and do not already hold UK immigration status will from the relevant dates above be required to obtain an ETA in advance of travelling to or transiting through the UK.

To obtain an ETA, applicants will need to submit basic personal information (passport details, travel plans etc) online or through a mobile app. They will also answer questions related to security, criminal records and their travel intentions and pay the £10 application fee.

Once the ETA application has been approveds, applicants should receive a decision within three working days, but they may obtain a decision more quickly. If the application is approved, the ETA will be valid for two years and will permit multiple journeys.

New suitability requirements

The changes to the Rules additionally introduce two new suitability requirements for ETA applications. The first stipulates that an ETA application will be refused if the applicant has previously been refused a visit visa (unless they have had a visit visa application approved in the meantime). The second requirement states that an ETA application may be refused where the applicant has previously had an ETA cancelled for reasons not related to suitability.

Changes have also been made to the ETA scheme that will allow the Home Office to refuse or cancel an ETA where the person has previously overstayed and left the UK voluntarily.

Removal of Jordanian nationals from non-visa nationals list

As part of the Statement of Changes, Jordan was added to Appendix Visitor: Visa national list and removed from Appendix Electronic Travel Authorisation as of Tuesday 10 September 3pm. This means that Jordanian nationals will now need to apply for and obtain a visitor visa to enter the UK in advance of travel and will not be eligible to obtain an ETA.

The imposition of the visa regime will include a transition period for Jordanian nationals to travel to the UK without a visa where they hold a valid ETA and confirmed travel booking prior to the imposition.

Get in touch

If you have any questions regarding the changes to the Immigration Rules detailed above, speak to your assigned LDI lawyer or email enquiries@lauradevine.com. You can also sign up to our mailing list for the latest news and updates.