“Essential Guide: New Travel Rules for Visitors from 48 Countries to the UK”

Travelers may have been exempt from Europe’s new entry fee in 2024, but they will not be able to escape it any longer.

After setbacks on the European Union’s ETIAS visa waiver, or European Travel Information and Authorisation System, it’s set to officially launch in 2025.

The ETIAS is a requirement for entry for visa-exempt nationals planning to visit 30 European nations, which include France, Italy, Germany, Greece, and Spain.

However, on Wednesday, Jan. 8, prior to the ETIAS officially commencing, the UK will implement an ETA (Electronic Travel Authorisation) system, which is a digital registration for U.S., Canadian, and many non-European passport holders who lack a valid visa to enter or transit through the UK.

Instead of merely presenting a passport upon arrival, travelers will now be required to obtain pre-travel authorization prior to boarding a flight to the UK.

ETA — akin to the Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA) in the U.S. — is a compulsory, paid approval that pre-authorizes travelers for entry before they board the plane.

The digital registration scheme is intended for “short” stays of less than six months for tourism, family visits, business purposes, and short-term study or permitted paid engagements, according to the ETA website.

Travelers from 48 countries, including the U.S. and Canada, will require an ETA for entry into the UK starting January 8. However, EU citizens will only be required to have one starting April 2, and citizens from those countries who are residents of the UK will not need an ETA.

It’s important to note that the ETA is not a visa—it’s a visa waiver. Therefore, travelers whose nationality mandates a visa for entry into the UK will still need to apply for one, though an ETA will not be necessary.

An ETA is required if you are:

• visiting the UK for up to six months for tourism, visiting friends and family, business, or short-term study
• visiting the UK for up to three months under the Creative Worker visa concession
• visiting the UK for a permitted paid engagement
• transiting through the UK – even if you are not going through UK border control

An ETA is not needed if:

• you possess a visa
• you have permission to reside, work, or study in the UK (including settled or pre-settled status or right of abode)
• you are a British or Irish citizen
• you are traveling with a British overseas-territories citizen passport
• you are a resident of Ireland and traveling from Ireland, Guernsey, Jersey, or the Isle of Man
• you have dual British or Irish nationality

An ETA will not permit you to do the following:

• remain in the UK for more than six months
• work for a UK company, either paid or unpaid, as a self-employed person, unless you are conducting a permitted paid engagement or event or working under the Creative Worker visa concession
• access public funds (benefits)
• reside in the UK through frequent or successive visits
• marry or register a civil partnership, or give notice of marriage or civil partnership