UK ETA 2026: Who Needs It, £20 Fee and How to Apply

UK Electronic Travel Authorisation guide cover showing the 20 pound fee and how to apply in 2026

Last reviewed: September 28, 2026. Rules and fees below are for the United Kingdom and were checked against GOV.UK and other official UK government sources on that date.

Short answer: If you are visiting the UK without a visa, for example as a US, Canadian, Australian or EU citizen, you need a UK Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA) before you travel. It costs £20 per person, including babies and children, and you apply through the official UK ETA app or on GOV.UK. Most decisions come by email within a day, but allow up to 3 working days. An approved ETA covers multiple trips of up to 6 months each for 2 years, or until your passport expires if that comes first. British and Irish citizens do not need one.

You have booked the flights, or you are about to, and now you need to know whether a UK ETA is one more thing to sort out. For most visitors who don't need a visa, it is. There are three practical questions: does the rule apply to you, where to pay the official £20 rather than a copycat site's higher price, and how early to apply so the approval arrives before check-in.

This guide covers who needs an ETA as of September 2026, the fee and how you can pay it, the application steps, processing times, the main exemptions (Irish citizens and airside transit among them), and what to do if you are refused. Every rule here comes from GOV.UK or another official UK government source, linked next to the claim.

What a UK ETA is (and what it isn't)

An ETA is digital permission to travel. It is linked to your passport, and no document is stamped or printed. GOV.UK says an ETA lets you travel to the UK, Jersey, Guernsey or the Isle of Man for up to 6 months for tourism, visiting family or certain other reasons. When you arrive, you show only your passport. The ETA sits on the Home Office record linked to it.

It is not a visa, and it does not guarantee entry. GOV.UK states plainly that an ETA does not guarantee entry. A Border Force officer still decides at the border.

The UK introduced the scheme in stages. Eligible non-European visitors, including US, Canadian and Australian citizens, could apply from 27 November 2024 and have needed an ETA since 8 January 2025. Eligible Europeans could apply from 5 March 2025 and have needed one since 2 April 2025. Since 25 February 2026 the requirement has been strictly enforced. Carriers check permission automatically, and passengers without an ETA, eVisa or other valid permission can be refused boarding.

Who needs a UK ETA

You usually need an ETA rather than a visa if you are from Europe, the USA, Australia, Canada or certain other countries and you are coming as a visitor. The official list of eligible nationalities covers:

North America and Oceania: the United States, Canada, Australia and New Zealand, among others.
Europe: all EU member states, plus Switzerland, Norway, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Andorra, Monaco, San Marino and Vatican City.
Other countries: including Japan, and Taiwan passport holders whose passports carry an identification card number.

If your nationality is not on the list, you probably need a visa instead. Check the GOV.UK list for your exact passport before you book. Don't rely on a summary, this one included.

Every traveller needs their own ETA. GOV.UK says each person needs one, including babies and children. Parents or others can apply for them.

Country-by-country quick reference

Your passport	Need an ETA to visit the UK?	Required since
United States	Yes (visitors without other UK permission)	8 January 2025
Canada	Yes	8 January 2025
Australia / New Zealand	Yes	8 January 2025
EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland, Liechtenstein	Yes	2 April 2025
Ireland	No	Not applicable
United Kingdom (British citizen)	No	Not applicable

Sources: GOV.UK news, updated 1 November 2024; GOV.UK, When you do not need an ETA. Checked September 28, 2026.

Who does not need an ETA

GOV.UK's exemptions page lists the groups that don't need one. The ones most readers will care about:

British and Irish citizens. Dual citizens are included, but they cannot get an ETA and must travel on a valid British or Irish passport. For British dual citizens, GOV.UK's enforcement notice says to travel with a valid British passport or a Certificate of Entitlement.
People who already hold UK permission. This covers visa holders and anyone with permission to live, work or study in the UK.
People who live in Ireland and are travelling from Ireland, Guernsey, Jersey or the Isle of Man. The Home Office factsheet adds that this applies to legal residents of Ireland from a nationality that doesn't usually need a UK visa (European and US nationals, for example), if they can show proof of legal residency.
Airside transit passengers. This means people who change flights without passing through UK border control (see below).
Holders of British Overseas Territories citizen or British National (Overseas) passports.
People with EU Settlement Scheme status or a pending EUSS application, according to GOV.UK.
Some smaller groups, including pupils on certain official France-UK school trips and people exempt from immigration control.

Transit through a UK airport

The deciding question is whether you pass through border control. GOV.UK says you need an ETA if you're passing through border control at a UK airport before your onward journey. If you stay airside, you don't. The April 2026 Home Office factsheet says passengers transiting through Heathrow and Manchester who don't go through passport control do not currently need an ETA. Note the word "currently".

If you are unsure whether your connection needs you to clear passport control (separate tickets, collecting bags, or changing airports, for example), GOV.UK suggests checking with your airline. When in doubt, paying the £20 is cheaper than being refused boarding.

How much a UK ETA costs in 2026

The fee is £20 per application (GOV.UK). It was £10 at launch and £16 when enforcement began in February 2026. The Immigration, Nationality and Passports (Fees) (Amendment) Regulations 2026 raised it from £16 to £20, a 25% increase. Those regulations came into force on 8 April 2026, and the provisions extending the fee to Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man followed on 9 April 2026.

Two points on the fee are easy to miss:

No refunds. GOV.UK says you cannot get a refund after you apply. That includes applications with typos you have to redo.
The fee can change. The Home Office says ETA fees are kept under review. If you apply months from now, check the current price on GOV.UK.

Worked example: a family trip

Say two adults and two children, all US citizens, are planning a London trip. Each person needs an ETA, so the official cost is 4 × £20 = £80. Each ETA lasts 2 years (or until that person's passport expires), so a second trip next year costs nothing extra. The exception is a child who gets a new passport in the meantime. A new passport means a new ETA and another £20.

Now suppose the same family used a third-party "ETA service" that charged its own service fee on top of the government fee. They would pay £80 plus four service fees for exactly the same authorisation. The official app and GOV.UK service are the only places that charge the government price.

How you can pay

According to GOV.UK, you need a credit or debit card, Apple Pay or Google Pay. The UK ETA app guidance lists Apple Pay, Google Pay, Visa, Mastercard, American Express and JCB and says the app shows the price in your local currency.

The fee is set in pounds, so a card issued outside the UK may add a foreign transaction fee or apply its own exchange rate; our explainer on foreign transaction fees and DCC shows how those charges work. The amount is small, but if you are choosing a card to take on the trip anyway, it helps to know how your card treats foreign-currency payments. Our guide on how to choose the right credit card for you covers what to compare. If you'd rather not enter your main card number online at all, a virtual credit card for secure online payments is one option, as long as your issuer supports it for this kind of merchant.

Watch out for unofficial ETA websites

GOV.UK warns directly: other websites may charge more to apply, and you should avoid sites that imitate government services. Search results and ads for "UK ETA" often show commercial services that look official. Some are legitimate intermediaries charging a fee. Others are designed to confuse.

How to make sure you are in the right place:

Start from gov.uk/eta, not from a search ad.
The official online application runs on a homeoffice.gov.uk address (apply-for-an-eta.homeoffice.gov.uk, linked from GOV.UK).
The official app is called UK ETA and is linked from the GOV.UK app guidance page. Install it from there rather than searching the app store.
If the price you are shown is more than £20 per person (or the local-currency equivalent in the app), stop and check where you are.

If you think you paid a copycat site, contact your card issuer promptly about disputing the charge (our guide on how to dispute a credit card charge walks through it), and apply again through the official service. A receipt from a third party is not an ETA. The only proof that counts is the Home Office record, which you can check at gov.uk/check-eta. The same caution that protects you from loan scams and fake offers applies here: go straight to the official source and don't trust the ad.

How to apply for a UK ETA, step by step

You can apply in the UK ETA app or online. GOV.UK calls the app the easiest way.

What you need

The passport you'll travel on.
An email address.
A payment method (card, Apple Pay or Google Pay).
A photo of the applicant's face that meets the rules for digital photos. A photo that breaks the rules can delay or get the application rejected.

Using the app

The GOV.UK app guidance (updated 9 April 2026) lists the device requirements. On iPhone that means an iPhone 7 or newer on iOS 16 or later. On Android you need version 12 or later with NFC, and GOV.UK notes that if your phone can pay contactless, it has NFC. The steps:

Photograph the photo page of your passport.
Scan the passport's chip with your phone. If the chip can't be read, the app takes your details from the photo instead, so check them carefully. GOV.UK notes that US passport holders may need to scan the inside back cover.
Complete a face scan to confirm your identity.
Take a photo of your face.
Answer the suitability and criminality questions.
Pay the fee.

Applying online or for someone else

You can apply for someone else in the app only if they are with you. If they aren't, GOV.UK says you must apply for their ETA online, using a photo of their passport and a photo of their face. This matters if you are organising a group trip for relatives in another city.

After you submit

Once approved, you get an email with a 16-digit ETA reference number. At the border you show only your passport, and it must be the same passport you applied with. You can confirm your ETA and see when it expires at gov.uk/check-eta.

How long a UK ETA takes

GOV.UK's official wording is that you'll usually get a decision by email within a day, but it can take up to 3 working days. The Home Office factsheet says most app applicants currently get an automatic decision within minutes, and it recommends applying at least three working days before travel.

"Working days" excludes weekends. If you fly on a Monday, applying the Friday before gives you only one working day. Apply as soon as your trip is likely, even before you book. The ETA lasts 2 years, so an early application costs nothing extra in validity.

If 3 working days pass without a decision, GOV.UK says to check your spam or junk folder first, then contact UK Visas and Immigration. There is no phone support for ETA enquiries. Help is through webchat.

How long an ETA lasts and what it lets you do

An ETA lasts 2 years or until your passport expires, whichever is sooner, and you can travel as many times as you like while it is valid. Each visit can last up to 6 months.

If you renew or replace your passport, the old ETA does not carry over. GOV.UK says you'll need to apply for a new ETA. If your passport expires in, say, eight months, your ETA ends then too, so it may make sense to renew the passport first.

According to GOV.UK's page on what you can and cannot do with an ETA, you can:

visit for tourism, or to see family and friends, for up to 6 months
come on a business trip
do short-term study
come for up to 3 months under the Creative Worker visa concession, or for a permitted paid engagement
transit through a UK airport, including through border control

You cannot:

stay longer than 6 months
do paid or unpaid work for a UK company or as a self-employed person, apart from the permitted exceptions
claim public funds
live in the UK through frequent or successive visits
marry, register a civil partnership, or give notice of either

If your ETA is refused

The Home Office distinguishes a rejection from a refusal.

Rejected usually means an identity or data problem, such as a photo that doesn't meet the rules or details that don't match the passport. The Home Office caseworker guidance (version 9.0, published 3 August 2026) says rejected applications are not assessed against the suitability requirements. Fix the problem and apply again, which means paying again.
Refused means you failed the suitability checks. There is no right to administrative review or appeal. The Home Office says that if you are refused, you cannot appeal and instead need to apply for a visa, usually a Standard Visitor visa if you are coming as a visitor.

The caseworker guidance lists mandatory refusal grounds. One of them is a conviction anywhere for which the applicant received a custodial or suspended sentence of 12 months or more. GOV.UK suggests that people with a criminal record or a previous UK entry refusal consider applying for a Standard Visitor visa instead. Their ETA may well be refused, and a visa is a longer process with its own, higher fee. If this applies to you, allow much more time than 3 days.

The same guidance notes that when an ETA is granted through a solely automated process, the applicant can ask for a human review within one calendar month under UK data protection law. This is not an appeal route for refusals.

When this doesn't apply

You are moving to the UK, working or studying long-term. You need the right visa. An ETA covers visits only.
Your nationality isn't on the ETA list. Check whether you need a visitor visa.
You already have UK immigration status, such as an eVisa, a visa or EU Settlement Scheme status. You don't need an ETA.
You are an Irish citizen. No ETA, whatever your route in.
You live in Ireland and are coming from within the Common Travel Area. You may be exempt. Carry proof of legal residency and read the GOV.UK conditions first.

FAQ

Do I need a separate ETA for Jersey, Guernsey or the Isle of Man?

GOV.UK describes a single ETA as covering the UK, Jersey, Guernsey or the Isle of Man, and the eligibility page records that expansion on 9 April 2026. You apply through the same service for the same £20.

Do I need an ETA if I'm arriving by ferry or Eurostar rather than flying?

Yes. The requirement depends on who you are, not how you travel. Carriers are required to confirm you have valid permission before you travel.

Can I travel while my application is still pending?

You should not count on it. Carriers check for valid permission before boarding, and a pending application is not an ETA. Apply early enough to get the decision before you leave.

Does an ETA let me leave and re-enter during its validity?

Yes. You can travel as many times as you want while it is valid, with each visit up to 6 months. Frequent or back-to-back visits that amount to living in the UK are not allowed.

My name or passport details were wrong on the application. Can I edit it?

No. GOV.UK says you'll need to apply again if you need to change details, and the original fee isn't refunded.

Do I need travel insurance for a UK visit?

An ETA doesn't require it, but the NHS charges most overseas visitors for hospital care. Our guide to what travel insurance covers explains how to decide.

Next step

Before anything else, open gov.uk/eta, confirm your nationality is on the ETA list, and apply through the official UK ETA app or the GOV.UK online service at least 3 working days before you travel (sooner is better). Budget £20 per traveller, children included. After approval, check the record at gov.uk/check-eta and save the confirmation email. If you're also planning trip spending, our guide to sending money internationally for less covers the cheaper ways to move money across borders.

This article is general information about UK entry rules, not immigration or legal advice. Rules change. Always confirm on GOV.UK before you travel.

Sources

All accessed September 28, 2026.

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