TL;DR
- The UK Electronic Travel Authorisation in 2026 costs GBP 16, is valid for two years or until the underlying passport expires (whichever comes first), and permits multiple visits of up to six months each.
- The ETA is not a visa. It is a pre-travel digital permission tied to the passport, applied for through the UK ETA mobile app or at gov.uk/guidance/apply-for-an-electronic-travel-authorisation-eta.
- Most non-visa-national passport holders need an ETA in 2026, including US, Canadian, Australian, Gulf Cooperation Council and (since 2 April 2025) EU and EEA passports.
- Decision times are typically minutes, with the published service standard allowing up to three working days for cases needing further consideration.
- British and Irish citizens, anyone with an existing UK visa, anyone with settled status, and anyone applying through a visa route do not need an ETA.
The 2026 ETA: GBP 16, two years, six-month visits
The UK Electronic Travel Authorisation in 2026 is a digital pre-travel permission for non-visa-national visitors. It costs GBP 16, is valid for two years from grant or until the underlying passport expires (whichever comes first), and supports multiple entries during the validity window, each of up to six months. The fee was GBP 10 at the original launch and was uplifted to GBP 16 by Statement of Changes effective 9 April 2025.
The grant attaches to the passport. A new passport, even where the same person holds the same nationality, requires a fresh ETA: the system links the permission to the passport number, and a renewed passport breaks that link. The fee is paid per applicant, including children, with no concession for family group applications. A family of four pays GBP 64 in total, with each ETA decided on its own facts.
The two-year validity sits comfortably with the duration of a standard passport renewal cycle. A holder of a ten-year adult passport who applies for an ETA in 2026 will need to refresh that ETA at most five times across the life of the passport, at GBP 16 each, before the passport itself is renewed. That cadence is built into the design: the ETA is a low-friction permission tracked alongside the passport, not a periodic visa renewal cycle.
What an ETA is not
The ETA is not a visa. The distinction matters. A visa is an entry clearance issued under section 3A of the Immigration Act 1971 with route-specific conditions (Skilled Worker, Student, Visit) and casework by a UKVI Entry Clearance Officer. An ETA is a lighter-weight authorisation under a separate published framework, decided largely automatically with a manual review path only where flags arise.
The ETA does not confer leave to enter on its own. Border Force officers still grant leave to enter at the port for ETA holders, with the ETA evidencing that the holder is pre-cleared as a visitor. The maximum six-month visit length, the prohibition on study beyond short courses, the prohibition on work other than narrow permitted activities, and the prohibition on accessing public funds all flow from the underlying Visitor route rules, not from the ETA itself.
The rollout phases: non-Europeans first, Europeans in April 2025
The UK ETA was rolled out in phases. The first phase, covering Gulf Cooperation Council nationals (Qatari, Bahraini, Kuwaiti, Omani, Saudi, UAE) and Jordanian nationals, launched in late 2023. The second phase extended the requirement to other non-visa-national passport holders including US, Canadian, Australian, New Zealand, Japanese and Singaporean nationals during late 2024 and early 2025.
The third and largest phase brought EU and EEA passport holders into scope on 2 April 2025. From that date a French, German, Italian, Spanish or other EU national arriving for a UK holiday requires an ETA before travel. The same applies to Swiss, Norwegian and Icelandic passport holders under the EEA extension. The phased structure is documented in the published Home Office ETA expansion announcements and in the corresponding Statements of Changes amending the Immigration Rules.
How to apply: the UK ETA app or GOV.UK
An applicant applies for an ETA in one of two ways. The faster route is the UK ETA mobile app, available for iOS and Android, which guides the applicant through passport scanning, facial verification, payment and submission. The second route is the web form at gov.uk/guidance/apply-for-an-electronic-travel-authorisation-eta, used where the app is not available or where the applicant prefers a browser flow.
Either route requires: a valid passport, a digital photo of the applicant's face, a payment card, an email address, and a small set of declared questions including criminal history. Most applications are decided within minutes and the result is emailed. The published service standard allows up to three working days for cases needing further consideration; in practice an automated grant arrives in under an hour for clean cases. Applicants are advised to apply at least three working days before travel to allow for cases that drop into manual review.
Who does not need an ETA in 2026
The ETA exemptions are straightforward. British and Irish citizens do not need one: their right to enter the UK does not require any pre-travel permission. Anyone holding existing UK leave (a current visa, indefinite leave to remain, settled status under the EU Settlement Scheme, pre-settled status, or another form of grant) is exempt: the existing leave is itself the pre-clearance.
Anyone applying for a UK visa for the same trip is also exempt. A Skilled Worker arriving on entry clearance does not need an ETA. A Visit visa holder from a visa-national country (China, India, Nigeria, Pakistan among others) does not need an ETA because the Visit visa already authorises travel. The ETA framework is reserved for non-visa-nationals coming for short visits.
Transit at UK airports is a separate question. Passengers transiting airside through London Heathrow without entering the UK do not require an ETA. Passengers transiting landside (passing through UK Border Force) do require an ETA where their nationality otherwise would. The published GOV.UK transit guidance sets out the airside and landside distinction case by case and is the authoritative source for cabin crew, travel agents and individual travellers planning a connecting flight through the UK.
Validity, passport linkage and refused ETAs
An ETA is valid for two years from grant or until the underlying passport expires. The two-year period supports multiple visits and removes the need to re-apply for each trip during the window. A grant survives unused: an ETA issued in March 2026 used for the first visit in November 2026 is still valid through to March 2028 for subsequent visits.
A refused ETA does not carry an automatic appeal right. The refusal letter sets out the ground (usually criminal history declared on the form, previous UK immigration history, or a failure to meet visitor eligibility) and the applicant's onward route is to apply for a Standard Visit visa with the underlying grounds addressed. The Visit visa application is the casework channel for cases that fall outside the ETA fast-lane, including any applicant whose declared history flags concerns.
What this means in practice
Consider an Italian national flying from Rome to Edinburgh for a one-week holiday in summer 2026. The Italian passport falls under the EU rollout phase that began 2 April 2025. Before travel the applicant downloads the UK ETA app, scans the passport, completes the facial verification, declares a clean history, pays GBP 16 and receives the grant within an hour by email. The ETA is valid for two years, so a return trip in late 2027 will not require a fresh application as long as the passport remains the same. At Edinburgh Airport the applicant presents the passport to Border Force; the ETA is recorded against the passport number, leave to enter as a visitor is granted, and the six-month visitor cap applies to the stay.
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How we verified this
This guide was cross-checked in May 2026 against the live GOV.UK ETA guidance at gov.uk/guidance/apply-for-an-electronic-travel-authorisation-eta, the Home Office ETA rollout announcements published through 2023, 2024 and 2025, the Statement of Changes implementing the GBP 10 to GBP 16 fee uplift effective 9 April 2025, and the Immigration Rules paragraphs governing the Visitor route under Appendix V. The phased expansion to EU and EEA passport holders on 2 April 2025 was confirmed against the Home Office press notices and the corresponding GOV.UK guidance updates.
Disclaimer: The content on this page is for informational and educational purposes only. Kaeltripton.com is an independent UK editorial publisher, not authorised or regulated by the FCA or OISC. Nothing on this page constitutes immigration, legal or visa advice. Always verify with GOV.UK or an OISC-registered adviser before acting. ICO registered ZC135439.
Frequently asked questions
How much does a UK ETA cost in 2026?
GBP 16 per applicant. The fee was raised from GBP 10 to GBP 16 by Statement of Changes effective 9 April 2025 and has remained at GBP 16 through 2026. The charge applies to every applicant including children, with no family group discount.
How long is a UK ETA valid?
Two years from grant, or until the underlying passport expires, whichever comes first. During the validity window the holder can make multiple visits, each up to six months as a visitor, subject to the Visitor route rules under Appendix V of the Immigration Rules.
Do EU passport holders need an ETA in 2026?
Yes. EU and EEA passport holders were brought into scope on 2 April 2025. From that date a French, German, Italian, Spanish or other EU national, and Swiss, Norwegian and Icelandic nationals under the EEA extension, must hold an ETA before travelling to the UK as a visitor.
How quickly is an ETA decided?
The majority of decisions return within minutes. The published service standard allows up to three working days for cases that drop into manual review. The standing advice on GOV.UK is to apply at least three working days before travel to give clearance for any review path.
Who is exempt from the ETA requirement?
British and Irish citizens, anyone holding existing UK leave (a current visa, indefinite leave to remain, settled or pre-settled status under the EU Settlement Scheme), and anyone applying for a UK visa for the same trip. Visa-national passport holders who require a Visit visa also do not need an ETA, because the Visit visa itself authorises travel.
Can an ETA refusal be appealed?
There is no automatic appeal right against an ETA refusal. The refusal letter sets out the ground. The published onward route is to apply for a Standard Visit visa, which sits in the casework channel and allows fuller representations to be made to a UKVI Entry Clearance Officer.