Independent
Simon Calder
21 May 2024
The demand for passengers merely changing planes at Heathrow to apply for an Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA) should be dropped, a Lords committee says.
The Justice and Home Affairs Committee of the House of Lords has written to Tom Pursglove, minister for Legal Migration and the Border, with strong criticism of the scheme – and citing that the need for an ETA is already driving away transit travellers.
An Electronic Travel Authorisation is currently required from nationals of Gulf countries, plus Jordan and Saudi Arabia, travelling to the UK. The scheme is due to be extended to most nationalities by the autumn of 2024 and to EU citizens (except Irish nationals) by spring 2025.
Within a year, 30 million annual visitors, as well as transit passengers passing through London Heathrow and other airports, will be required to fill in an online form and pay £10.
Unlike all the major Continental European hubs, including Amsterdam, Frankfurt and Paris CDG, international passengers at Heathrow must enrol for an ETA even if they plan to remain “airside” of a couple of hours between flights.
[Read more: Cut extra red tape for Heathrow transit passengers, Lords committee urges government | The Independent]