Traveling to the UK? Urgent TSA Alert Includes WA Passengers

If you are lucky enough to have a passport and plan on visiting the UK anytime soon (and thereafter), then you need to be aware of an important change.

Your future travel plans to England, Scotland, Wales, or Northern Ireland will be met with a new barrier that is slated to go in effect in January 2025.

I found out about this urgent travel alert when I was scrolling through emails in my "junk" folder this morning. Normally I scan and delete those junkies, but this was a message from a luxury cruise line that has transatlantic trips that pass-through destinations in the United Kingdom, so I decided to open and read it.

If you want to travel to the UK, you will need to get an electronic visa. (Source Gov.UK)

via GIPHY

WHAT IS ELECTRONIC TRAVEL AUTHORIZATION (ETA)?

Beginning January 8, 2025, anyone who is a non-European resident will need to apply for an ETA. It is not a visa, but it works similarly. This new travel document will allegedly make traveling to and around the UK easier for everyone involved, from customs agents to travelers.

WHO NEEDS TO GET AN ETA?

According to the UK's government website, you no longer need a visa because your electronic travel authorization (ETA) is designed for the following:

• Layover Travelers passing through the UK by air or in some cases, by land
• Tourists and short-term travelers and short-term study passengers who will be in the UK for less than 6 months
• Temporary Creative Worker Visa applicants staying in the UK for less than 3 months
• Professional Academia, Entertainers, Attorneys, Lecture Speakers, Artists, Athletes, and Air Pilot Examiners visiting the UK for less than 6 months and need a permitted paid engagement document
• transiting through the UK – including if you are not going through UK border control

HOW LONG WILL IT TAKE TO GET APPROVED FOR AN ETA?

It should take only a few hours or less to get approval on your ETA application. You can apply right through the app.

It is not expensive to get an ETA and it should not take more than 10 minutes to apply for it.

The ETA for UK travel costs about 10 pounds for each person applying for one (babies and toddlers included), and they will accept Google Pay, Apple Pay, debit cards, and credit cards.

To get the latest updates and to find out more about any other travel documents and visa documents you might need when visiting the UK in 2025, visit Gov.UK.

And now for some fun: Here's what real people in the UK think of Americans! 

@kjordyyyWelp.. I wasn’t expecting this

♬ original sound - Kjordy