UK ETA Application Form 2026:
Complete Guide — How to Apply, Cost & Status

By Martin Cage, Senior UK ETA Specialist, former Home Office Immigration Advisory Panel · Published: June 2026 · 10 min read · Sources: UK Home Office; GOV.UK; UKVI; Home Office Immigration Statistics Feb 2026

1. What Is the UK ETA Application Form?

The UK ETA application form is the online process through which eligible international travellers request a UK Electronic Travel Authorisation before entering the United Kingdom. It is not a visa — it is a lightweight electronic pre-clearance that replaced the previously visa-free entry for most visa-exempt nationalities, mandatory for all covered nationals from January 2025 (non-European countries) and April 2025 (EU and EEA).

The term “UK ETA application form” covers the entire journey from start to finish: entering your passport details, uploading your photos, answering the suitability questions, paying the fee, and receiving your decision. Unlike a traditional visa application, there is no embassy visit, no interview, no biometric appointment, and no document to post. The whole process is completed on a single digital form, available 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

As of June 2026, over 5.6 million UK ETAs have been issued since the scheme launched in November 2023, according to Home Office Immigration System Statistics published February 2026. US nationals represent the largest single group, with approximately 4.6 million ETAs issued to American passport holders alone.

2. Is There a Paper or PDF UK ETA Application Form to Download?

No. This is one of the most commonly searched questions about the UK ETA application, and the answer is unambiguous: there is no paper UK ETA application form, no PDF to download, no form to print and sign, and no document to post to any government office or embassy.

The UK Electronic Travel Authorisation scheme was designed from the outset as a fully digital, paperless system. All applications are submitted electronically — either through the Home Office’s own digital channel at GOV.UK, or through an authorised private assistance service such as application-eta.uk. Both channels feed into the same UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI) processing system.

The reason people search for a PDF or printable form is often force of habit from other travel document processes (such as DS-160 for the US visa, or Schengen visa paper applications). The UK ETA is a different generation of travel authorisation — closer to the US ESTA or Canada’s eTA in its digital-only design.

3. Who Needs to Complete the UK ETA Application Form?

The UK ETA application form must be completed by all nationals of 85 eligible countries before travelling to or transiting through the United Kingdom. This includes all EU member states, the United States, Canada, Australia, Japan, South Korea, and most Gulf and South American countries.

Not sure if your nationality is covered? Check our UK ETA eligible countries list with instant search tool — type your country and get an immediate yes/no answer. For edge cases involving dual nationality, Settled Status, or BN(O) passports, see our UK ETA FAQ.

4. What Does the UK ETA Application Form Ask For?

The UK ETA application form is divided into three main sections. Here is exactly what each part requests, so you can prepare everything in advance and complete the form without interruption:

Section 1 — Personal and Passport Details

Section 2 — Photo Upload

The form requires two uploads: a biometric selfie photo of your face and a photo of your passport’s biographical data page. Photo non-compliance is the single most common reason UK ETA applications are delayed into manual review. Full requirements are covered in Section 6 below.

Section 3 — Suitability Questions (3 questions)

The Home Office requires answers to 3 yes/no questions covering:

• Criminal convictions in any country, including spent convictions (depending on severity)
• Terrorism-related matters
• Job related questions

For the overwhelming majority of applicants — including families, tourists, business travellers, and students — the answer to all 3 questions is No. A Yes answer does not result in automatic refusal; it triggers a manual review by a Home Office caseworker. Providing false information is a criminal offence under UK law and will result in permanent entry bans if discovered.

5. How to Complete the UK ETA Application Form — Step by Step

Before you open the form, have these items within reach: your passport (open at the biographical data page), a phone or camera to take your selfie, and a payment card. The form does not auto-save, so completing it in one session avoids losing your data.

Step 1 — Choose your processing plan

Select the plan that fits your travel date. Use this quick guide:

All plans include: the £20 UK government fee, expert photo and passport review, Home Office submission, 24/7 support, and email delivery of your approval. Veterans, students, and under-18s receive 10% off — select the relevant option at checkout.

Step 2 — Pay and access the full application form

Complete payment at application-eta.uk/application/. You receive an immediate confirmation email. Your plan details are pre-filled when the full form opens. Keep the form tab open and do not close your browser until you have submitted.

Step 3 — Enter your passport details exactly as printed

Open your passport to the biographical data page — the page with your photo, personal details, and the two lines of machine-readable characters at the bottom. Enter every field directly from this page, character by character. Do not rely on memory. Double-check the passport number twice before proceeding — the letter O and the digit 0 look nearly identical in many passport typefaces.

Step 4 — Upload your selfie photo

Take the selfie immediately before uploading — do not use an existing phone photo from months ago. Stand against a plain white wall in natural daylight (not direct sunlight). Ask someone else to take the photo for you if possible — selfie-angle shots at arm’s length introduce lens distortion that frequently causes rejection. Full specifications are in Section 6.

Step 5 — Upload your passport data page photo

Lay your passport open and flat on a dark-coloured surface. Photograph from directly above — not at an angle. Check that all four corners of the page are visible and that there is no glare from flash or overhead lighting. The two lines of machine-readable characters at the bottom of the page must be sharp and legible.

Step 6 — Answer the suitability questions honestly

Read each question carefully before answering. If in doubt about whether a past matter requires disclosure, apply for the Dedicated Agent plan — your personal agent can advise before submission.

Step 7 — Review and submit

Check every field on the summary screen before clicking Submit. Once submitted to the Home Office, the application cannot be edited — a new application will be needed if an error is found post-submission. Our expert team receives your application simultaneously and begins the review process, checking for photo quality issues, name-MRZ mismatches, and data errors.

Step 8 — Monitor your UK ETA application status

Most applications are decided within hours. Use our UK ETA status check tool to track your application in real time. You will also receive your decision by email. Check your spam folder if nothing arrives within 24 hours.

6. UK ETA Application Form Photo Requirements

Photo non-compliance is the single most common cause of UK ETA application delays. The Home Office applies strict automated and manual checks to every uploaded photo. A rejected photo pushes your application into manual review, potentially adding 1–3 working days to processing time.

Our expert review team checks every photo before submission and flags issues before they reach the Home Office. However, starting with a compliant photo avoids any delay.

Practical tip: Stand against a white wall in a well-lit room, ask another person to take the photo from head height approximately 1 metre away, using the rear (not front/selfie) camera. This produces the sharpest, most correctly proportioned image and avoids the distortion common to arm’s-length selfies.

For the full photo specification with accepted and rejected examples, see our dedicated UK ETA photo requirements guide.

7. UK ETA Application Form Cost and Processing Time in 2026

Government fee — £20 per person

The UK Home Office charges £20 per UK ETA application (approximately €23 at current rates). This fee was raised from £16 on 9 April 2026 under the Immigration and Nationality (Fees) Amendment Order 2026. The fee is non-refundable regardless of the outcome — whether your application is approved, refused, or withdrawn. It applies to every individual applicant, including children and infants.

Total cost via application-eta.uk

* 10% discount on the service fee for military veterans, students, and minors under 18. Select the relevant option at checkout — no documentation required. All plans include the non-refundable £20 UK government fee.

Processing time — what affects it

For a full breakdown of timelines and what triggers each type of review, see our dedicated UK ETA fees and processing times guide.

8. How to Check Your UK ETA Application Form Status

Once you have submitted your UK ETA application form, you can monitor its status in real time. You do not need to wait for an email — you can check proactively at any time.

Understanding your UK ETA application status

9. Completing the UK ETA Application Form for Someone Else

You can complete a UK ETA application form on behalf of any other person — a spouse or partner, a child, an elderly parent, a colleague, or any other traveller. There is no requirement to be the applicant yourself. When applying on behalf of another person:

• Use your own email address to receive all correspondence and the approval notification
• Use your own payment card — there is no requirement for the applicant to pay directly
• Enter the other person’s passport details throughout — their name (MRZ-exact), their nationality, their date of birth, their passport number and expiry
• Upload photos of the other person’s face and their passport data page
• Answer the suitability questions based on the other person’s history — you are legally responsible for the accuracy of the information you provide

Every individual traveller requires their own separate UK ETA application form and their own approved ETA — including infants. One ETA application covers one passport and one person only. For families with children, see our detailed UK ETA FAQ section on applying for children.

10. Complete the UK ETA Application Form on Your Phone

The UK ETA application form is fully optimised for mobile. Whether you use an Android phone, an iPhone, or a tablet, you can complete the entire application — passport details, photo capture, payment, and submission — without switching to a computer.

Android — UK ETA Apply app (Google Play)

Android users can download the UK ETA Apply app (package ID: uk.application_eta.app) from Google Play. The app guides you through the full UK ETA application form on any Android device running Android 8.0 or above. Key advantages:

• No NFC chip scanning required — manual entry and photo upload throughout
• Built-in real-time photo validation: checks image quality, sharpness and background before upload
• Pay by card or Google Pay via Stripe
• Available in 16 languages including English, German, French, Dutch, Spanish, Italian, Polish and Romanian
• Secure one-time token to update photos after submission without restarting the application

iPhone and iPad — mobile website

iPhone and iPad users complete the UK ETA application form at application-eta.uk/application/ in any mobile browser. The website is fully responsive and works identically to the desktop version — select your plan, complete the form, upload photos directly from your camera roll or take them with your camera during the application session, and pay by card or Apple Pay.

11. Frequently Asked Questions — UK ETA Application Form

Expert review: Martin Cage, Senior UK ETA Specialist, former Home Office Immigration Advisory Panel. Published June 2026. · Sources: UK Home Office — Electronic Travel Authorisation guidance, GOV.UK (June 2026) · UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI), GOV.UK · Home Office Immigration System Statistics, Year Ending December 2025 (published 26 February 2026) · Immigration and Nationality (Fees) Amendment Order 2026 (UK government fee increase to £20, 9 April 2026) · application-eta.uk Performance Report, 22 June 2026.