The newly installed government has continued with the plans, enacting pre travel applications for non British and Irish citizens. In a press release dated 10 September, 2024 from the British High Commission in Castries issued the following statement.

• " The UK Government is digitising the UK border and immigration system to enhance security and improve the experience for travellers.
• By April 2025, all visitors who do not need a visa will need an Electronic Travel Authorisation to travel to the UK.
• Migrants in the UK with physical immigration documents should take action now to access their eVisa and benefit from its features.

 The UK Government is taking major steps towards delivering its ambitious aim to digitise the UK border and immigration system and has today set out new implementation dates for the Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA) scheme.

Everyone wishing to travel to the UK – except British and Irish citizens – will need permission to travel in advance of coming here. This can be either through an Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA) or an eVisa.

Today we are confirming that from 27 November 2024, eligible non-Europeans, which includes Saint Lucian passport holders, can apply for an ETA and will need an ETA to travel from 8 January 2025. ETAs will then extend to eligible Europeans from 5 March 2025, who will need at ETA to travel from 2 April 2025.

ETAs are digitally linked to a traveller’s passport and ensure more robust security checks are carried out before people begin their journey to the UK, helping to prevent abuse of our immigration system. An ETA costs £10 and permits multiple journeys to the UK for stays of up to six months at a time over two years or until the holder’s passport expires – whichever is sooner.

From today, information about ETA eligibility is available on GOV.UK. Anyone needing to apply for an ETA will be able to do so through a quick and simple process using the UK ETA app.

Gulf Cooperation Council visitors already need an ETA to travel to the UK.

The introduction of ETAs is in line with the approach many other countries have taken to border security, including the US and Australia.

The full list of eligible nationalities for ETAs is available here on GOV.UK

People who are legally resident in Ireland and from a nationality that does not usually need a visa to visit the UK (e.g. European and US nationals), do not need an ETA when travelling to the UK from within the Common Travel Area, provided they hold acceptable evidence of their residence status.

An ETA costs £10 and permits multiple journeys to the UK for stays of up to six months at a time over two years or until the holder’s passport expires – whichever is sooner.

Further information on ETAs is available here on GOV.UK

Further information on eVisa is available here on GOV.UK"

ENDS