By Guy Taylor
New Home Office red tape on visa-exempt travellers entering the UK will divert passengers to Europe and risk Heathrow’s hub status, experts have warned.
The new so-called Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA) means passengers arriving in Britain have to pay a £10 fee and wait up to three days for an online permit, even when travelling via connecting flights.
It will be mandatory for all “non-visa” overseas visitors to the UK by the end of 2024, excluding Irish people, and has already been introduced for Qatari nationals.
A spokesperson for Heathrow told City A.M. that should the government not correct the “unnecessary bureaucracy,” passengers would “choose the easier option and use a European hub airport instead.”
The Home Office says the policy will strengthen border security and improve customer experience. However, the aviation sector argues that in almost every other country around the world, passengers on connecting flights need only meet the requirements of their final destination.
Karen Dee, chief executive of trade body the Airport Operators Association (AOA), told City A.M. UK hubs would be placed at a “competitive disadvantage compared to our European rivals.”
“This new economic and administrative burden will increase cost and inconvenience and could shift a significant percentage of travellers to routes through European hub airports, damaging UK connectivity and our position as a global aviation hub,” Dee said.
“We are continuing to work with the Home Office and Border Force to ensure they understand the concerns of UK airports, and hope we will be able to come up with an alternative.”
The roll-out of the ETA will hit Heathrow and its major airlines, which include British Airways and Virgin Atlantic, the hardest. The London hub, the biggest in Europe, operates a huge number of connecting flights and competes with continental rivals including Istanbul and Dubai.
Heathrow said it’s world leading long-haul network was “dependent on transit passengers” and making them apply for an ETA “presents a real barrier to travel and would put that at risk.”
In an interview with City A.M. in November, Virgin Atlantic chief Shai Weiss described the policy as “short-sighted.”
“I understand the need to raise more capital and more tax, but I’m not sure, rather than raising more tax we are probably diverting traffic away,” he said.
At a conference in London last year,British Airways boss Sean Doyle said the ETA would damage the staple carrier’s competitivity. “We need to make sure by stealth we don’t make our industry uncompetitive,” he warned.
A Home Office spokesperson said: “We are introducing an Electronic Travel Authorisation scheme to enhance border security by increasing our knowledge about those seeking to come to the UK and preventing the arrival of those who pose a threat.”
“Requiring transit passengers to obtain an ETA will stop people who may use connecting flights to avoid gaining permission to travel to the UK.”
The spokesperson added: “We are communicating with those impacted by this change to help ensure they are aware and understand what the new requirement means for them, with ample time to prepare.”
