The government has laid an order for Parliament ‘s approval to increase the visa and nationality service fees. The change is expected to come into effect shortly.
The government conducts reviews of immigration fees constantly.
In 2023, we have seen increases in fees include 15% to most work and visit visas, 35% to student visas, 20% to wider entry clearance visas, and 20% to British citizenship, settlement and certificate of sponsorship (for workers) and CAS (for students). The most significant increase was to the Immigration Healthcare Surcharge (IHS) which had gone up by over 60%, currently at £1,035 per person per year.
You do not need an ETA (Electronic Travel Authorisation) to transit through the UK if you will not pass through the UK border control (‘airside transit).
ETA applies to people who previously did not need a visa for their UK short-term visits (called the “non-visa nationals”), including nationals of EU countries, US, Australia, Canada, or people from Hong Kong and many other countries or regions. From the end of 2024, these nationals are required to obtain an ETA before travelling to the UK. The scheme rolls out in a phased manner, you can check the effective date for your countries on Gov.UK. An ETA application is done online and usually takes 3 working days and costs £10. It lasts for 2 years.
From 16 January 2025, if you are a national of a country that ETA applies, you are exempt from obtaining an ETA if you only transit airside without going through the UK border control. Be mindful that if you are not a national of these countries, you will likely need a visa before traveling to the UK.
