By the end of this month, some visitors will need electronic visas to enter the Bailiwick.
From 23 April, non-visa nationals arriving directly from outside the Common Travel Area will need an Electronic Travel Authorisation.
They’ll cost £20 each and will be valid for two years, allowing multiple entries including for stays up to six months.
Every traveller, including children, will need their own authorisation.
Exemptions
The new ETA rules apply to non-visa visitors and short-term workers (staying for up to six months) arriving by air or sea.
Those exempt including British or Irish citizens, someone who has an existing CTA visa or immigration status (eg through the EU Settlement Scheme), or someone who is a holder of either a British Overseas Territories or British National (Overseas) passport.
The new ETA rules will also exclude French nationals on day trips or school groups visiting the Bailiwick who will be able to continue travelling under the French Identity Card Scheme.
Travel between Guernsey and the UK and other British Islands remains unchanged, however, Guernsey Customs & Immigration Service recommends anyone with specific local permissions carry supporting documentation to verify their status.
Applications for the ETA scheme open on 9 April via the official UK government website or its mobile app.
The ETA timeline – Visas years in the making
Brexit began the long march to ETAs.
With the UK deciding to leave the European Union it meant that new requirements would be needed for those crossing borders.
It caused the ‘Passport Problem’, when French visitor numbers flatlined following the introduction of post-Brexit passport requirements.
The Committee for Home Affairs launched the French Identity Card Scheme in April 2023 to counter act that, allowing day-trippers to visit using ID cards instead of passports.
Although that scheme was extended, the Committee for Home Affairs warned it was “unlikely” to continue once the ETA scheme launched.
The UK started introducing the ETA scheme from 2023, but the States of Guernsey said the islands would not be directly involved until this year.
Last year Express reported that a proposal to expand the French ID scheme to three-day stays was rejected to maintain Common Travel Area (CTA) security standards.
Then after “months of uncertainty,” it was confirmed the French ID scheme would actually continue into 2026, coexisting with the new ETA.
