How do I find out if I need a visa or a travel authorisation?

Most people who get caught out were not careless — they checked a rule that used to be true. Several countries have introduced online travel authorisations for visitors who previously needed nothing at all, and a few have changed length-of-stay rules. The check is quick; the habit of doing it every time is what matters.

Safety

Step by step

1. Establish which passport you are travelling on.Requirements follow the passport, not where you live. Dual nationals should decide which passport they are entering on before checking, because the answer can be completely different.
2. Be specific about the length and purpose of the stay.Tourism, visiting family, studying, working, or working remotely for a UK employer are treated differently by many countries, and a stay that is fine at ten days may need a visa at ninety.
3. Read the UK foreign travel advice page for that country.It has an entry requirements section written for British passport holders and it is updated when things change. It is the fastest honest summary you will find.
4. Then confirm on the destination's own official site.The country setting the rule is the authority on it. The UK page is a summary; the embassy or immigration site is the source.
5. Tell a visa and an authorisation apart.A visa is normally an application with supporting documents, sometimes an appointment and biometrics, and weeks of lead time. A travel authorisation is usually a short online form with a fee, approved quickly, and tied electronically to your passport number.
6. Apply on the official domain only.Search results are full of agency sites that charge several times the real fee to submit the same form, and some are outright fraudulent. Get to the application by following a link from the government page, not from an advert.
7. Apply with the exact passport details you will travel on.The authorisation is linked to a passport number. Renewing the passport afterwards can invalidate it, which is a genuinely common and avoidable problem.
8. Save the approval and note its expiry.Store the reference with your other travel documents. Many authorisations last for a period or a number of entries — knowing the expiry avoids repeating the exercise unnecessarily, or discovering it lapsed.
9. Check any transit country too.Changing planes in a third country can require its own transit permission depending on your nationality and whether you pass through immigration. This is the requirement people most often miss.
10. Re-check a few weeks before departure.Rules introduced between booking and travelling are the ones that cause problems at the gate.

Tips

• Screenshot the official page showing the requirement on the day you check it, with the date visible. It is useful if anyone disputes what you were told.
• Airlines are fined for carrying passengers who are refused entry, which is why they check documents rigorously at the gate rather than taking your word for it.
• If in doubt about your specific circumstances, the destination's embassy or consulate in the UK will answer. They are the ones who decide.

Common mistakes

• Relying on what was required on a previous trip — Authorisation schemes have been introduced by several countries for visitors who previously needed nothing. The rule you remember may simply no longer be the rule.
• Applying through a site found in an advert — Copycat sites charge a multiple of the real fee for submitting the identical form, and the worst of them collect passport data for fraud.
• Renewing the passport after getting an authorisation — Authorisations are usually tied to the passport number they were issued against. A new passport can mean applying again.

Questions people ask