UK ETA for Australian citizens
Australian passport holders can visit the UK without a visa for up to 6 months, but must now hold an approved ETA before departure.
UK ETA for Australia — key facts
- Australian citizens do need a UK ETA before travelling to the United Kingdom.
- An ETA is not a visa and does not guarantee entry — a Border Force officer makes the final decision on arrival.
Verified against GOV.UK on 2026-10-12. UK ETA Gateway is a private agency, not the UK Government.
What is different for Australian travellers
The ETA requirement began applying to Australian passport holders on 8 January 2025. If you have not travelled to the United Kingdom since then, this will be your first ETA.
The fee is set by the Home Office in pounds sterling, so you are charged £49 and your bank converts it from Australian dollar (AUD) at its own rate. We do not add a currency markup, and nobody — including us — can discount the £20 government portion.
Applying from Australia
Australia has its own ETA — the Electronic Travel Authority, subclass 601, which eligible foreign passport holders use to visit Australia. As an Australian citizen you have never needed it. The UK ETA is a different thing entirely, issued by the British Home Office, and the shared acronym is the source of a great deal of confusion at check-in desks.
Australians were brought in when the requirement became universal on 25 February 2026, so for most this is a first application rather than a renewal.
One trap is specific to younger Australian travellers. If you are going to Britain to work — including on the Youth Mobility Scheme, the route many Australians use for a working year in London — an ETA is not the document you need and will not get you in. That is a visa route, applied for separately, and no ETA converts into one. We will tell you if that is your situation rather than take the fee.
Australian itineraries also tend to be long and multi-stop, which makes transit worth checking. If you change planes airside at Heathrow or Manchester without passing through immigration, you currently need no ETA at all.
What Australian travellers need
- A biometric Australian passport that will still be valid when you travel
- A digital photo meeting the GOV.UK standard
- An email address and a payment card
- Truthful answers on criminal convictions and past immigration refusals
You do not need flight bookings, hotel reservations, bank statements or an invitation letter.
Every Australian traveller needs their own ETA, including infants — there is no family application and no child discount. How ETAs work for children and families.
If you also hold British or Irish citizenship you cannot apply for an ETA at all — travel on that passport instead. Full requirements · Common questions.
Australia at a glance
- ETA requiredYes
- Official Home Office fee£20
- Our service fee£29
- Total through us£49
- Validity2 years or passport expiry
- Maximum stay per visit6 months
- Typical decisionMinutes; allow 3 working days
- Number of entriesUnlimited
Or apply yourself at gov.uk/eta for £20.