As of April 2025, most Europeans will have to apply for an ETA to travel to the UK. The UK government has announced that for now, French children visiting England on a schooltrip will be an exception to this requirement. This will facilitate international relations between British and French schools.
The ETA will be compulsory as of 2025
The United Kingdom has followed the example of countries such as the USA or Canada, and has made the Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA) mandatory, also for European travellers from April 2025. The ETA will allow UK immigration authorities to keep a better track of who enters and leaves the country. Since the ETA is officially not a visa, travellers from visa-required countries are not eligible to the ETA. Only travellers from visa-exempt countries can apply. These include European Union countries (except Ireland), the United States, Canada, Australia and New Zealand.
Simple application procedure
The ETA detractors see this as a constraint for foreign travellers, whereas its supporters claim that it improves the security in the country, since it allows a better control of migration flows. The simplicity of the application procedure should ensure that travellers can organise their trip easily. Filling in the application form takes only half an hour at the most. Candidates need to enter some personal details (including passport details) and travel information. An ID photo and a sharp passportscan or photo are also requested. The ID photo does not need to be an official photo, it can also be a selfie, as long as the person has a serious expression and the image is sharp.
No passport requirement
When the announce was made that the UK would introduce an ETA, French educational institutions immediately expressed their concern. Indeed, every year, French schools organise more than 10,000 school trips to the UK. If these thousands of French students were obliged to apply for an ETA, it would be more expensive for schools to organise these trips. It would also oblige French schoolchildren to apply for a passport.
Although European travellers are required since October 2021 to have a passport to travel to the UK, in 2023 the then British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and the French President Macron reached an agreement to temporarily delay the passport requirement for French schoolchildren. This should ensure that educational exchanges between the UK and France are not compromised.
ETA not compulsory for now
Early November, the UK Foreign Office made a report about the need for French school children to apply for an ETA. This report stated that for now, the existing arrangement would remain unchanged. This means that for the time being, French schoolchildren don't need to have a passport nor apply for an ETA to make a school trip to the UK. It is unknown though for how long this agreement will remain in force.
UK Minister David Hanson has declared that this is a temporary measure and that there might be an alternative for French schoolchildren in the future. For the time being, therefore, French schools can still organise school trips to the UK without having to go through complicated entry procedures for their students. Accompanying teachers, however, will have to apply for an ETA visa in most cases.