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If you are a national of the USA, Australia, Japan, Canada or New York you may be eligible for faster entry to the UK through its borders.

The UK Border Force has launched a new Registered Traveller service aimed at providing a faster and more convenient method of entry to the UK for nationals of the above countries. In order to benefit from this new service, you must first become a member at a membership cost of £70 for a 12 month period from the date you are provisionally accepted. The fee includes a non-refundable £20 administration fee and the remaining £50 is for 12 months membership should you be accepted on to the service.

Who is eligible for membership?

To become a Registered Traveller you will need to:

  • be a national of Australia, Canada, Japan, New Zealand or the USA
  • be 18 years of age or over
  • hold a valid visa (except Tier 5 Concessions (Sporting & Creative), EEA family permits, discretionary leave and leave outside the rules)
  • be a member of a diplomatic mission or
  • be “a visitor” (and have visited 4 times in the previous 52 weeks) in one of the following categories:
    • Business
    • General
    • Academic
    • In Transit
    • Entertainment or Sports visitor
    • Parents with a child in a UK school
    • Medical visitor.

How to apply?

To apply you would need to go to www.gov.uk/registered-traveller where you will be able to find the online application form to enable you to apply for registration. The form takes less than ten minutes to complete and you would need your current passport details.

You would then need to allow ten working days to get a decision on your application.

What happens once the online application is submitted?

Checks will be carried out to see if you are eligible to join. If your application is provisionally accepted you will receive instructions on how to complete your membership.

How to complete membership?

  • At Gatwick you should join the lanes for Registered Travellers.
  • At Heathrow you should join the ‘Other passports’ lane (or ‘Fast Track’ if you have a ‘Fast Track’ ticket).
  • At Birmingham, Manchester, Edinburgh, Glasgow, London City or Stansted you should join the ‘Other passports’ lane.
  • Those who applied in a visitor or diplomat category can also join the ‘Other passports’ at Brussels, Paris or Lille.

You are required to show your passport to the Border Force officer at passport control. They will then process your arrival in the normal way and if the officer is satisfied you meet the criteria for the service, then your enrolment will be finalised and the officer will hand you a membership card.

Advantages of becoming a member under the Registered Traveller service?

Registered Traveller offers faster entry through the UK border. At passport control, you:

  • can use the ePassport gates (if you have a biometric passport)
  • can use the UK/EU lanes or the Registered Traveller lanes (Gatwick)
  • do not need to undergo an interview on each arrival
  • do not need to fill in a landing card, and
  • do not need to provide fingerprints on each arrival if you are a visa holder.

The Registered Traveller service is available at:

  • Gatwick, Heathrow, Birmingham, Manchester, Edinburgh, Glasgow, London City, Stansted, Paris, Brussels and Lille (Rail Terminals).

For further information about how our immigration team can help you with your Registered Traveller service process, please contact the Edwin Coe Immigration Team.

Please note that this blog is provided for general information only. It is not intended to amount to advice on which you should rely. You must obtain professional or specialist advice before taking, or refraining from, any action on the basis of the content of this blog.

Edwin Coe LLP is a limited liability partnership registered in England and Wales (No. OC326366) and is authorised and regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority. A list of members of the LLP is available for inspection at our registered office: 2 Stone Buildings, Lincoln's Inn, London WC2A 3TH. "Partner" denotes a member of the LLP or an employee or consultant with the equivalent standing. Our privacy notice which we are obliged to give you under the GDPR is available here.

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