Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking through the immigration system to support the ambition of 50 million inbound tourism visitors by 2030.

The UK continues to welcome tourists from across the globe, who make an important contribution to the UK economy and enrich British culture. The UK Standard Visitor route offers individuals the ability to visit the UK for a temporary period, (usually for up to a maximum period of 6 months), for purposes such as tourism and visiting friends or family. Visitors may enter multiple times and regular travellers to the UK have the option of applying for longer term validity visas of 2-, 5- and 10-years duration.

As part of our border transformation programme, we are creating a streamlined, digital immigration system which will be quicker and more secure for the millions of people who pass through each year and will enhance the security of the UK. This will include a digital approach to applying for permission to travel, proving identity and immigration status, crossing the border, and demonstrating entitlements in the UK. eVisas are a key part of this, enhancing applicants’ experience, delivering excellent value, and increasing security and efficiency.

We are also introducing our Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA) scheme which applies to those passengers visiting the UK who do not currently need a visa for short stays and do not have a valid UK immigration status prior to travelling. People providing their information in advance of travel paves the way for increased automation at the border, with security at the forefront.

The ETA scheme currently applies to all eligible non-European non-visa nations. From 5 March, it will be extended to all eligible Europeans and will be a requirement for travel for this cohort from 2 April.

Alongside British and Irish citizens, nationals of an EU/EEA country, Australia, Canada, Japan, New Zealand, Singapore, South Korea, Switzerland and the USA, who are over the age of 10 are normally eligible to use eGates to enter the UK. Frequent travellers who are members of the Registered Traveller service are also eligible to use eGates. We encourage all eligible passengers to make use of our e Gates where possible as they provide a safe, secure and efficient way of crossing the UK border.

We continue to keep our borders and immigration system under review to ensure that it works in the national interest.