Transit visa rules for US and UK passports

Passport validity varies more than visas do. Schengen wants your passport valid 3 months after you leave (and, for UK passports, issued less than 10 years before you arrive). Singapore and the UAE want 6 months. Türkiye asks British passports for 150 days after arrival. Hong Kong asks for 1 month after departure.

A connection on one ticket, with bags checked through, keeps you in the international transit area. You do not pass immigration, so entry rules do not apply at any of our 15 hubs. Two situations change that. On separate tickets you usually have to collect your bags and check in again, which means entering the country. And a change of terminal can force you landside at some airports, so check the route before you book.

For Heathrow, GOV.UK says you need an ETA if you are "passing through border control at a UK airport before continuing your onward journey". Its ETA pages do not cover airside transit, so ask your airline if you are unsure. Our Heathrow layover page covers the three-hour return rule.

The European Commission says EES "became fully operational on 10 April 2026" at the external borders of 29 European countries. It records your name, passport details, fingerprints and a facial image, and the dates and places you enter and leave. It replaces passport stamping. There is no fee.

For a layover, it means time. Your first entry includes the biometric registration, so the queue at Amsterdam, Paris, Frankfurt, Zurich, Lisbon or Keflavík can be slower than you remember, and you face an exit check when you fly out of Schengen. Our layover pages build that into the minimum layover; see the European layover ranking for the hubs where it still pays to go into town.

ETIAS is the travel authorization the EU will ask of visa-free visitors, US and UK citizens included, for stays of up to 90 days in any 180. On October 22, 2026, the Commission's page said it is "currently not in operation" and that no applications are being collected. No start date has been announced; the EU says it will give one several months before launch. The fee has been set at $22 (£16.80; €20), up from $7.90 (£5.90; €7), and applies once the system is live. Do not pay any website that claims to sell ETIAS today.

US citizens need an Electronic Travel Authorisation to enter the UK, including to leave Heathrow on a layover. It costs $27 (£20) per person, babies and children included. You apply on GOV.UK or in the UK ETA app; a decision usually arrives by email within a day but can take up to 3 working days. It lasts 2 years or until your passport expires, for visits of up to 6 months, and it does not guarantee entry. British and Irish passports are exempt. GOV.UK warns to avoid websites that imitate government services.

Korea's K-ETA costs $7.50 (£5.60; ₩10,000) on the official k-eta.go.kr site, and the review usually takes up to 72 hours. US passport holders are exempt through December 31, 2026; the State Department says that "starting January 1, 2027, you will need a K-ETA before traveling to South Korea." GOV.UK says British nationals are "temporarily exempt from requiring a K-ETA until December 31, 2026" and says nothing yet about 2027. Incheon's free transit tours require you to enter Korea, so the rule applies to them too. See our Incheon layover page.

Doha: the State Department says US citizens may get a visa on arrival that "costs 21 USD per person", valid 90 days, with six months' passport validity beyond departure and two blank pages. Visit Qatar lists a confirmed hotel booking among its conditions. British citizens enter visa-free. Dubai: US citizens with a regular passport get a visa on arrival for up to 90 days in any 180; British citizens get a free visit visa on arrival.

Both countries carry a US Level 3, Reconsider travel, advisory in 2026: Qatar for the risk of armed conflict (updated October 1), the UAE for terrorism and armed conflict (updated September 17). Entry is allowed; whether to leave the airport is your call. Our Doha and Dubai pages cover both.

Singapore wants the free SG Arrival Card within 3 days before arrival, and Taiwan the online Taiwan Arrival Card, required of every visitor since October 1, 2025. Japan takes fingerprints and a photo on arrival and uses Visit Japan Web for arrival procedures.

There is no airside transit in the US. The State Department says Visa Waiver travelers, British citizens included, "must have valid Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA) approval prior to boarding" a US-bound carrier, so you need one even to change planes. The ESTA fee rose to $40.62 (£30) from October 16, 2026, under the fiscal 2027 inflation adjustment published in the Federal Register. Apply only on the official CBP site.

Canada asks British citizens for an eTA to fly to or transit through a Canadian airport; it costs $5 (£3.70; C$7). US citizens need neither a visa nor an eTA. For airlines that turn a connection into a free stop, see our free stopover programs guide.