With less than a week before the United Kingdom begins fully enforcing its new Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA) regime on 25 February 2026, a political row has erupted over knock-on rules that will prevent British dual nationals from boarding a flight, train or ferry to the UK unless they can show a valid British (or Irish) passport—or a costly certificate of entitlement stapled into a foreign passport.
The Liberal Democrats on 18 February urged the Home Office to introduce a short ‘grace period’ so that families caught out by the change are not stranded abroad. Shadow immigration minister Will Forster said the “chaotic communication” around the rollout has left thousands of UK citizens overseas frantically booking emergency passport appointments, cancelling trips, and, in some cases, missing funerals or medical treatment. Airlines, including Ryanair and easyJet, face fines of up to £10,000 per passenger if they carry someone who cannot prove British nationality at check-in, making carriers highly risk-averse.
![Lib Dems call for grace period as UK set to bar dual nationals without British passports]()
For those seeking clarity amid the changing regulations, VisaHQ’s UK portal (https://www.visahq.com/united-kingdom/) offers step-by-step guidance, real-time ETA updates and fast-track document services, helping dual nationals and their employers secure the correct passports or certificates before travel.
Industry groups Abta and Airlines UK back a phased approach, warning that airports could see last-minute confusion at half-term. Travel-rights campaigners add that the alternative certificate of entitlement—priced at £589 each time a new passport is issued—hits families with children hardest and may discriminate against women whose married names differ across passports.
The Home Office insists the rule is “essential to digital border security” and notes that Irish-British citizens remain exempt. Behind the scenes, insiders brief that Border Force officers will retain discretion to admit stranded Britons, but that discretion will not help them reach the border if carriers bar them from boarding in the first place. For global mobility managers the advice is clear: ensure employees who hold British citizenship always travel to the UK on a valid UK document and allow extra lead-time for renewals as passport offices face an anticipated surge over the coming days.
The Liberal Democrats on 18 February urged the Home Office to introduce a short ‘grace period’ so that families caught out by the change are not stranded abroad. Shadow immigration minister Will Forster said the “chaotic communication” around the rollout has left thousands of UK citizens overseas frantically booking emergency passport appointments, cancelling trips, and, in some cases, missing funerals or medical treatment. Airlines, including Ryanair and easyJet, face fines of up to £10,000 per passenger if they carry someone who cannot prove British nationality at check-in, making carriers highly risk-averse.
For those seeking clarity amid the changing regulations, VisaHQ’s UK portal (https://www.visahq.com/united-kingdom/) offers step-by-step guidance, real-time ETA updates and fast-track document services, helping dual nationals and their employers secure the correct passports or certificates before travel.
Industry groups Abta and Airlines UK back a phased approach, warning that airports could see last-minute confusion at half-term. Travel-rights campaigners add that the alternative certificate of entitlement—priced at £589 each time a new passport is issued—hits families with children hardest and may discriminate against women whose married names differ across passports.
The Home Office insists the rule is “essential to digital border security” and notes that Irish-British citizens remain exempt. Behind the scenes, insiders brief that Border Force officers will retain discretion to admit stranded Britons, but that discretion will not help them reach the border if carriers bar them from boarding in the first place. For global mobility managers the advice is clear: ensure employees who hold British citizenship always travel to the UK on a valid UK document and allow extra lead-time for renewals as passport offices face an anticipated surge over the coming days.
