EU dithering means the British passport is just as powerful – for now
The British passport is clinging to its prestige and power according to the latest Henley Index, which measures how many countries you are entitled to visit without a visa or other form of prior authorisation.
Its 2025 ranking, released this week, shows that the British passport has slipped from joint 14th place to joint 16th, with the number of destinations we can visit without a visa falling to 190 – one fewer than last year. Singapore stands alone in first place, with the potential to visit 195 countries visa-free, ahead of Japan (193). A clutch of countries – Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Spain and South Korea – are tied for third. Britain hasn’t occupied the top spot since 2010.
The bad news for British passport holders is that the latest ranking by Henley – an international consultant which advises on residence, citizenship and visas – is only a temporary reprieve. This is because the EU’s European Travel Information and Authorisation System (ETIAS) will soon will require all non-EU citizens to apply and pay for an electronic pass before travelling to the Schengen area – the border-free zone which includes the majority of member states, plus Norway, Iceland, Switzerland and Liechtenstein.
The pass – which will, in the vast majority of cases, be issued as a formality – will be valid for three years. It will have a big impact on the UK passport’s Henley rating, because some 30 countries will then require British visitors to apply for ETIAS authorisation. Based on the current figures, the number of countries we could visit without a visa would therefore fall to around 160.
The only silver lining for British passport holders is that we still don’t know for sure when the ETIAS scheme – which has been dogged by delays – will be enforced. It is dependent on the successful introduction of a new electronic Entry/Exit System (EES) of e-gates, which will do away with the current need to have your passport stamped by an immigration official. This will require us to upload fingerprints and other biometric data to a Europe-wide computer system that will log your entry and exit dates to ensure you don’t breach the visiting restrictions.
ETIAS is expected to be introduced six months after the EES starts operating. That was originally supposed to happen in May 2023, before being delayed until the end of that year. That deadline was also missed, and then last summer the EU vowed that the EES would go ahead on November 10, 2024. Lo and behold, fresh issues saw the big launch shunted back to autumn 2025, where it remains – for now.
The changes don’t just spell bad news for British passport prestige – UK passengers arriving from outside the Schengen area have been told to expect longer waits at immigration desks. France’s public finance watchdog, the Cour des Comptes, has estimated the initial registration will at least double – and potentially triple – the current processing time of one minute, potentially spelling long delays at the border.
Amidst the EU’s dithering, Britain has managed to successfully launch its own version of ETIAS. Since January 8, all non-European visa-exempt nationalities wishing to visit the UK have been required to apply for the ETA – or Electronic Travel Authorisation – before they fly, by completing an online application and handing over a £10 fee.
The ETA requirement will apply to all European visa-exempt nationalities for travel to the UK on or after April 2 2025. These nationalities will be able to apply for an ETA from March 5 2025.
Like the US ESTA and the EU’s forthcoming ETIAS, the UK’s ETA is described (disingenuously, some say, as they are visas in all but name) as a “visa-waiver scheme”, and affects nationals of countries that can currently visit the UK as a holidaymaker without a full tourist visa.
For visitors from the Gulf States, the ETA is already being used, and has been welcomed as cheaper, easier and faster than the previous application process, while also opening the opportunity for repeat visits without extra bureaucracy.
But critics are concerned the scheme could deter tourists from Europe, Canada, the US and Australia – all of whom currently visit without any kind of red tape. The Channel Islands are concerned that French tourists might steer clear, while Northern Ireland fears losing tourists who visit while on holiday in Ireland. Airports also claim the ETA deters transit passengers.
This article was first published in January 2024 and has been revised and updated.
