Leave to enter and remain

Other than British or Irish citizens (or Commonwealth citizens with the right of abode) a person wishing to travel to the UK generally requires leave, ie permission, to enter and remain in the UK.

Depending on their nationality, some non-British or non-Irish citizens require entry clearance in all cases before travelling to the UK and, generally, all non-British or Irish citizens coming to the UK for more than six months require entry clearance. This is issued either as a stamp in the passport or in digital form as an eVisa. For further information, see Practice Note: Permission to travel to the UK. For those who require leave, but do not require entry clearance, such as non-visa national visitors and short-term Creative Workers, they will require prior permission to travel in the form of an Electronic Travel Authorisation (an ETA). See Practice Note: The Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA) scheme. They will then require to be granted leave to enter on arrival.