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. The UK is introducing another form of prior permission to travel which broadly applies to those non-British or Irish citizens who do not require an entry clearance. See Practice Note: The Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA) scheme.

Leave to enter

For those who do not require entry clearance, leave can be granted by means of a stamp added to the passenger’s passport by an Immigration Officer, orally by an Immigration Officer, or automatically, when going through an eGate (which is generally only possible

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