Border control at United Kingdom airports: what happens to travellers and their data

Arriving: the steps at the border

Border Force runs passport control at UK airports. Its advice is to keep the passport out of luggage, take it out of its cover and open it at the photo page. Travellers should remove hats, headphones and sunglasses and put phones away when they reach an officer. Passengers do not fill in a landing card ¹.

Border Force says officers may hold people for extra checks on documents, identity, entry requirements or safeguarding. It says it cannot always explain why, for national security reasons ¹.

Passengers can pay for FastTrack passport control at Gatwick, Heathrow, Stansted, Manchester, Birmingham and Glasgow. Prices vary by airport ¹.

EU, EEA and Swiss national ID cards are accepted only for certain groups, such as people with settled or pre-settled status under the EU Settlement Scheme ¹.

Entry permission: visa or ETA

An ETA lets a visitor travel to the UK, Jersey, Guernsey or the Isle of Man for up to 6 months. It costs £20. It does not guarantee entry. Most visitors need an ETA or a visa, depending on nationality and the reason for the trip. GOV.UK says people from Europe, the USA, Australia, Canada and certain other countries usually need an ETA rather than a visa ².

British and Irish citizens, and people with permission to live, work or study in the UK, do not need one. Every traveller needs their own ETA, babies and children included. Passengers who pass through UK border control in transit need an ETA as well ².

The Home Office says ETA decisions are automated. Complex or adverse decisions are taken by a trained officer or caseworker. A person who does not want an automated decision can apply for a Visit Visa instead ³. Applications are made under section 11C of the Immigration Act 1971 ³.

Biometrics and eGates

As of 6 October 2026, Border Force says there are over 290 eGates at 15 air and rail ports. A traveller can normally use them with a biometric passport if aged 8 or over (8 to 17 year olds with an adult) and at least 120 cm tall ¹.

eGates are open to British and Irish citizens. They are open to nationals of the EU, Australia, Canada, Iceland, Japan, Liechtenstein, New Zealand, Norway, Singapore, South Korea, Switzerland and the USA who hold valid immigration status such as an ETA or eVisa. Members of the Registered Traveller Service can use them. People travelling on ID cards cannot ¹.

Contactless travel uses facial comparison so eligible passengers can pass eGates without presenting a passport. Border Force says it is available from 6 October for British citizens on British passports at participating airports. Rollout to other eGate-eligible nationalities is expected by early 2027 ¹.

ETA applicants submit a facial image. The Home Office says facial biometrics from ETA applications are typically kept for 3 years ³.

Passenger data: API and PNR

Carriers flying to or from the UK must supply travel document information, known as advance passenger information (API), to Border Force. The Home Office runs an online APIS report service for this ⁵.

PNR is booking data such as travel dates, itinerary, ticket details, contact details, travel agent, payment information, seat number and baggage. Carriers push it to the Home Office, which acts as the passenger information unit (PIU). The duty comes from paragraph 27B of Schedule 2 to the Immigration Act 1971 and the Immigration and Police (Passenger, Crew and Service Information) Order 2024 ⁴.

PNR can be used to prevent, detect, investigate and prosecute terrorism and serious crime, and to protect people at risk of death or serious injury. Sensitive data must not be processed. Data must be depersonalised after 6 months and kept for no more than 5 years. The PIU can share PNR with UK authorities, EU PIUs, Europol, Eurojust and authorities in other countries, but only after a reasoned request about a specific case ⁴.

The Home Office has published a statement on how it complies with ICAO standards for PNR ⁴.

Watch lists and checks

The Authority to Carry Scheme 2023 sits under the Counter-Terrorism and Security Act 2015. Carriers that send passenger data must seek authority to carry each person, and must not carry anyone the Home Office refuses ⁶.

Authority to carry someone to the UK can be refused for people assessed as a direct threat to the aircraft. Others who can be refused include people under a Temporary Exclusion Order, people under UK or UN travel restrictions, and people excluded or facing deportation. People refused a visa or ETA, or travelling on lost, stolen or invalid documents, can be refused too ⁶.

A carrier that breaks the scheme can face a civil penalty of up to £50,000 for each breach. The carrier must tell a refused passenger. The Home Office gives carriers a form of words that includes a Home Office phone number and email address ⁶.

Border Force lists alerting the police and security services to people of interest among its duties ⁹.

Your data: the law, retention and how to ask for records

The Home Office processes border data under the UK General Data Protection Regulation and the Data Protection Act 2018 ^3,4. Its privacy notice for borders, immigration and citizenship sets the retention periods shown below ⁷.

Anyone can make a free subject access request. The Subject Access Request Unit handles records held by immigration, citizenship and Border Force. The Home Office aims to reply within 1 month once it has all supporting documents. As of 19 October 2026, its guidance warns of delays from a high volume of requests. A basic request returns digital records since 2000 ⁸.

Concerns about PNR can go to the PIU's data protection officer. People who are unhappy with the answer can complain to the Information Commissioner's Office ⁴.

Who runs the systems

The Home Office runs the border system. Border Force is a law enforcement command within it. Border Force says its officers work at 140 sea and air ports in the UK and overseas, checking the immigration status of people arriving and leaving and searching baggage ⁹. UK Visas and Immigration answers ETA questions by webchat ².

The Home Office privacy notice says it may use contractors to take payments, take biometrics, run visa centres overseas and print biometric residence permits. It does not name them in that notice ⁷.

Security screening on departure

Liquid rules at UK airports depend on the airport. At most airports, containers over 100 ml cannot pass security. Some airports allow containers of up to 2 litres. Where an airport asks for a bag, it must be a single transparent resealable bag of no more than a litre, about 20 cm by 20 cm, one per person ¹⁰.

Liquids of up to 2 litres for medical needs, special diets or babies are allowed at all UK airports. Duty-free liquids can pass if sealed in a security bag with the receipt inside. Frozen liquids are not allowed in hand luggage. Travellers should check the rules at each airport on the trip ¹⁰.