Use an E-passport on arrival at London Heathrow?


For EU Passport holders:
E-passport gates – arrivals made easy    

Automated e-passport gates offer an alternative to conventional passport checks.

Simply scan your e-passport at the barrier. The system runs a face-recognition check against the chip in your passport, then if you’re eligible to enter the UK the gate opens automatically – all in a matter of seconds.

You need to be over 18 and have an e-passpochip logo for EU e passportrt (look for the ‘chip’ logo on the front) issued by a country in the European Economic Area* or Switzerland.

* The European Union and European Economic Area
EU countries: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Irish Republic, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden and United Kingdom.

Iceland, Liechtenstein, Switzerland and Norway are not members of the European Union (EU) but citizens of these countries have the same rights to enter, live in and work in the United Kingdom as EU citizens.

For non-EU Passport holders:
Border Force’s Registered Traveller Service

Apply for the Registered Traveller service to get through UK border control faster, and you won’t need to fill in a landing card.  You can apply to join the Registered Traveller Service if you regularly fly to Heathrow and you are a passport holder from:

  • Australia
  • Canada
  • Hong Kong
  • Japan
  • New Zealand
  • Singapore
  • South Korea
  • USA

At passport control, you’ll be able to use the ePassport gates (if you have a biometric passport) and the UK/EU channel.

For more information and to register visit gov.uk/registered-traveller