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Economic Times
2 days ago
- Business
- Economic Times
UK replaces passport stickers with eVisas for some: What you need to know if you're planning your travel
The UK Home Office has started digitizing its immigration system, replacing physical visa stickers with electronic visas (eVisas) for various work and other visa routes. Applicants must create a UKVI account to access their eVisa, while employers need to adjust right-to-work policies. This change aims to streamline the process, reduce travel restrictions, and modernize immigration status verification. Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Also Read: UK study visa applications witness a sharp rise despite graduate route cuts Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Create a UKVI account Link their current passport to their eVisa Check their account for accuracy Generate and carry an 'S' share code in case their eVisa is not viewable while travelling Verify that new employees have completed all steps in the pre-travel checklist Conduct right-to-work checks online using the eVisa system Guide applicants with dependants on the differing procedures for family members View their visa status and expiry Share their immigration status with landlords or employers using time-bound share codes Update personal and travel document details Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Non-European nationals granted UK entry clearance through work and specific other visa routes now no longer receive a physical visa sticker in their passports. Instead, applicants will be issued an electronic visa, or eVisa , accessible through a UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI) account. The move, that kicked off on June 15, is part of the Home Office's plan to fully digitise the UK's immigration to the UK Home Office guidance, this change applies to those applying under the Skilled Worker (including Health and Care), Global Business Mobility, Global Talent, International Sportsperson, Temporary Worker (including Creative Workers and Government Authorised Exchange), Youth Mobility Scheme, and Student visa under these routes will no longer need to hand over their passports at visa application centres for visa vignette placement, reducing travel restrictions and courier delays. They can remain mobile during the processing period, though may still be called for an interview on short with stays under 90 days or dependants of main applicants will continue to receive vignette stickers in their eVisa serves as a digital record of a migrant's immigration status, replacing several physical documents such as biometric residence permits (BRPs), biometric residence cards (BRCs), passport endorsements, and visa vignette stickers. This rollout builds on earlier implementation through the EU Settlement Home Office said, 'Updating your physical document to an eVisa does not affect your immigration status or the conditions of your permission to enter or stay in the UK.'Expired BRPs and BRCs are no longer valid for travel. Travellers must ensure their eVisa is linked to a valid passport before entering the UK. If the eVisa is not properly linked, carriers may refuse under 18 must also have individual UKVI accounts, with parents or guardians managing them where who have other physical evidence of indefinite leave to remain (ILR) or indefinite leave to enter (ILE), such as wet ink stamps or vignette stickers, are advised to apply for a no-time-limit (NTL) eVisa. Individuals eligible under the Windrush Scheme or those applying under the EU Settlement Scheme can also receive an Home Office reiterated that, 'Millions have already received their eVisas since 2018 and more categories will follow as we fully transition to digital status.'Applicants are advised to follow guidance carefully, especially before international travel, and to keep both their passport and immigration details updated in the UKVI system.
Time of India
3 days ago
- Business
- Time of India
UK replaces passport stickers with eVisas for some: What you need to know if you're planning your travel
Live Events You Might Also Like: UK may rethink non-dom inheritance tax as wealthy foreigners exit Create a UKVI account Link their current passport to their eVisa Check their account for accuracy Generate and carry an 'S' share code in case their eVisa is not viewable while travelling Verify that new employees have completed all steps in the pre-travel checklist Conduct right-to-work checks online using the eVisa system Guide applicants with dependants on the differing procedures for family members View their visa status and expiry Share their immigration status with landlords or employers using time-bound share codes Update personal and travel document details You Might Also Like: UK study visa applications witness a sharp rise despite graduate route cuts Non-European nationals granted UK entry clearance through work and specific other visa routes now no longer receive a physical visa sticker in their passports. Instead, applicants will be issued an electronic visa, or eVisa , accessible through a UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI) account. The move, that kicked off on June 15, is part of the Home Office's plan to fully digitise the UK's immigration to the UK Home Office guidance, this change applies to those applying under the Skilled Worker (including Health and Care), Global Business Mobility, Global Talent, International Sportsperson, Temporary Worker (including Creative Workers and Government Authorised Exchange), Youth Mobility Scheme, and Student visa under these routes will no longer need to hand over their passports at visa application centres for visa vignette placement, reducing travel restrictions and courier delays. They can remain mobile during the processing period, though may still be called for an interview on short notice.(Join our ETNRI WhatsApp channel for all the latest updates)Applicants with stays under 90 days or dependants of main applicants will continue to receive vignette stickers in their eVisa serves as a digital record of a migrant's immigration status, replacing several physical documents such as biometric residence permits (BRPs), biometric residence cards (BRCs), passport endorsements, and visa vignette stickers. This rollout builds on earlier implementation through the EU Settlement Home Office said, 'Updating your physical document to an eVisa does not affect your immigration status or the conditions of your permission to enter or stay in the UK.'Expired BRPs and BRCs are no longer valid for travel. Travellers must ensure their eVisa is linked to a valid passport before entering the UK. If the eVisa is not properly linked, carriers may refuse under 18 must also have individual UKVI accounts, with parents or guardians managing them where who have other physical evidence of indefinite leave to remain (ILR) or indefinite leave to enter (ILE), such as wet ink stamps or vignette stickers, are advised to apply for a no-time-limit (NTL) eVisa. Individuals eligible under the Windrush Scheme or those applying under the EU Settlement Scheme can also receive an Home Office reiterated that, 'Millions have already received their eVisas since 2018 and more categories will follow as we fully transition to digital status.'Applicants are advised to follow guidance carefully, especially before international travel, and to keep both their passport and immigration details updated in the UKVI system.
Zawya
24-04-2025
- Business
- Zawya
Trump could spur central banks to adopt digital coins: Peacock
(The views expressed here are those of the author, the former head of communications at the Bank of England.) LONDON - Central bank digital currencies have often been deemed a solution in search of a problem. But U.S. President Donald Trump appears to have provided a rationale for CBDCs, even as he has banned the development of a digital dollar. A CBDC, as its name suggests, is a digital version of an existing fiat currency that would be issued and controlled by a central bank and have the same guarantees. A study by the Atlantic Council, published shortly before Trump's election win last year, found that 134 nations – including the U.S. at the time – representing 98% of the global economy were exploring digital versions of their currencies, with almost half at an advanced stage. But Trump then issued an executive order in January prohibiting U.S. agencies from establishing, issuing or promoting a digital dollar, seemingly as part of a drive to promote private cryptocurrencies and stablecoins instead. That may leave the door open for other countries to set the rules for CBDCs and other forms of digital money as they evolve. The arguments for and against CBDCs are various. They could lower the cost and complexity of financial transactions, while potentially bringing more people into the digital economy. Critics counter that existing technology can offer the same benefits, and some warn that CBDCs could threaten individual privacy and become a tool for government snooping and control. From a central bank perspective, if private stablecoins – or cryptocurrencies backed by a hard currency – come to dominate the digital currency space, they would have to be closely regulated. So the simpler option may be to issue their own digital currency instead. But the most compelling reason may be that we appear to be entering a new era of economic nationalism in which the U.S. dollar may no longer be relied upon, meaning state-run digital currencies could thus become a matter of national financial security. DIGITAL DEPENDENCY This risk of getting left behind in the digital payments race is particularly acute in Europe. Non-European payments firms process about two-thirds of euro zone credit card transactions. On top of that, U.S. tech applications process almost 10% of euro retail payments, and usage is growing fast. Additionally, most existing stablecoins are linked to the dollar, so if their use increases, the primacy of the euro within Europe's currency bloc could be undermined. This was spelled out powerfully in a recent speech by European Central Bank Chief Economist Philip Lane. 'The digital euro is not just about making sure our monetary system adapts to the digital age. It is about ensuring that Europe controls its monetary and financial destiny, against a backdrop of increasing geopolitical fragmentation.' he said. The Bank of England has sounded more agnostic about a digital pound but has nonetheless been planning and studying the matter for years. BoE Governor Andrew Bailey has voiced concern that commercial banks are not stepping up to innovate in the digital currency space, leaving the field open to less-regulated tech firms. If that persists, the Bank may need to create its own CBDC. At the same time, China is racing ahead. Usage of the digital yuan – or e-yuan - is accelerating, with transactions more than tripling between June 2023 and June 2024. DOLLAR DECLINE? The U.S. administration has indicated that it wants a weaker dollar, but not a world that can operate around the greenback. The latter would have profound consequences for U.S. economic power and its ability to service its mountain of debt, which last year amounted to more than 120% of GDP or some $35 trillion. The greenback accounts for almost 60% of global foreign exchange reserves, so a major shift away from the U.S. currency would take years, maybe decades. But given the growing trade tensions between Washington and Beijing, it is possible that China could seek to use CBDCs as a tool in a long-term battle to unseat the U.S. dollar as the foundation of global finance. And if the U.S. is the only major economy not to offer a CBDC, it risks becoming far less dominant in the global monetary system, especially if CBDCs become widely used in cross-border payments, terrain currently dominated by the dollar via the SWIFT global payments network. The Bank for International Settlements has noted that mutually compatible CBDCs could lead to more efficient cross-currency and cross-border payments, reducing costs and delays in the payments process. Already, the central banks of China, Hong Kong, Thailand, the UAE and Saudi Arabia are collaborating on a cross-border payments platform dubbed "Project mBridge" using wholesale CBDCs. And Moscow wants the BRICS nations - Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa - to create a "BRICS Bridge" international payment system, though experts see little chance of the latter coming to pass. Trump has reacted negatively to any suggestion of a rival to the dollar. In January, on his Truth Social platform, he warned the BRICS against attempts to create a new currency or back any alternative to 'the mighty dollar', at the risk of seeing their exports to the U.S. face 100% tariffs. But Washington has already let the financial security genie out of the bottle by upending established international trading norms, spurring other countries to rethink their dependency on a dollar-based and U.S.-led global economic order. It is not clear if that can be rebottled. (The views expressed here are those of the author, Mike Peacock, the former head of communications at the Bank of England and a former senior editor at Reuters). (Writing by Mike Peacock; Editing by Anna Szymanski and Nia Williams)
