NEW border regulations for visitors to the UK are having a “damaging impact” on tourism in Northern Ireland.
Since January a new Home Office travel scheme requiring all non-European visitors to obtain electronic travel authorisation (ETA) prior to their arrival has been in effect.
It means all non-European travellers must now present the ETA, which currently costs £10, to be allowed to pass through the UK border.
From April 2 the scheme will extend to European visitors too, and on April 9 the cost of obtaining the required ETA will increase to £16 per person.
The new restrictions are already having a negative impact on tourism in the North, which traditionally welcomes 67 per cent of its overseas holidaymakers from outside of Britain and Ireland via southern Ireland.
Now, tourists who wish to pay a visit to the North of Ireland while spending time in the south will have to get the paperwork done first and also pay for the privilege.
Trips to Northern Ireland, which boasts beauty spots including the Giant’s Causeway, have been cancelled due to the ETA schemeNorthern Ireland’s Economy Minister, Dr Caoimhe Archibald has this week raised the concerns of the region’s tourism industry with the British Government, urging the Home Office to “reconsider their implementation of the new scheme”.
“Deepening concerns relating to the ETA scheme have been continually raised with me by our local tourism industry,” she said.
“Over the last few weeks, I have met with tour operators in both Berlin and the US who also expressed their concerns to me.
“Indeed, as the scheme continues to be rolled out and with EU nationals due to require an ETA from April 2, 2025, the concerns of the industry are, if anything, increasing.
“This will only be compounded by the recent confirmation that the cost for an ETA will increase to £16 from April 9, 2025.”
Minister Archibald has written to Home Office Minister Seema Malhotra to urge that proposed options for an Irish exemption are brought forward.
“The concerns being raised around the introduction of the ETA scheme are in response to tangible evidence coming forward that the scheme is starting to have a definitive and negative impact on our tourism industry,” she said.
“I have been advised by representative bodies such as the Northern Ireland Tourism Alliance (NITA) and the Incoming Tour Operators Association for Ireland that the industry is seeing an increasing number of cancellations from tour groups and individual travellers to the North due to the ETA.”
The Minister also highlighted a further issue which has arisen regarding European visitors travelling on a national identity card.
“Large numbers of European tourists travel to Ireland on a National Identity card and the additional and significant cost and bureaucracy of needing a valid passport to apply for an ETA will deter these groups of tourists from travelling to the North,” she explained.
“They will instead plan their itineraries only around the south where they can still travel with their national identity card.”
Minister Archibald added: “It will also be the case that any tourist travelling on an ID card and whom would wish to travel across the border would not be able to do so because of the need for the ETA to be linked to a valid passport.
“The option to travel North would be lost.”
The Minister has requested a “further meeting” with Minister Malhotra to “discuss solutions to this deepening issue that would protect the tourism industry here”.
NITA CEO Dr Joanne Stuart has also called for an ETA exemption for travellers moving across the island of Ireland.
“The introduction of the ETA scheme is already having a clear and detrimental impact on our tourism sector, with tour operators reporting significant cancellations and Northern Ireland being removed from itineraries,” she said.
“The requirement for European visitors to hold a passport in order to apply for an ETA is a major barrier, particularly for key demographics such as younger travellers and older tourists who often don’t have a passport and travel using EU identity cards.”
She added: “We urge the Home Office to reconsider our call for a practical exemption that allows for seamless cross-border travel, ensuring Northern Ireland remains an attractive destination for international visitors.”