Whenever there's a new wrinkle in travel, ne'er-do-wells are quick to appear to take advantage of any confusion.
In 2025, one of those new changes is the United Kingdom's Electronic Travel Authorization (ETA), which prescreens international arrivals—including people who come by cruise ship—to ensure they won't need to obtain a visa for a visit (unless they're just passing through a U.K. airport).
Travelers from the United States and most other non-European countries have needed to prearrange ETAs since early January 2025. But because it's a new thing, word is still getting out, and that leaves the door open to scammers.
The U.K.'s new ETA should only cost Americans the rough equivalent of $20, with no added service or handling fees, and it lasts for 2 years of multiple entries.
But opportunists are springing up to misdirect travelers to third-party services or websites, some of which slap unsuspecting vacationers with unnecessary filing fees, and some of which steal personal data without providing an ETA at all.
The situation instantly got so bad that scam warnings are being issued by groups as varied as flight attendant organizations, the police in Singapore, and the Australian government.
The official site for buying the U.K.'s ETA
There is only one official government website for getting a U.K. ETA, and only one official government app.
The British government wants visitors to use the app, which is called UK ETA, because that method makes showing validation codes to border agents easier.
The U.K. government's official web page about the UK ETA app is located here.
You can use the links on that page to download the app, or access it via Google Play or Apple's App Store. The app is free to download.
If you can't use a smartphone app for some reason, the United Kingdom's government also has an ETA web page on the official government website: https://apply-for-an-eta.homeoffice.gov.uk/apply/electronic-travel-authorisation/how-to-apply.
Neither official method will charge you extra fees to buy the ETA, and because purchases are digital, they are instant and do no require any postage charges.
