ETA Check Status Tool: How to Check Any ETA Status Online

Short answer: start at GOV.UK's official UK ETA checker to check an existing authorisation and its expiry. It is not a tracker for a recent application that has not been granted yet. If you are waiting for a decision, the next step is your email inbox and, when necessary, UKVI support.

This guide is about the United Kingdom, not Canada's eTA, U.S. ESTA or another country's travel permission. ETA Travel Assistant is an independent information site. We cannot look up your application, and you should not send us passport details or reference numbers.

Official checking and support guidance reviewed on 11 October 2026. The examples below are illustrative situations, not claimed client cases or the author's personal experience.

Which check do you actually need?

Before opening a form, separate two questions: do you already have permission to travel, or are you still waiting for the government to decide? Searching for an “ETA check status tool” can blur that distinction. It matters because the official checker cannot answer both questions.

How to check an existing UK ETA

1. Open Check your electronic travel authorisation on GOV.UK. Read its “Before you start” information.
2. Have the passport you used for the ETA application available. Do not substitute a renewed passport and assume it identifies the same authorisation.
3. Select the government's “Start now” link. Follow the instructions in the live service rather than a copied form on a travel website.
4. Check whether you have an ETA and when it expires. Compare that information with the passport and dates for your planned journey.

The published entry page links to check-your-travel-permission.homeoffice.gov.uk. That government service has a different hostname from www.gov.uk; reach it through the GOV.UK page so you can verify the destination. Do not judge a website solely by its logo or an advert's position in search results.

We have checked the public guidance and official link, not completed a personal passport lookup. The instructions here therefore do not invent screen labels, CAPTCHA questions, response times or a list of possible results inside the authenticated service. Follow what it actually asks you to do.

What if you have lost the reference number?

The public checker guidance asks you to have the passport used to apply; it does not list an application reference as a prerequisite. That is different from contacting UKVI, where the ETA support guidance asks for your 16-digit reference number. It is in the confirmation email. If someone applied on your behalf, ask them for it.

Do not pay for another application solely because you cannot find an email or reference. First identify whether you are checking an existing ETA or chasing a decision, then follow the relevant official route.

Still waiting for the decision email?

The official application guidance says decisions usually arrive by email within a day, but you should allow up to 3 working days. UKVI's support page describes these as Monday to Friday. This is not the same as a fixed 72-hour countdown.

Check the inbox used for the application and its spam or junk folder. If another person applied for you, check which email address they used. A payment receipt or submitted-application message is not, by itself, approval. You must wait for the email confirming you have an ETA before travelling on that basis.

If no decision has arrived after 3 working days, follow the official UKVI ETA help route. The guidance says to submit only one application per person. Repeatedly applying while waiting is not an official way to move ahead in a queue.

An example of why working days matter

Suppose you submit on a Friday evening and have a Monday flight. This is an illustrative planning example, not a reported case. The weekend does not provide two additional working days. A quick decision is possible, but you should not plan around one arriving before that flight. Leave room for the published window when organising the trip.

For more detail on the email stage, see our UK ETA application status guide. Use GOV.UK for the current operational instructions if guidance differs.

UKVI support and an approaching flight

GOV.UK directs ETA enquiries to webchat and explicitly says that UKVI cannot help with ETA enquiries over the phone. There is no basis here for promising that a phone call will obtain approval in two hours. A third-party website or app also cannot give you a faster government decision.

Have your confirmation email and reference ready when seeking help. Share personal information only through the official support service, not in a public comment, social-media reply or message to this website.

If departure is close and you still have no approval, ask your airline about your booking options. Do not assume a screenshot of the payment or an agent's reassurance substitutes for permission. If you already have separate UK immigration permission, check the official exemption rules for that permission. A U.S. visa is not a UK visa and is not a substitute for the UK's entry requirements.

Passport changes, expiry and family applications

An ETA normally lasts for two years or until the associated passport expires, whichever comes first. GOV.UK says that a changed or expired passport requires a new ETA. You cannot carry the old reference over to a new passport and treat it as a transfer.

Here is another illustrative situation: you received approval last year, renewed your passport this month and booked a trip using the new document. Checking only the old approval email is not enough; follow the new-passport guidance before travelling.

For a family, treat each traveller separately. Decisions can arrive at different times even when applications were made together. One parent's approval is not evidence of a child's approval. Keep each person's passport and confirmation matched, and obtain their permission before handling their information.

Do not read ETA validity as permission to remain in the UK for two years. Travel authorisation and the conditions of a visit are separate. An ETA also does not guarantee admission. Check what you can and cannot do with an ETA for the visit itself.

If an application is rejected or refused

Read the decision notice rather than guessing the reason from a missing email or a technical error. Rejection and refusal are not interchangeable, and a fresh application is not a guaranteed fix.

The application guidance says a rejected application or changed application details requires applying again. The Home Office caseworker guidance distinguishes identity-stage rejection from suitability refusal and says there is no right to administrative review or appeal against an ETA decision.

If your ETA was refused and you still intend to travel, check the appropriate visa route and consider qualified advice for your circumstances. Do not copy a different traveller's answers, hide relevant facts or rely on a story about someone receiving a visa after a refusal. This guide cannot assess your individual eligibility.

Third parties, missing messages and technical problems

If you applied through another website and received no confirmation email, UKVI's guidance says to contact that website. Ask what was submitted, which email address was used and for the confirmation reference. Keep the agent's service receipt separate from the government's decision.

If the official checker does not load, start again from its GOV.UK entry page. A browser error is not a refusal. Do not switch to an unofficial form and enter your passport there because it promises an instant result. Use official help if the problem persists; this guide does not promise a particular response time or an alternative phone lookup.

No passport entry is required on ETA Travel Assistant. We do not connect your details to Home Office records. Our related reference-number guide provides further reading, not an official lookup.

Key Takeaways

• Use the GOV.UK checker for an existing ETA and its expiry, not to track a pending application.
• Have the passport used to apply. UKVI support separately asks for a 16-digit reference.
• Missing decision? Check email and spam, allow 3 working days, then use official UKVI help.
• Do not assume phone support, paid fast approval or a second pending application will solve the wait.
• Check each family member and any new passport separately. An ETA is not a guarantee of entry.

Scope: public UK ETA checking, decision-email and support guidance. No personal passport lookup was performed. Verify current official instructions before travel; this is general information, not individual immigration advice.