Accessibility links

Breaking News

UK Plans Fully Digital Border to Provide Accurate Immigration Numbers


FILE - Migrants disembark after arriving at Dover harbor, in Dover, Britain, Aug. 12, 2020.
FILE - Migrants disembark after arriving at Dover harbor, in Dover, Britain, Aug. 12, 2020.

Britain will fully digitize its border, allowing accurate counting of people entering and leaving the country, the government said.

The move means those coming to Britain without a visa or immigration status will need an Electronic Travel Authorization — similar to that used in the United States — as part of plans to be implemented by the end of 2025.

Digital identity checks will also be used to reduce the need to visit visa application centers.

Since Britain completed its exit from the European Union at the end of last year, Prime Minister Boris Johnson has been keen to set out a new independent vision on immigration.

"For decades the UK Government has been unable to accurately measure levels of immigration and the number of people entering or leaving the country," the Home Office (interior ministry) said in a news release late on Saturday.

"New changes to digitize the border will mean we can now count who is coming in and out of the country and whether they have permission to be here."

  • 16x9 Image

    Reuters

    Reuters is a news agency founded in 1851 and owned by the Thomson Reuters Corporation based in Toronto, Canada. One of the world's largest wire services, it provides financial news as well as international coverage in over 16 languages to more than 1000 newspapers and 750 broadcasters around the globe.

XS
SM
MD
LG